Turkey Dinner at Kathy's

Who best to tell you how to cook a turkey? Why Butterball of course, and you can follow their instructions at How to Roast.

And starting in November, you can always call the Turkey Talk-Line Info at 1-800-BUTTERBALL or 1-800-288-8372. Open to residents of the United States and Canada.

I've included my recipes for my stuffing, cranberries and gingered carrots below. Keep in mind I do most of this by eye and not exactly sure on exact measurements, although any recipes you make should always be to your taste.

And I couldn't believe how hard my turkey stuffing recipe was to write out, it's amazing how we make certain things for years and never really pay attention to measurements and quantities, but think I have it down correctly LOL

Try my stuffing recipe the first time as I have written and then try it later to adjust the ingredients to your own taste and preferences.

5 packages of Kraft Stove Top Turkey Stuffing Mix - Now I have tried other brands of packaged Turkey stuffing mixes and didn't like them, so I only buy the Kraft Stove Top. When I make this for the quantity I want, I use 5 packages. If you use more or less, depending on how many you are feeding, you then have to adjust the rest of the ingredients accordingly.

1 package of Uncle Ben's Classiques Brown & Wild Rice with Burgundy Wine Flavour * update below - This rice really makes the stuffing.

1 bag of dried bread pieces - This is made by the grocery store bakery, they are cut up bread pieces, like croutons. I use a minimum of a 1/3 ratio of these bread pieces to the Kraft Stove Top. The package our local store makes up is a mix of different bakery made breads; white, multi grain, rye, sourdough etc) which adds again to the flavor.

1 package of pecan pieces - about 3/4 cup

1 package almond slivers - about 1 cup

1 Macintosh apple - small to medium size

Small handful of dried cranberries (optional)

1 stalk celery

1/8 cup onion - white or red

5 cups of home made turkey stock - Again this is what makes it so flavorful. Don't use water or commercial stock, unless you absolutely have too, but if you do that's ok, it just won't taste as good. How rich and flavorful the stock is depends on the overall taste of how your stuffing will turn out. I prefer a more drier stuffing, so I tend to go on the low side of the liquid. I know a lot of people like moister stuffing, so add the amount of liquid to what your preferences are.

Becel Margarine

Butter

Dried savoury (to taste)

As we live in a small community and many of the things I like are not in stock all the time, I purchase special items such as my Uncle Ben's Classiques Brown & Wild Rice with Burgundy Wine Flavour once per year in bulk.

I was starting to get low in 2008 so added this to my shopping. Unable to find this in any of our stores I went to the Uncle Ben's website.

* gasp * it appears they don't make this brand any more or at least sell it here! This is one product I will definitely miss.

I took a look over the varieties they have now on the website and the closest one appears to be Whole Grain and Wild Rice. Of course you can use your favorite rice, but using a mix of both brown and wild rice really does add a nice flavor and texture to the stuffing.

Most people make turkey stock using the parts left over (after cleaning the bones and meat from the turkey) and simmering them in water.

I take these bones and left over parts and throw them back into the oven first, before I simmer them.

Bake at 325 degrees for 1-2 hours or until nicely browned.

By doing this one additional step, I find my turkey stock ends up far more flavorful!

I do this the night before only to reduce a couple of things on cooking day. If you want to do the almonds and pecans on the same day, that is fine.

Almonds

I add a ratio of 3/4 Becel margarine and 1/4 butter (not sure of exact measurements) and you need quite a bit. Melt the margarine/butter in a fry pan on the stove. This truly is a waste, as you throw out most of the melted mixture at the end, but you need a lot to do fry up the almonds nicely.

You may have to do in two batches, depending on the size of your fry pan.

Slowly and on a medium-low heat, continually turn over the almond pieces until browned. Be careful, they burn easily.

Once browned, remove from pan and put onto paper towels to drain and wipe off melted margarine/butter. I continually keep putting on clean paper towels until they are relative clean of the melted butter mixture.

Lightly salt, and let sit until completely cool.

Keep them spread out, don't have the almonds all piled on each other or they don't get nice and crisp.

Once completely cooled, you can put into a bowl and cover.

This is not added to the stuffing mix at any stage. These are put on the table and added to the stuffing on the plate.

Pecans

Toast the pecan pieces in an oven or toaster oven and thoroughly cool - put aside until step 9 below.

1. Empty all the Kraft Stove Top Turkey Stuffing Mix boxes into a non-stick type baking dish (large)


2. Break up the pieces of the bakery dried bread pieces into small pieces. I use more of the end/crust pieces. I also tend to pick mostly the multi grain, sour dough and rye pieces. Not sure of the amount I use, since I do this by eye, so do it to your taste. I usually do approx a 1/3 ratio to the Stove Top mix. Be careful though you don't use too high of a ratio of the dried bread pieces to the Stop Top stuffing mix or the spice mixture in those boxes will not be enough, and why I end up adding savoury at the end.


3. Prepare the Uncle Bens Rice separately, according to directions, although I use a little less water, and once cooked and slightly cooled (around 5-10 mins) add to the stuffing mix in the baking dish. I use around 3/4 of this cooked rice and eat the rest for a quick snack.


4. Mix well the dried stuffing mix and cooked rice.


5. Dice up the onion and celery, in frying pan on medium-medium low heat in butter (approx 2-3 TBS) around 5-7 minutes (you need enough for the apples in next step and also to have a bit of butter liquid to the stuffing mix)


6. Coarsely cut one small to medium size Macintosh apple. Once the onion and celery is almost cooked, I throw the apple pieces into the frying pan and cook for a minute more.


7. Mix well the dried stuffing mix, cooked rice and celery/onion/apple.


8. Throw in a small amount of dried cranberries (optional).


9. Add the toasted pecan pieces (and not the almonds).


10. Mix everything really well.


11. Add 1/2 the turkey stock, adding all over the entire mixture in the pan (not all in one spot), mixing well before you add the next half of the stock.


12. Add remaining turkey stock, mix really well, you may want to add more stock depending how it looks and your preference for drier/moister stuffing.


13. Let sit for around 1/2 hour, mix well again, and then taste, I usually add the dried savoury to taste.


14. Mix well again and then cover with foil.


15. Bake at 325°F for approx 20 minutes covered (when you take off the foil it should be steaming).


16. Remove foil and bake uncovered for another 10-15 minutes (this step I like because it dries it out a bit, so you can bypass this one if you prefer a moister stuffing).

Don't forget when the stuffing is being served on the table that the almonds are on the table on the side and everyone adds what they want on top of their stuffing

This is just so simple, yet so yummy! And this really makes the typical cranberry sauce taste special!

Ingredients

2 packages of Ocean Spray fresh cranberries
zest of orange coarsely cut
1-2 good quality flavourful oranges (I use either Honey or Mineola oranges)
handful of dried cranberries

Directions

1. Zest the orange (I use around 20 long scrapes of the zest pieces) and coarsely cut (basically if long strips, cut in half or third), put aside.


2. Peel the oranges really well, removing as much of the skin, pith and any hard stuff, coarsely chop (make sure and do this on a plate to save all the juices)


3. Cook cranberries according to directions and immediately add the zest while cooking.


4. Half way through cooking the cranberries, add the orange pieces and dried cranberries.


5. Let cool


6. Refrigerate until served

This receipe I have always made by eye and taste, so I don't have exact measurements. when I make it this Thanksgiving, I'll try to remember to take some measurements.

Ingredients

carrots - whatever amount you require
lemon juice
butter
ginger (fresh or grated in the bottle)
white sugar
parsley

Directions

1. Slice carrots thin, as thin as you can.


2. Add to pot, cover carrots with approx 1' water.


3. Add lemon juice, ginger, butter and sugar to taste (not a lot as you will be adding more later).


4. Bring to boil, cover and simmer until cooked.


5. Drain carrots, remove from pot, hold aside.


6. Add lemon juice, butter, ginger and sugar to taste, back in the pot, melt and cook on low, until sugar melted (make as much as you want on the carrots).


7. Add carrots back to pot, stir until well coated.


8. Add parsley

So far we have:

- a beautiful roast turkey
- with my orange cranberry sauce
- my fabulous turkey stuffing
- gingered carrots

And to finish off my delicious turkey dinner, I will also have:

- whipped mashed potatoes and homemade gravy
- baked sweet potato and apple with brown sugar
- corn

And of course, Pumpkin Pie for desert, no, I don't make this, who has time? One of the larger stores out of town has a fabulous bakery.