Success!
I managed to skirt a couple of near disasters and actually pulled off a pretty decent Thanksgiving dinner.
I started the day in a mode of high anxiety when I awoke at what, to me, felt like 9:00 - 9:30 am. When I looked at the clock I was shocked to see it was 11:00 am. A couple of weeks of poor sleep and insomnia had caught up with me and so I'd slept solid from when I'd turned out the light about eight to nine hours earlier.
It was a good thing I'd gotten the soup done Wednesday night. It was also a good thing that the main event - namely the turkey - was two boneless turkey breasts, thus drastically reducing the time in the oven.
I calmed myself down, figuring I had plenty of time to get everything done by the 3:00 pm kick-off, so to speak. I had my recipes, sorted my ingredients accordingly, and went to work. The menu?
Pumpkin Soup with Chili Cran-Apple Relish
Herb Roasted Turkey Breast with Pan Gravy
Pumpkin Loaf-Zucchini Stuffing
Manchego Potatoes
Orange Scented Green Beans
Desert was provided by friends Myrt and the Corkster - Pumpkin-Walnut Pie and Apple Cranberry Pie with fresh whipped cream on top.
The menu was courtesy of (don't gag) Rachel Ray. Yum-o.
So, I had about three and a half hours to crank out this feast. Rachel Ray can do it in one. I'm not Rachel Ray. It takes me at least twice as long as she to dance her jig. Plus, I'd never done any of this menu before. Risky? You betcha'.
I gotta tell ya'. Cooking is hard work. Chopping, slicing, grating, mashing - who needs a gym? That is, if you don't eat what you cook!
Of course, it didn't go as smoothly as I'd planned. I was one apple shy, but called on Myrt and the Corkster to fetch it. The zucchini had magically morphed into a cucumber overnight so the stuffing was edited.
I got the turkey in on time, basted it after twenty minutes and reset the timer for another twenty five - with an eye on the thermometer, too. When the timer went off, I looked at the thermometer which read only 140 - not the 170 it should be reading. Then I noticed something odd. My oven was quiet. No sizzling. The oven fan wasn't running.... Oh, jeeze.
My oven has a flaw. The only way I know of to turn the timer beep off is to hit the cancel button. The problem, though, is that also turns off the oven. So, when I'd turned the timer off at twenty to baste, I'd also turned the oven off.
But, of course, in my panic at the time I didn't know how long it'd been off. I reset it and put my faith in the thermometer. In a few minutes it hit 170 and I took the turkey out. I crossed my fingers and hoped it was done.
Time was getting short and my anxiety was climbing - I had yet to clear off and set the table and to make myself presentable. I had to sacrifice the latter. I'd showered when I got up, thank goodness, but the hair'd air dried and I was sporting my White Sox jersey. However, I'd run out of time and just had to go "as is." Fortunately my friends don't care about such things. But I knew my mother was shaking in the urn. She would not have approved!
Myrt and the Corkster arrived, the wine was uncorked and dinner was served. There's not much that can best sharing a good meal with great friends. I simple love sitting around the kitchen table with friends and just shooting the breeze. The best of times.
So Thanksgiving was a success - complete with leftovers which, speaking of, are calling to me now. Turkey sandwich, Manchego potato pancake and pie for desert. Oh yes. Yum-o!
Click the thumbnails below for some before and afters (BG - avert your eyes...):
