I have been contributing to Thanksgiving dinners since I was a child, doing everything from polishing the silver to serving the cocktails to making all the side dishes to inventing new deserts. However, this year will be the first that I'll be hosting and, admittedly, the thought fills me with dread.
I've thrown many a party and cooked many a feast in my time but the idea of making a whole turkey in a temperamental oven is, simply, frightening. Thus far, I've dealt with my problem in my usual way--avoiding it by becoming absorbed in everything that surrounds it. In this case, the side dishes. By dint of my location (Las Vegas) and the thrift shop acquisition of a pertinent Sunset cookbook, we are having a southwestern Thanksgiving this year.
On the menu: sweet potatoes with tequila and lime, garlic green beans with Manchego, corn pudding (I'll be adding some chiles and perhaps sprinkle some cheddar cheese on top), mashed potatoes, cranberry salsa, cornbread chorizo stuffing, roasted poblano gravy and, of course, that blasted turkey. The thought of it stops me cold so I can't even plan desert, although I am thinking about pumpkin cheesecake or sweet potato cupcakes with dulce de leche pecan frosting. Although I could just say the heck with the whole thing and go over to Freed's Bakery and order a Thanksgiving dinner cake.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
11-21-2008 @ 12:38PM
sprezzatura said...
Geez, I thought I had found the perfect Southwestern-y sweet potato recipe to make my turkey day a little edgier (http://www.oneforthetable.com/oftt/sides/smoked-chile-scalloped-sweet-potatoes.html)but now I want your tequila lime version. Maybe we need two kinds of sweet potatoes and NO white potatoes, which would suit me just fine....
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11-21-2008 @ 12:43PM
sprezzatura said...
Oops - screwed up the link to my other favorite: http://www.oneforthetable.com/oftt/sides/smoked-chile-scalloped-sweet-potatoes.html. It's def worth checking out.
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11-21-2008 @ 1:24PM
LinC said...
My recommendation for the turkey is to use a Reynolds turkey oven bag. The skin won't be crisp, but the turkey will cook in a nice, moist environment that gets it done a bit more quickly. No basting (which does nothing but waste oven heat). No grease spatters in the oven. Just follow the directions on the little booklet in the box. If you want to make gravy, pour the juices out of the bag after you lift out the turkey. Good luck!
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