need some last minute thanksgiving ideas?

i spent today shopping for thanksgiving and had long conversations with other shoppers in whole foods and trader joe's. first, i was buying brussels sprouts and a women asked me how i was going to prepare them. apparently her husband's cousin loves brussels sprouts and specifically requested them for t-day. she had never prepared them before and was in a bit of a panic. i shared with her my easy & delicious recipe for roasted brussels sprouts with garlic & balsamic...slow roasted at high heat until the sprouts are caramelized, sweet and amazingly good. even brussels sprouts "haters" love them. i gave her my blog address, helped her select the most beautiful looking produce and sent her on her way. another customer was listening and asked if i made mashed potatoes. she confessed her version always tasted "gummy". i told her i make smashed potatoes with roasted garlic at thanksgiving...i am a texture person and like the bits of skin, chunky potatoes and garlic pieces in this preparation. she loved the idea and asked for the recipe. i happily obliged. (note, i normally do not chat up other shoppers...but... hey... they came to me!!)

driving home, it occurred to me that the emotion both of these women shared was panic. they were stressed, unhappy and not at all looking forward to cooking the thanksgiving meal. kinda sad don't you think? i think this totally misses the point of the holiday which is giving thanks for all that we have and sharing the day with the people that we love. otherwise, what is there to celebrate?



my advice is to do what makes you comfortable...do what makes you happy. cook easy dishes that celebrate the harvest. select the best quality, freshest, local, organic-if-you-can ingredients and don't muck them up with overly complicated preparations. learn to roast and make it your best friend in fall/winter. nothing is simpler than roasting the turkey, sweet potatoes and brussels sprouts. if you are not a baker...and don't want to learn...by all means buy your pie from your favorite bakery. better yet, ask a baker friend to provide dessert.

i love to cook...but my thanksgiving menu is easy-breezy because i want to relax and enjoy this day. i want to eat, watch football, take our annual thanksgiving walk throughout downtown napa and get a first peek at the holiday decorations....maybe take a nap?
for my menu this year, i am intrigued by a stuffing recipe i found in bon appetit...cornbread with andouille sausage, fennel & bell peppers. i think i will substitute italian sausage because it sounds really good with the fennel. my turkey recipe is also from bon appetit, but from a few years ago. and because i love to tinker with ideas, i am going to make my tried and true pumpkin pie recipe...but add a brown sugar-walnut topping that i saw in...yet again... bon appetit. i have included the recipes for all three of these ideas...but the links will take you to the exact bon appetit version. i will let you know after t-day how my "tweaks" turn out.

so here is my thanksgiving menu, with links to all the dishes i talked about in this post. if you are still searching for recipes, feel free to use any/all of them. every one is delicious. to all of you, a happy, healthy and delicious thanksgiving. (for the non-americans reading this post...try the dishes anyway, they are really good...and happy start of the holiday season!)

our 2010 thanksgiving menu
*roast turkey with herb rub and shiitake mushroom gravy
*cornbread stuffing with andouille, fennel & bell peppers
(bon appetit, nov 2010 page 113)
*smashed potatoes with roasted garlic
*roasted sweet potato fries (recipe follows)
*roasted brussels sprouts with garlic & balsamic
*harvest chutney
*pumpkin pie with brown sugar-walnut topping

roasted sweet potato fries
4 large organic sweet potatoes, scrubbed and unpeeled
extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp aglio, olio, peperoncino (or 2 garlic cloves minced, 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes, 1 tsp italian parsley chopped
grey salt
freshly ground black pepper

preheat oven to 400 degrees. cut sweet potatoes into french fry shapes..as thick or thin as you like. spread onto a rimmed baking sheet ensuring they are in a single layer. use two sheets if necessary. drizzle the olive oil over the potatoes, 4-5 passes of the bottle. using your hands, turn the fries in the oil ensuring all sides are coated. sprinkle the aglio (or seasonings), salt and pepper over the top of the fries. roast for 1 hour , or until fries are golden brown and a bit crunchy. (thicker cut fries may need a bit longer, check every 15 minutes after the first hour). serve immediately.

this is the last week of fall fest and the topic is "bounty to be grateful for" . what a perfect way to end the season. simply leave your favorite thanksgiving tip or recipe or favorite links in the comments below, and then go visit the collaborators listed on the blog away to garden and do the same.

massive thanks to margaret roach and deb puchalla for coordinating fall fest 2010. as always...it has been a blast. looking forward to next year

best and happy cooking! happy thanksgiving everyone!
diane

diane padoven
founder/president
napa farmhouse 1885™
"live a green life of style™ "
do you like us? really like us? then please join our facebook fan page

to receive special offers only available to our preferred customers, please sign up for the mailing list on the right hand side of this post...

eggrolls for thanksgiving?

yes...if you are fortunate enough to spend thanksgiving with my twitter friends diane and todd, the creative force behind the wonderful blog white on rice couple. white on rice couple is one of my favorite sites because i learn something new every time i visit...they describe themselves this way..

"Carpe Diem! We're cooking instructors, food writers, avid gardeners, travelers and photographers. Trying to live life to the fullest, we never cease to explore new global sights, sounds, flavors and adventures."

todd was born in oregon, diane in vietnam...and they both now live in southern california...their recipes are an amazing fusion of their lives, histories, family traditions and travels...their photography is beautiful..their recipes clear and easy to understand...and...best of all for me...they make creating really good vietnamese food at home possible...i always thought it would be hard and complicated...trust me...read their blog...you will be inspired to try their recommendations...

so, when they agreed to guest blog for my thanksgiving memories series i literally jumped for joy (o.k. by now you know i can be a bit of a drama queen...but i really was very, very happy)...diane took the lead on this post and...no surprise...shares a delicious sounding recipe using turkey on thanksgiving but with a twist...in addition, she shares one of my favorite american traditions...merging cultures to create the true meaning of thanksgiving...i can't wait to give these eggrolls a try....in the interim..trust me on this..check out the white on rice couple's blog....and let me know what you think in the comments section of this post...

"The huge feast at my parents house on Thanksgiving has always reflected the multicultural influences inspired from each and every family member. One of the challenges, though, has always been how to make turkey interesting for my Vietnamese parents . Mom and Dad never grew up eating Turkey in Vietnam, so when they finally did have their first bite, turkey lacked the fat and flavor from their standard duck and chicken.

Basically, eating turkey was very unexciting for them, and on the verge of food torture.

But on the other hand, my siblings and I (all six of us) loved turkey, gravy and all the trimmings because it was a refreshing change from our daily intake of rice and noodles. It was the one day of year that we could indulge in everything that was Native American Indian and Pilgrim. So every year when Thanksgiving rolls around, it was always the tale of two feasts: one that was more Vietnamese inspired for my parents, and for the kids, one that was as close to possible to what the Pilgrims had near Plymouth Rock. History class taught us many culinary lessons.

To please every palate, tradition and generation gap, our Thanksgiving spread was a reflection of the Far East meets East Coast Pilgrim style. We have, to please the kids, a roast turkey, gravy, potatoes, rolls, corn and almost everything that could be duplicated from what us kids learned from school. For Mom and Dad, there was the noodles, Vietnamese herbs, and lots of fish sauce to dress the "dry, bland, flavorless" turkey. The kids had the giblet gravy, while Mom and Dad had the fish sauce style gravy, full of chiles, garlic and everything else that gave them the satisfying comfort of a Vietnamese home.

As time evolved and we all learned to cook beyond the traditional trimmings, we started to get creative with not just the turkey, but with other roasts and hams. The protein moved well beyond the turkey. Although we have added new sources of protein, creative vegetable dishes and desserts, the turkey always makes a star showing at the table. No matter what happens, all my brothers love their simple turkey and gravy. Take that away from them and you have a mutiny of four monstrous appetites. That's why we keep the turkey.

So to add to the energizing creativity of foods that has been coming out of the kitchen now that many of us cook, the evolution of the turkey as taken us to making eggrolls (fried springrolls). It has the meat to satisfy my hungry brothers, and the flavors of the traditional egg rolls that Mom and Dad love eating. Now everyone is happy crunching on these crispy, savory turkey rolls. It meets the best of both food worlds for all members of our expanding family. It's a tradition that will continue for many more generations to come.

Turkey eggrolls are easy and a delicious alternative to the Thanksgiving appetizer. Not only is it a great way to creatively use turkey meat, but the addition of traditional Asian flavors and spices make it a delicious finger food for all ages. Even for those turkey haters, these turkey eggrolls have been the ambassador to positive turkey eating. It's a great dish that will be making the Thanksgiving rounds for many more years .

The most important part of these turkey eggrolls is that they brings two different food cultures together harmoniously for a heartwarming Thanksgiving meal."

Turkey Eggrolls (with bacon)
To keep to the integrity of the healthy aspect of turkey, you can omit the bacon. We like adding bacon because of the extra fat ( we love our fat) and flavor. It's amazing what extra flavor the bacon adds to the turkey!

Ingredients:
1 lb fresh ground turkey

5 slices bacon
1/2 cup chopped rehydrated glass noodles (about 1 small individual package). Optional, if available.

1/2 cup chopped rehydrated black fungus mushrooms (wood ear mushrooms) or chopped fresh mushrooms.

3 green onions, chopped

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

1/2 cup chopped cabbage

1 tablespoon fresh cracked black pepper

1 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons fish sauce

2 large cloves crushed garlic

1 pkg of about 25 springroll wrappers or rice paper wrappers.

Vegetable oil or Peanut oil for frying.

Fresh lettuce, sliced cucumber and mint, basil or available herbs.

1. Par-fry bacon till just slightly crisp, but still soft. Remove bacon from oil and chop bacon.

2. Rehydrate glass noodles and/or black fungus mushrooms in hot water, drain. Chop these, as well as green onions, cilantro and cabbage.

3. Mix all ingredients together in large bowl . Using your hands, dive into the bowl and mix everything together well. Mush it all between your fingers to ensure that all chopped ingredients are blended well.

4. If using rice paper wrappers, dip rice sheets in warm water for a few seconds. Place rice sheet on your work surface (cutting board or plate). Let rice sheet soften and become gelatinous for about 1 minute. Start on the wrapper edge closest to you, place about one full tablespoon of filling on edge of wrapper. Slowly roll and shape filling to a tubular shape. Roll about the first 1/3 of wrapper, then fold in both sides and continue the roll until it is completely finished.

-For flour based/pastry springroll wrappers, follow wrapping instructions as above. But use a bit of egg white to help seal all the edges and seams of the springroll wrappers. These type of wrappers do not need to be dipped in water. Use them straight from the package.

For more photographs on wrapping technique, visit Spring Rolling Techniques

5. In frying pan or deep fryer, place about 1 inch of vegetable oil. Let oil heat up slowly on medium heat. Gently place rolls in hot oil and fry on each side until golden brown.

6. Serve warm with fish dipping sauce, fresh lettuce, slices of cucumber and mint, basil or what ever herbs are available.

Makes about 25 rolls, but depending on how big your rolls are and how much filling you use, the recipe may only make about about 12-15 rolls.

so..from one diane to another..thank you so much for guest blogging on my site...let's do it again sometime soon...for everyone else...happy thanksgiving...

best,

diane

napa farmhouse 1885™

"live a green life of style"™

follow me on twitter