– Picture above does not necessarily represent this recipe –

With growing up in Springfield, MO, I experienced Thanksgiving like everyone else. We had the traditional turkey with all the trimmings including a Detroit Lions game on TV and tackle football in the front yard with the other kids. Where my holiday differed from others was not on Thanksgiving Day, but the day after. Every year the day after Thanksgiving meant that we would go to my Grandmother’s house in the center of town on Fremont for a very special lunch that was highlighted by “Turkey Tamale Pie”, a recipe she claimed her mother gave her. It was hot, cheesy, and had big hunks of turkey with corn and veggies in a wonderful cornmeal base. We loved it! This is a great dish to use when getting rid of leftover turkey. Your family will thank you for it!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 large onion, chopped
• A little oil or margarine
• 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
• ½ to 1 can (about 8 ounces drained weight) pitted black olives, drained
• 1 (12 ounce) can vacuum-packed corn, drained
• 1 tablespoon chili powder (more or less, depends on hotness of chili)
• 1 (16 ounce) can kidney beans, mostly drained
• 6 ounce grated cheddar cheese (other cheeses left from your feast will work as well)
• Leftover cooked turkey, diced or shredded
• Salt and pepper
• 1 (8½ ounce) package cornbread mix (Jiffy brand), mixed to directions with milk and egg but not baked, or ½ recipe made-from-scratch cornbread batter

PREPARATION

Sauté onion in large frying pan. Add tomato sauce, olives, corn, chili powder, kidney beans, cheese, turkey, salt and pepper. Turn into 8 x 12-inch baking pan. Top with cornbread batter; it will only partially cover the filling. Bake at 400°F for 20 to 30 minutes.

Cooking a traditional Thanksgiving turkey scares many of us to death. It doesn’t have to be scary. To create the recipe below, I took the best aspects of many different recipes and combined them to make a recipe that is easy to follow and turns out to be the best turkey you have ever had. There are some key elements to keep in mind when cooking the turkey:

1. The brining process is important. It really does work and adds moisture and flavor.
2. Get a thermometer. This is the best way to determine when a turkey is done. Overcooking can lead to a dry turkey so it is important to get it out of the oven when it has just finished cooking.
3. Letting the turkey rest. Always let the turkey rest and covered for at least 15 minutes before carving. This allows the juices to be absorbed by the meat giving you a moist turkey.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 (14 to 16 pound) frozen young turkey

  For the brine:

• 1 cup kosher salt
• ½ cup brown sugar
• 1 gallon vegetable stock
• 1 tablespoon black peppercorns
• 1½ teaspoons allspice berries
• 1½ teaspoons chopped fresh garlic
• 1 gallon heavily iced water

  For the aromatics:

• 1 red apple, sliced
• ½ onion, sliced
• 2 ribs celery sliced
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 cup water
• 4 sprigs rosemary
• 6 leaves sage
• Canola oil

PREPARATION

2 to 3 days before roasting:

1. Begin thawing the turkey in the refrigerator or cooler, kept at 38° F.
2. Combine the vegetable stock, salt, brown sugar, peppercorns, allspice berries, and garlic in a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Stir occasionally to dissolve solids and bring to a boil. Then remove the brine from the heat, cool to room temperature, and refrigerate.

Early on the day or night before you’d like to eat:

1. Combine the brine, water and ice in a 5-gallon bucket. Place the thawed turkey (with innards removed) breast side down in brine. If necessary, weigh down the bird to ensure it is fully immersed, cover, and refrigerate or set in cool area for 8 to 16 hours, turning the bird once half way through brining.
2. Preheat the oven to 500° F. Remove the bird from brine and rinse inside and out with cold water. Discard the brine.
3. Place the bird on roasting rack inside a half sheet pan and pat dry with paper towels.
4. Combine the apple, onion, celery, cinnamon stick, and 1 cup of water in a microwave safe dish and microwave on high for 5 minutes. Add steeped aromatics to the turkey’s cavity along with the rosemary and sage. Tuck the wings underneath the bird and coat the skin liberally with canola oil.
5. Roast the turkey on lowest rack of the oven at 500° F for 30 minutes. Insert a probe thermometer into thickest part of the breast and reduce the oven temperature to 350° F. Cook to 161° F. A 14 to 16 pound bird should require a total of 2 to 2½ hours of roasting. If you don’t have a thermometer, pierce the thigh. When juice runs clear, turkey is done. Let the turkey rest, loosely covered with foil or a large mixing bowl for 15 minutes before carving.

TURKEY PAN GRAVY

INGREDIENTS

• Turkey giblets
• Turkey neck
• 1 onion, cut in half
• 1 carrot, chunked
• 7 cups water
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/3 cup turkey fat, including drippings
• 1/3 cup flour
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• Salt to taste (1-2 teaspoons)

PREPARATION

1. When you remove the giblets and neck from the turkey, place in heavy saucepan and add onion and carrot. Add water and bay leaf and bring to a simmer. Simmer on low heat, covered, while the turkey cooks. You may need to add more water as it evaporates – add just ½ cup at a time.
2. Remove stock from heat and strain; discard giblets, neck, and vegetables.
3. Skim fat from the turkey drippings remaining in the roasting pan after the turkey is cooked, leaving 1/3 cup of fat and all the drippings. Scrape into a heavy saucepan; do not wash roasting pan. Over medium heat, combine fat, drippings, and flour; cook and stir until mixture bubbles for about 4-5 minutes. Add a cup of the strained broth; cook and stir until mixed. Then use some of the broth to rinse out the roasting pan, scraping off any remaining drippings; add to gravy. Add 3 cups broth to gravy, stirring with wire whisk. Bring to a boil, lower heat, and simmer, stirring frequently, until gravy thickens. Then add salt, tasting as you go, until the gravy suddenly tastes rich and meaty.