Monday, 30 November 2009

• Our IRLF Intern's Thanksgiving Chaos: Part Two

  Editor's Note: Part one of Elizabeth's quest to prepare her first ever Thanksgiving dinner can be read here.
  

  
  
  

  Fresh cranberry sauce, my own recipe too!
  

  After prepping the Turkey, there was still the matter of all those side dishes. Probably the worst part of the whole thing was waiting. Sure, I got most difficult part of the process completed, but there was nothing else than I wanted to finish the entire thing.

  Wednesday, Nov 25
  

  I wasn't too sure how busy it was going to get on Thanksgiving day, so I decided to make some sides early, you know food that is okay to eat when cold. The only thing I could possibly make the night before was the cranberry sauce. I was pretty darn proud how it came out in the end. The recipe is under the cut. It's the most simple sauce recipe, ever.
  

  Cranberry-Pomegranate Sauce

  • 1 bag of fresh cranberries
  • 1/2 cup of orange juice
    
  • 1 cup of pomegranate juice (in this case I used Cherry-Pomegranate juice)
  • 1 cup of brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup of granulated sugar 

  You can also use fresh pomegranate seeds as you wish, but not many people will be fond of eating larger seeds from the fruit.
  

  Directions:
  

  1. Add the cranberries and juice into a pot. 

  2. Heat the pot on the stove on medium-high, with the lid on for about 15 minutes. Use a spatula to check if the cranberries are soft.

  3. Keep stirring the cranberries until soft, and until you have more a thicker texture.

  4. Let cool for an hour. Add spices if desired.
  

  After it cools the sauce should be a good thick texture.
  

  
  

  Looks store bought!

  I got about a quart of cranberry sauce from the bag of cranberries, if you used the pomegranate fruit, you'd probably end up with more.
  

  That night, I took the turkey out of its brine and rinsed it with water. The directions said to refrigerate the bird and put towels on the top to soak in whatever type of moisture on the outsides of the turkey.

  And again, the waiting game. Only of course, I couldn't get to sleep until 3 a.m. and had to wake up at 6 a.m. to cook the turkey...

  Thursday, Nov 26

  Okay, my plan to wake up at 6 a.m. failed, but I still woke up at 9 a.m. to cook the turkey. I watched some guy prep the turkey, and watched Gordon Ramsey how they prepped their birds with butter. Under the skin and on top, so I did the same to my turkey. Although, their way looked so much more cleaner and neater than mine.
  

  
  

  My mom helped me tying up the turkey after I stuffed the inside with four small peeled apples, two onions, rosemary, sage leaves. It started to look nicer, but ugh! that broken part of the turkey still peeved me.
  

  The first hour it cooked it at 500 degrees to let the skin brown, and the rest cooked until the white meat was at 150-155 degrees, and the dark meat 175-180 degrees. Even though 160-165 degrees is the average recommended cook time for white meat, it's actually overcooked, leaving your turkey dry. Brining helps keep the turkey's moisture as well.
  

  One thing I learned is that you can be lazy, as long as you have a meat thermometer. Stick that sucker on the thickest part of the thigh. DO NOT STICK IT ON THE BONE OR NEAR IT. It will give you a false reading.
  

  I invested in a digital thermometer that you can stick into the meat which has an alarm to tell you when the turkey is at the right temperature. It's $20, and good investment if you plan to cook other meats in the future, or making candy or jam.

  Again... the waiting game.

  
  

  
  

  Every 30 minutes or so, I basted the turkey with the sage, and apple "glaze".

  In the middle of waiting, I made mashed potatoes and steamed vegetables. Unfortunately, I didn't take any pictures!
  

  Okay, a few hours went by and this was my result of the turkey...:

   

   

  Skin was burnt, but the meat was very moist! 

  I waited for my family to arrive at 6 p.m., but they took to long. My brother couldn't wait any longer, so he chopped a drumstick and ate while we waited for the rest of the family to arrive.

  My turkey didn't look physically perfect but I was happy everyone liked eating it and found it moist.
  

  How was your Thanksgiving? If you'd like to share your saga, submit it here in the next few days and we'll post it on the front page.
  

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