friends are the family you choose

Yesterday I accomplished two significant "firsts" in my life.

1. I ran a half marathon
2. I cooked a turkey!

Guess which one was more exciting?

Since this is a food blog and not a running blog, I won't bore you with the details of my little jaunt down Peachtree, but suffice it to say it was greuling, challenging, but also very rewarding.

When I finally got back to my place over two hours after the finish (walking, Marta, driving took a while), it was all I could do to not take a shower sitting down. Every part of me hurt, and I was so exhausted I found it difficult to even speak. I laid down on the couch and pretty much decided that this thanksgiving was going to be vegetarian. There was no way I could make a turkey when I couldn't even walk to my bed which is two feet away. I would either disinvite everyone, serve them a plate without turkey, or try to switch the whole thing to Friday.

But then tradition and culinary ambition got the better of me. I slept for a few hours and woke up ready to tackle the challenge. I hadn't been very good about getting instructions on the whole process, but I figured I could master it. So-a few notes about what I did (the results were excellent!):

1. I did stuff the cavity with lemon wedges, garlic, and bunches of herbs



2. I did not brine my turkey.
3. I did chop all of the herbs in my herb garden (sage, thyme, parsley, basil) and mix it with half-way melted butter and rub that stuff under the skin and all over the turkey.
4. I did not use a rack-just sprinked a few onions in the pan.



5. I did cover the breast with foil for the first half of cooking.
and what I believe to have been the most important step:
6. I removed the bird from the oven when the temperature in the thigh was 170. I then let the turkey rest for about two hours before I carved it.

The result was succulent--truly moist and flavorful turkey.



I also made gravy from scratch. I put my Le Creuset roasting pan over two burners and scraped up all of the good bits and put the drippings into a cup and skimmed off the fat. I added chicken stock to compensate for my lack of juices (I only had about 2 cups as opposed to 4), and then added it to a simple roux. The gravy rocked--smooth as silk.

So, the full menu was:

Lemon-herb roasted turkey
turkey gravy
Curried Prawns with rice (courtesy of An'del)
Pecan & Cornbread Dressing (from Scott Peacock)
Sweet Potato Souffle
Prosciuitto & Parmesan Mashed Potatos (Kathleen made these--to die for!)
Green beans with a lemon vinaigrette and pine nuts
Tres Leches Cake (Kathleen again! She's the best)
Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cakes (Paula Deen)

I set the table:



Personalized my guest's napkin ring holders:



Carved the turkey:



snapped a photo of An'del's plate:



and enjoyed my first thanksgiving with friends:







I'm thankful for everyone who reads my blog. Thank you for supporting me and listening to my ramblings about food. I hope your thanksgivings were filled with friends, family, great food and memory-making moments. I am so thankful for each of you.