Thanksgiving cooking - early birds.

[draggar]

Funny how I put so much into this when it is jut my wife and myself.

The turkey (breast) is in the fridge thawing (slowly - I'll leave it out tomorrow).

I'm also baking some mini-cakes.

Tomorrow night I'll probably cook the (butternut) squash since that is a project in itself and I don't mind it being reheated (and my wife doesn't like squash).

Anyone else getting some cooking done early?

[AdminAssistant]

Anyone else getting some cooking done early?

Might help Mom make a pie or something tomorrow night, but that will be after an 8 hour drive, so I'll be a wee bit tired.

[AriGriffin]

I am going to my aunt's house for Thanksgiving this year. She has forbidden anyone from bringing any food... which means I have a turkey defrosting, a can of cranberry sauce in the fridge, and I am getting ready to make a cheesecake. All to eat on Black Friday before I go to the Dickens Festival.
My aunt tries really hard to make a nice fancy Thanksgiving/holiday meal and that is the problem. She ends up making stuff I can't eat or tastes horrible. Mom said that Dad used to say my aunt was better suited to cooking appetizers and stuff in a microwave. Mom said something about going early to help her cook and to watch the parade on her big screen tv. My uncle is going to deep fry the turkey this year.
My other aunt, her husband, her daughter, mom's dad, and mom's stepmom are going to be there.

[RecoveringKinkoid]

Gonna go to the store later and get some stuff. Planning on doing a light antipasto, and maybe some roasted peppers (my sister likes them...evidently, I make the best roast peppers...which is ironic, because I hate them.). Might make some butter...Dad loves my fresh churned butter. I'll do the peppers and butter tomorrow and probaby do the antipasto Thursday morning.

That's not really early, though.

[Green_Fairy]

i live in an apartment with a really temperamental oven. luckily, i happen to have two slow-cookers. i'm doing a turkey breast for The Boy and i in one and stuffing in the other. mashed potatoes are coming out of a box (which i actually feel bad about since i was raised in idaho), gravy's in a jar. the only things that i'm baking are croissants and a huckleberry pie. we're gonna be eating leftovers for weeks. it's awesome ^_^

[calulu]

Doing a lot of my baking today since I have to duplicate everything, with wheat for the non-allergics and wheatless for us wheezers. Making Cranberry Amaretto pound cake,Hummingbird cake, pecan & pumpkin pies, pralines and pumpkin scones. Can you tell my college aged son is coming home? I guarantee you that none of this will be left by Monday. The boy eats like a horse.

[Rine]

We got a 27 pound turkey days ago (big crowd expected for dinner) and it's thawing still. Tomorrow we are going to make the bread, potatos, and pumpkin pie (thank GOD we found some libby's because most of the stores are out.)

[draggar]

mashed potatoes are coming out of a box (which i actually feel bad about since i was raised in idaho)

I wouldn't worry about it - they've gotten a lot better over the last 5-10 years. They actually taste like potatoes now!

[Green_Fairy]

yay! i remember cardboard tasting potatoes...i tried looking for those steam and mash taters but i guess i wasn't looking in the right place at my local wally-world...then again i was pretty much running through it today cuz that place is so terrifying this close to thanksgiving

[MaggieTheCat]

I actually just finished peeling and slicing about 16 apples for homemade applesauce. They're in the crockpot now with a bit of water and cranberry juice. We're not having our big dinner till Sunday, so this is really early to get started, but applesauce keeps for months in the fridge anyway, and I figured we could have some with dinner tonight.
I'll be doing a lot of stuff on Saturday, the day before our dinner. Browning the sausage and onions for the stuffing, baking at least one of the desserts (cheesecake that needs to chill for at least 8 hours), making the dough for one of the other desserts (pie dough that needs to chill for several hours), making the glaze for our ham so it has time to thicken a bit. I have my entire day Sunday planned out, hour to hour, from 7:30am to about 4:30pm.

[pitmonkey]

Started the baking today. I make a family recipe flat bread that my FIL asked about last week. Is made soft or crisp like a cracker. Also making cookies..chocolate crinkles, fattigmands, peanut butter blossoms. If any make it that long.

[BookstoreEscapee]

Might make some butter...Dad loves my fresh churned butter.

My roommate is making butter with her kids tomorrow at school. I came home to find her with our black-hole of plastic storage containers (aka the bottom-corner cabinet) half empty as she searched for a dozen containers that will stand up to lots of shaking without leaking. She did it last year with her first-graders; this year she's teaching 5th grade but I'm sure they'll have fun with it, too.

I don't cook...we go to my aunt's for dinner, and I'm sure my parents will bring something (usually a vegetables & dip tray or mashed potatoes). I did get a turkey from work...mine was almost 16 pounds. It's in my parents' garage freezer and my mom will cook it at some point.

[MaggieTheCat]

Hey RK, how do you make your fresh butter? Do you have a recipe for it? I'd love to try that sometime.

[HYHYBT]

I don't know, but I do know not to try making butter with skim milk...

I can cook, but not as well as *anyone* else in the family. So I get to bring the drinks

[calulu]

Heavy cream and a pinch of salt, put in jar and shake until it starts making butter flakes. Eventually you'll have butter and liquid.