Plan for the Feast

turkey day is my favorite holiday! i have hosted every year since we got married (that would be 9 years this june) except for last year. last year the entire house caught an icky stomach bug and the turkey went over to my in laws house. i am hoping this year we are healthy and able to eat together :)

here is the plan for the feast:

Turkey I have a 19 lb turkey that I will rub with sage then butter (under the skin too) and then sprinkle with salt and pepper. In the neck cavity I place a few sage leaves, lemon slices and green apple. I also stuff the turkey (stuffing below) before placing it in a turkey cooking bag.

Stuffing
diced bread that has been "crusted" up (good bread is best...sour dough, french, etc)
bag or two of pepperidge farm coutons
chopped celery
chopped onion
butter
sage
thyme
salt
pepper
broth
chopped green apple
2 eggs beaten

Saute the celery, and onion in butter. Add to the bread cubes and croutons, salt, pepper, and herbs. Toss with your hands. Add apple. Then add eggs, mix with hands. Now add broth, a bit at a time, until it is moist but not too wet. Place in a baking pan or stuff your turkey. I do both.

Pull Apart Bacon Rolls
12 strips bacon diced
1 loaf frozen bread dough, thawed OR frozen roll dough thawed
2 T oil
1 cup shredded mozerella
1 envelope ranch salad dressing mix

Cook bacon. drain. Roll out dough to 1/2 inch thickness, brush with oil. Cut into one inch peices and place in a large bowl. Toss with bacon and dressing and a bit of oil. Arrange in a circle on a greased baking sheet. layer as needed. cover and let rise in warm area for 30 min or until doubled. Bake 350 15 min then cover with foil and bake 10-15 minutes more.


Green Beans with Creamy Mushrooms and Shallots
**I don't do green beans but these are TASTY!!!!! 
1 3/4 lbs green beans trimmed
1 T plus 1 1/2 tsp olive oil
2 large shallots thin sliced
3/4 cup broth or stock
2 T cornstarch
8 oz cremini mushrooms, trimmed and sliced
1/2 cup 2 percent greek yogurt
salt and pepper

blanch green beans until tender--6 minutes or so
heat 1 1/2 tsp oil, cook shallots until tender and starting to brown. put in small bowl and wipe skillet clean. wisk together corn starch and stock. heat remaining oil over high. cook mushrooms until golden brown, 6 minutes. reduce to low. add shallows. wisk in stock mixture. cook until thick (3 minutes or so), remove from heat, add yogurt. season with salt and pepper. toss in beans and serve warm.

Sweet Potato Souffle 
Beat together: 3 cups cooked mashed sweet potatoes, 1 cup sugar, 1/2 cup evaporated milk, 2 eggs, 1 tsp vanillac, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 stick butter.

Put in a greased cassarole dish.

Topping: mix together and put on top of sweet potato mix.  1 cup chopped pecans, 1 cup brown sugar, 1 stick butter, 1/3 cup flour, 1/2 tsp cinnamon.

Bake 350 for 30 min or until knife comes out clean.

Grandma Johnson's Deviled Eggs
12 egg yolks
4 T mayo
2 tsp vinnegar
1 tsp salt
dash pepper
1/2 tsp paprika
1 tsp dry mustard OR 2 tsp prepared mustard

mix and refill egg whites

Garlic Mashed Potatoes
made with half and half that is simmered with garlic

Pickles and Olive Tray

Desserts:Pumpkin Pie from Klackles Orchard
Hazelnut Chocolate Tortes (thanks mom boyer for making these)

weekly menu and recipes

Saturday: date night
Sunday: Beef Roast (see below), Homemade Mashed Potatoes with Gravy, Roasted Broccoli, French Bread and Caramel Apples (thank you mom b for the yummy apples)
Monday: Spaghetti and Bread
Tuesday: eat out after appts
Wednesday: Beer Pizza Crust (penzey's), Fruit and Chips
Thursday:Tuscan Herb Marinaded Chicken Tenderloins (skwered), Roasted Sweet Potatoes/Potatoes (see another blog post for recipe), and Carrots
Friday: Grilled Steak, Baked Potatoes and Frozen Broccoli
Saturday: Pumpkin Carving Party
Sunday: Carnitas (see other post for recipe) 
Monday: Warmed Sandwiches

Roast
NEED:
1 beef roast
2 cups broth (or Penzy's Beef Stock in a jar--4 tsp mixed with 2 cups water)
a bag of baby carrots
4 cloves of garlic whole
Steak Seasoning (peppercorns, salt, spices)
Dried Italian Herb Mix

DO: put garlic and carrots in the bottom of a crock pot
place roast on top
liberally put steak seasoning and herbs on top of roast
pour broth/stock around roast
add additional seasoning/herbs to broth for more flavor
cook on low ALL DAY

SERVE
take meat out, shred. place carrots next to beef. use liquid for gravy--put in a pan, bring to boil. mix 1 tbs cornstarch with 1/4 cup of cold water. stir into boiling liquid. boil until thickened and cool slightly before serving.

Mashed Potatoes
NEED
yukon gold potatoes
half and half
butter

DO:
peel and cube potatoes
boil in salted water until done (tender)
mash with hand masher--adding butter and half and half until you get the consistency you desire
add salt to taste

Roasted Broccoli
NEED
broccoli
olive oil
seasoning (i used green goddess by penzy's spices but you could use anything)
salt

DO:
cut broccoli into bite sized pieces. dry on paper towel. toss with oil and seasonings. put on a baking sheet. place in oven (450) for 15 minutes or until heated through and at the consistency you desire.

Pizza Crust

• 
  
  2 Cups warm water
• 
  
  2 TB. honey
• 
  
  2 TB. active dry yeast
• 
  
  7-8 Cups all purpose flour
• 
  
  2 tsp. salt
• 
  
  4 TB. olive oil
• 1 12 oz. can beer
  

Toppings (Large Pizza):

• 
  
  2-3 TB. extra virgin olive oil; a thin coating
• 
  
  1/2-1 Cup tomato sauce
• 
  
  2 tsp. PIZZA SEASONING (an absolute must)
• 
  
  4 oz. turkey pepperoni
• 
  
  4 oz. chopped up Canadian bacon
• 
  
  4 oz. chopped sun-dried tomatoes (drain well if packed in olive oil)
• 
  
  4 oz. sliced olives
• 
  
  4 oz. sliced mushrooms
• 1/2 Cup finely shredded Pecorino Romano and/or mozzarella cheese
  

Mix the yeast with the water and honey in a small mixing bowl. Mix 4 cups of the flour with the salt in a large bowl. Once the yeast becomes foamy, pour it into the bowl with the flour mixture. Add the olive oil and beer. Stir to combine and then add the remaining flour 1/2 cup at a time, stirring until the dough isn’t sticky. Once you’ve reached 7 cups of flour, turn the dough out of the bowl onto the tabletop and knead for a few minutes until smooth and elastic, sprinkling with flour as needed to keep it from sticking. You may not need the full 8 cups. Once the dough is soft, smooth and elastic, place in a deep, greased bowl and let rise 45-60 minutes, or until double in size. Once risen, you're ready to make pizzas! This makes 2 large or 4 medium pizzas. Divide the dough into 2 or 4 balls. This is the point where you would freeze any crusts you’d like to save for later—just wrap them well in plastic wrap.

Preheat oven to 425°. Have all the topping ingredients assembled before rolling out the crusts. If you are using a pizza stone make sure it is also heating in the oven. Sprinkle a flat surface with flour and gently roll out the dough and place the prepared crust on a pizza paddle sprinkled with cornmeal or a perforated pizza pan.

Add the toppings to each pizza. Any combination of the above works, or add your own favorites.

Carefully transfer the pizza pan to the hot oven, or shift the pizza off the paddle onto a baking stone in the hot oven and bake for 10-15 minutes, or until the edges have browned.

Prep. time: 90 minutes
Baking time: 10-15 minutes
Serves: 4 per large pizza