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alb · Marc Jacobs

Mini-thanksgiving dishes

mikacat · Coach

ALB-

How about a whole chicken---just stuff it with orange slices, rosemary, onion and garlic, Rub the breast with olive oil, pepper, salt, mrs.dash and garlic and then put it in a baking bag in the oven on 325-350 until the breast is 180 degrees....probably an hour or two depending on the size of the chicken. It is so much easier than you think. I did a turkey last night for 3 couples. It took me about 20 minutes to get the turkey ready to go in the oven and then I cooked it for 3.5 hours.

I made stuffing, an apple pie, steamed brocolli with hollandaise, and cranberry sauce, pumpkin muffins....we polished off everything---not any leftovers, which made me kind of sad. I think I might have enough turkey for us to have turkey enchiladas for lunch and I made extra cranberry sauce for tomorrow b/c it is even better the next day.

Cranberry sauce--the recipe is on the bag too---I used a cup of orange juice (you can also just use water if you are watching calories or half oj and half h20) and 1/2 cup of sugar and some honey and boiled it and added the cranberries for about 10 minutes til they popped. I added a little orange zest, cinammon, brown sugar and allspice. It was yummy.

Call me if you need any help with doing a turkey or chicken.

YOu could also do a pork tenderloin or a london broil--just marinade it over night and do it on the grill.

-- Edited by mikacat at 11:27, 2005-11-23

alb · Marc Jacobs

Thanks so much Mikacat, for the great idea! I might try to do the chicken (although I'm super challenged in that area so I really might call you!) but I definitely am going to try your cranberry sauce recipe. I have a couple of questions though--how much honey do you use and what is all spice and where can I find it at the grocery store?? Thanks! BTW your dinner menu sounds amazing!

Elle · Hermes

You could also get a turkey breast - they sell them with bones in (basically looks like a regular turkey w/out wings or legs), and de-boned so they come like huuuuge chicken breasts. De-boned, you can cook them in the oven in less than an hour, with just a rubbing of olive oil and some spices on top.

alb · Marc Jacobs

LMonet wrote:

You could also get a turkey breast - they sell them with bones in (basically looks like a regular turkey w/out wings or legs), and de-boned so they come like huuuuge chicken breasts. De-boned, you can cook them in the oven in less than an hour, with just a rubbing of olive oil and some spices on top.

Someone else told me that, but I couldn't find the boneless turkey breast in the grocery store. Is it with the raw chicken breasts? Also, does it still taste like Thanksgiving turkey if you make it that way (does that make sense?)??

jj · Kate Spade

alb wrote:

Someone else told me that, but I couldn't find the boneless turkey breast in the grocery store. Is it with the raw chicken breasts? Also, does it still taste like Thanksgiving turkey if you make it that way (does that make sense?)??

Yes, it definitely still is thanksgiving-ish. We have done the turkey breast in the past, and it's so much faster to cook. We get it on the bone, so it has the yummy skin too. The only draw back: my hubby likes dark meat too, and the breast is only white. I would ask the person at the grocery store meat counter where they are. They should be able to help you find it.

mikacat · Coach

i used a couple of squirts of honey---we have the little bear thing (maybe a tablespoon)

don't worry about allspice--do you have cinammon and nutmeg? I think that is all allspice is anyway. but if you want to buy some---you use it in gingerbread, pumpkin pies, apple pie, sweet potato stuff it would be in the spice section.

trust me you can't go wrong with the cranberry sauce as long as you don't burn it.

it is really more like a chutney or relish.

mikacat · Coach

okay-i guess allspice is an actual plant but smells like cinnamon, cloves, ginger and nutmeg.

Allspice

Pimenta dioica
syn: Pimenta officinalis, Eugenia pimenta
Fam: Myrataceae

Allspice takes its name from its aroma, which smells like a combination of spices, especially cinnamon, cloves, ginger and nutmeg. In much of the world, allspice is called pimento because the Spanish mistook the fruit for black pepper, which the Spanish called pimienta.

alb · Marc Jacobs

jj and lmonet--for how long do you cook it and at what temperature? Thanks for your help!

mikacat--I figured out the allspice, so nevermind on that!

ETA--oops, just saw your (mikacat) post--sorry. Thanks for the explanation though!

-- Edited by alb at 13:14, 2005-11-23

Elle · Hermes

You only need to cook the white meat until it reaches about 165 degrees, so a meat thermometer is your best bet. For deboned turkey breasts, I'd say about 400 degrees for 45 minutes or so. Bone in, about 325 for 2 hrs 15 min to 3 hrs.

bumblebee · Coach

lmonet beat me to it--a bonless white-meat turkey breast is great and it cooks pretty quickly. there will be directions on the package, but i think they are usually about 2 hours in the oven (depending how big). you will find them in a regular grocery store near the prepackaged refrigerated meats, like bacon and hams.

alb · Marc Jacobs

Thanks, girls!