Category Archives: turkey

by | November 27, 2010 · 11:07 pm

Thanksgiving Recap!

     Good morning!!! Why so good, you ask? I think it’s because I got a full night of sleep after the longest day of my life.

     Yesterday was absolutely INSANE. As a lowly retail worker, I was forced awake after four measly hours of sleep so I could head off to my job and prepare to receive all the Black Friday shoppers at 3:50am. A-M!!! And so, armed with a gigantic to-go mug of coffee (which, by the way, does NOTHING at three in the morning), I stood at my counter to face the onslaught.
    
     I could not believe how many people actually showed up! The store had lines by 4:10am. If I offend you here, get over it: ALL YOU BLACK FRIDAY SHOPPERS ARE INSANE!!! Why anyone would want to subject themselves to such an ordeal is beyond me. I was barraged by swarms of teenagers chugging Red Bull, adults wearing onesies (seriously), and elderly people who are normally up at this time, but now have an excuse to be at the mall speed-walking even earlier.

     I worked until noon, then went home and crashed for an hour, waking up in order to eat more leftovers and stare in a daze at the television while my mind feebly attempted to comprehend the images that flashed before me. Needless to say, it was a long day.

     THANKSGIVING! Let’s have a recap!

I made the most AMAZING cranberry sauce I’ve ever tasted!
Big thanks to Angela for posting it!
I doubled the recipe. I used 3 and a half cups of fresh cranberries, 1 cup of pure, real maple syrup, 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt and  2 teaspoons of balsamic vinegar. DO NOT SKIP THE BALSAMIC VINEGAR! This makes the sauce EPIC!
     I also made Itty Bitty Herbed Pumpkin Knots. It was a Glow-y kind of day!
Post-kneading, pre-rising.
IT ROSE! That has never happened to my dough before!!!
Punched, spread out and sliced!
Wrapped into cute little packages. Lovely!
     We had to set up the table in a fancy fashion to fully appreciate the feast that was set before us!
Quaint and festive – just the way I like it 🙂
My one (and only) plate. Clockwise from the top: homemade whole wheat stuffing, a pumpkin knot, turkey with the most amazing cranberry sauce in the world, green bean casserole made with fresh green beans and homemade vegan cream of mushroom soup and caramelized onions, and mashed potatoes with gravy. 
     I was left comfortable full after my plate, and retired to the couch with a glass of Brochelle to have some quality time with the parental unit. The things I do for family, eh? 
     I hope your Thanksgiving was as wonderful as mine! I also hope that you spent Black Friday at home on the couch in your pajamas like everyone is supposed to. If you were out shopping, be warned that I have a little bit of anger towards you. I’d say it’s not personal, but that would be a complete lie.
Have an amazing weekend! Time for some more recuperation for myself!

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Filed under Black Friday, Brochelle, cranberry sauce, epic, itty bitty herbed pumpkin knots, pumpkin knots, Red Bull, retail, Thanksgiving, turkey

by | October 7, 2010 · 10:13 pm

Thanksgiving in October!

     I’ve been feeling pretty under the weather lately: I’m sure none of this is attributed to diving into the ocean at 2am on the polluted shores of California. It’s just coincidence.

     In order to take care of myself and try to heal, I had to bring in the full forces. I loaded up on Throat Coat tea, Emergen-C, Green Monstas and Pumpkin Ale. (Pumpkin Ale is helpful to sore throats, isn’t it?)

I tried Shipyard’s Smashed Pumpkin on Monday night. This beer is slightly hoppy and has a fruity sweetness to it. It was a little TOO sweet for me, but had lots of pumpkin spices added and gave off a clove/nutmeg scent.
I tried this one last night – Kennebunkport Pumpkin Ale. I found it at Trader Joe’s and bought a single, and MAN am I glad that’s all I got! It tasted like really cheap Bud Light (I’ve never actually had Bud Light so I’m just guessing here…) with a handful of rancid pumpkin seeds thrown in.
Luckily I’d prepared for such an occasion, and was able to fall back on Stockyard Oatmeal Stout to cleanse my palate of the awful taste of rancid pumpkins. Stockyard is like a refreshing sip of icy mocha and contentment.
     Yesterday I had training for a new job that I’m beginning in November. I’m going to be an artist’s assistant! 
    I was bored and scanning Craigslist one day after grappling with a lot of discontentment in my life and stumbled across an ad. I sent in an e-mail inquiry and she immediately wrote back and asked me to call her. That same day I met with her and had an interview and was offered the job! Basically, I’ll be traveling with her to about thirty art shows a year throughout the western states and helping her set-up, break down, answer client questions, help with sales, experience some amazing road-tripping and discover a bunch of new people and FOODS at art/wine festivals. I’ve been needing an escape recently and after lots of praying, this fell into my lap.
     I spent the training day using a ton of power tools, drilling, putting together displays and benches, lifting incredibly heavy boxes and getting to know the routine. I am going to be so ripped after all the heavy lifting I’ll be doing for this job! I headed home after a few hours of working in the rain (I LOVE RAIN!) and got started on an early Thanksgiving dinner with the roommate.
We cooked a turkey breast, marinated in lemon zest, garlic, herbes de provence, salt and pepper and olive oil, and made mashed potatoes with brown gravy. We were planning on roasting some zucchini and asparagus, but vetoed that idea after the turkey needed an extra hour in the oven to be edible and we were just too ravenous to wait any longer.
     Too early for Thanksgiving foods? NEVER!

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Filed under gravy, mashed potatoes, pumpkin ale, rain, Shipyard Brewery, Stockyard Oatmeal Stout, Thanksgiving, turkey