My Thanksgiving Menu

For Thanksgiving this year, my husband and I are going to his brother's house, which means I won't be hosting the dinner, I'll just be supplementing. 

I am 39 years-old and I have never actually hosted a Thanksgiving meal myself.  Next year, it's my year.   Mark it down.  Put out the flyers.  Lorie's hosting dinner even if she is the only person who shows up.

But for this year, I have a list of things to bring and here they are:

Two smoked turkey breasts.  My hubby will do these.  And I say that very loosely.  I bought them, thawed them, will remove the wrapper, inject them, season them, clean up all the raw turkey blood/juice that will get on my counter and then he will put them on the grill and smoke them.   Then I'll insert the thermometer and let him know when they're done.  Then he'll remove them to a pan that I've handed him and he'll bring them into me and I'll cover them with foil.   Later on, I'll wash the pan.  I'll probably clean up the grill, too.  And he'll get all the credit.

Two coconut pies.  I've never made a coconut pie before.  I have a zillion recipes, but my hubby said he wanted an old- fashioned coconut cream pie with meringue.  I am a whipped cream girl, so after much searching, the two recipes I've settled on are both from Emeril Lagasse.  Best Ever Coconut Cream Pie for me because it has coconut milk in it and Coconut Cream Pie for hubby because it has meringue and seems old-fashioned.  I'll let you know how they turn out.  I have already made six Perfect Pie Crusts and they are waiting for me in the fridge and freezer.

Italian Cream Cake.  My brother-in-law Larry just has to have this at Thanksgiving, or so says my sister-in-law, Tamara.  My mother-in-law usually makes this but the torch has been passed to me.

Mashed Potatoes.  I would reeeeaaallly like to make these mashed potatoes, but my in-laws and hubby are really into traditional Thanksgiving food, so roasted corn in the mashed potatoes would probably not be a good idea.  I'll just make the regular ones.  You really should try them sometime, though.  I don't mean to brag, but they are really, really delicious.  You could leave out the cilantro and chipotle and they would be awesome covered in gravy.

Brown Gravy.  For my hubby.  He doesn't do giblet gravy.  My mom makes some killer giblet gravy and I love it.  But I won't be with my mom. :o(  I've already bought my McCormick brown gravy packets.  [Foodies shudder everywhere.] ;o)

Italian Salad.  Just wanted something fresh and raw.  I know it's not Thanksgiving-y, but oh well.

Here are a couple of other recipes I wanted to link you up to.  For the last three or four years, I have been eyeing this recipe in one of my Pampered Chef cookbooks, but have never gotten around to making it.  Last night at our Thanksgiving supper at church, the fabulous Tonya Bedwell brought one that she had made.  I seriously had to hold my self back from eating a second piece.  Total yumminess.

Also, my own sweet Amber made this Turtle Pumpkin Pie and even though I am temperamental about pumpkin, it was really, really good.   She's turning all domestic-y and the transformation brings me happiness, joy, and lots of snickering behind her back. 

So that's what I'm bringing.  I don't know if I'll be blogging this week or not.  Sugar Plum said she will be live pie blogging on Wednesday, so I'll be checking in with her as well as all of my other foodie friends.  If I was a decent blogger, I would live blog, too.  I'll have to think about it.

And for your viewing pleasure...

From The Kitchen Of Zoe Grace...

My recent trip to Missouri was centered around a very special event.  My niece, Zoe, turned four-years old.  

When Aunt Lorie comes to visit, we always bake or cook something, so when I saw this adorable chef's dress-up costume, I just had to get it for her birthday. 

She loved it and immediately got her kid's cookbook off the shelf so we could pick out something to make together.  We wound up making these ice cream mice.

The important thing to remember when you're working with a four-year old in the kitchen is to just allow them to dive in and use their little hands. 

Give a kid a Tootsie Roll and they'll roll it into a rat's tail.  That's what I always say.

 

She had fun and Aunt Lorie had LOTS of fun. 

At the end of the stay, she asked me "Do you want to come back at criss-uh-mus?  You could help us put lights up."

I melted into a puddle of sticky sweet goo right then and there.  

Then she added that  "flying on a plane is much quicker."  She must have heard about our driving woes and wanted to give us a little tip.  Four-year olds have all the answers sometimes.

Ice Cream Mice

6 miniature graham cracker crusts

6 large scoops of vanilla ice cream

Round chocolate covered cookies, such as Reese’s cookies, or Keebler grasshopper cookies, for the ears

Chocolate covered peanuts for the eyes

Malted milk balls for the nose

Chocolate sprinkles for the whiskers

Regular sized Tootsie Rolls for the tails

1.   Place a scoop of ice cream in a graham cracker crust.

2.   Press in the cookies, chocolate covered peanuts, and the malted milk balls for the ears, eyes, and nose.

3.   Add three chocolate candy sprinkles on each side for the whiskers.

4.   Roll out a Tootsie roll on a cutting board until it’s long and thin like a mouse’s tail.  Press into the ice cream.  Refreezing at this point will cause the tail to break off, so you may want to add the tail right before serving.