Oma had a rather outlandish stuffing which used ground beef that I could never quite get into, and there was always the swimming pool afterwards. I don't remember much more than that, really. I don't think it happened more than a couple of years. My family's like that. My mom and her brothers didn't really get along.
Still, I at least got a feel for the family vibe, which pains me now to recall as I am more than a bit estranged. It's the religion thing.
A few years ago I noticed how many 'orphans' lived in California. You know, the kids that left home to follow their dreams; to make something of themselves. Most of them are quite impoverished, needing one or more roommates to afford an apartment, frantically working several jobs to make ends meet. No way could they afford to fly home for Thanksgiving. As a retail manager, listening to their wistful memories of the holiday at home gave me ideas, and I started to invite people over for Thanksgiving Dinner. I finally had a family..sort of hehe. Being appreciated for my cooking skills on this day gives me a chance to step back and appreciate things in general. Thanksgiving is all about appreciativeness, isn't it? I am thankful Oma taught me how to cook using more than just recipes. I am thankful I have a home. I am thankful I have Jeff. *gasps again*
More than anything I am thankful for the true love I found, at long last. He makes all the song lyrics I ever thought were sappy, all the tales of unconditional love....true. He is with his family today, and while I admit I cried a little out of loneliness for not having one of my own to share the day with, he reminded me that someday his family would be mine too. Look, another thing to be thankful for.
Oh, and for posterity, here's tonight's menu:
Turkey Breast with Sausage-Apricot Stuffing
3 pounds pork sausage, maple flavored
8 cups dried bread crumbs, *see Note
4 cups pecan halves
2 cups chopped dried apricots
1 cup Butter, melted
1 1/3 cups chicken broth
8 stalks celery (1 cup) sliced 1/2-inch
4 medium onion (1/2 cup) chopped
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon dried sage leaves, crushed
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 turkey breast, Bone-in (9 to 12-pound)
12 tablespoons Butter, melted
1. Heat oven to 350°F. Brown sausage in 10-inch skillet over medium heat; drain off fat.
2. Stir together browned sausage and all remaining ingredients except turkey breast and 3 tablespoons butter in large bowl. Gently loosen skin from turkey in neck area to make large area to stuff. Stuff with sausage mixture; secure skin flap with toothpicks.
3. Place remaining sausage mixture in 1-quart covered casserole; refrigerate. During last 30 minutes of turkey breast baking time, bake remaining stuffing for 25 to 30 minutes or until heated through. Place stuffed turkey breast, breast-side up, on rack in roasting pan. Brush with 3 tablespoons melted butter.
4. Bake, basting occasionally, for 2 to 2 1/2 hours or until meat thermometer reaches 170 to 175°F and turkey breast is no longer pink. Let stand 10 minutes.
Note: I usually make my Maple Pecan Corn Bread a day in advance instead of plain dry crumbs.
Maple-Pecan Cornbread With Maple Butter
Corn Bread
2 cups cornmeal
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
6 tablespoons butter, softened
4 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar
6 eggs
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
2/3 cup maple syrup
2 teaspoons maple flavoring
1 1/2 cups chopped pecans, toasted
Maple Butter
1 cup butter
2 tablespoons maple syrup
2 teaspoons maple flavoring
1. Heat oven to 350°F. In small mixer bowl combine cornmeal, flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda. In large mixer bowl combine 3 tablespoons butter, brown sugar and eggs. Beat at medium speed until well mixed (1-2 minutes). Add buttermilk, 1/3 cup maple syrup and 1 teaspoon maple flavoring. Continue beating until well mixed (2-3 minutes). Reduce speed to low; add flour mixture. Continue beating, scraping bowl often, until well mixed (1-2 minutes), By hand, stir in pecans. Spoon into greased 13-inch square baking pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. (Corn bread may dip slightly in center.)
2. Meanwhile, in small mixer bowl combine all maple butter ingredients. Beat at medium speed until fluffy (2-3 minutes). Serve with warm corn bread.
Note: I doubled this recipe to use approx half of the bread for the stuffing.
Sweet Potatoes with Apples
8 medium sweet potatoes, or yams
1/2 cup Butter, softened
1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon grated orange peel
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 medium Granny Smith apples (2 cups) peeled,cored, coarsely chopped
1. Heat oven to 350°F. Prick sweet potatoes with fork to allow steam to escape. Bake for 55 to 65 minutes or until folk tender.
2. Cut thin, lengthwise slice from top of each sweet potato; scoop out inside, leaving thin shell. Place shells on 15x10x1-inch jelly-roll pan; set aside.
3. Place hot sweet potato and all remaining ingredients except apple in large mixer bowl. Beat at medium speed, scraping bowl often, until well mixed and no lumps remain (2 to 3 minutes). Stir in apples by hand. Fill reserved shells with sweet potato mixture. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until heated through.
Velvet Mashed Potatoes
12 medium boiling potatoes (4 lbs) peeled, and cut into large pieces
3/4 cup milk (to 1 cup)
1/2 package cream cheese (8 oz) cut into cubes, and softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1. Heat 1 inch water (salted if desired) to boiling in Dutch oven. Add potatoes. Cover and heat to boiling; reduce heat. Cook 30 to 35 minutes or until tender; drain. Shake pan with potatoes over low heat to dry.
2. Mash potatoes in large bowl until no lumps remain. Beat in milk in small amounts, beating after each addition (amount of milk needed to make potatoes smooth and fluffy depends on kind of potatoes used). Add cream cheese, margarine, salt and pepper. Beat vigorously until potatoes are light and fluffy.
Deep Dish Almond Pumpkin Pie
1 pie shell, deep dish
Almond Layer
1 cup almonds, finely chopped
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
3 tablespoons butter, softened
2 teaspoons flour
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
Pumpkin Filling
1 1/4 cups granulated brown sugar
3 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 eggs
1 1/4 cups pumpkin, canned or cooked
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1/3 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon molasses
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
Decorations
1 egg white, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon water
whole almonds, optional
1. Preheat oven to 425ºF. For crust, reserve a small amount of pastry for decorative cutouts for top of finished pie.
2. Almond Layer:
Combine almonds, brown sugar, butter, flour and almond extract; toss with for until well blended. Spoon into unbaked pie shell. Press firmly on bottom and partway up side of crust. Refrigerate.
3. Filling:
Cream sugar and cream cheese in large bowl. Beat in eggs, milk, sour cream and molasses at low speed of electric mixer. Add cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, ginger, cloves and almond extract; beat 1 minute. Spoon over almond layer.
4. Bake 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350Fº; bake for 50-60 minutes. Cover edge of crust with foil, if necessary, to prevent overbrowning. Cool to room temperature.
5. Increase oven temperature to 400ºF. Line baking sheet with foil.
6. For decorations, roll out reserved pastry and cut out desired shapes. Place on baking sheet Combine egg white and water; brush over pastry cutouts. Garnish each with an almond. Bake 5-7 minutes or until golden brown. Cool. Arrange on cooled pie.
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