The Day After

Thanksgiving was fun.

The menu was:

Deviled eggs
Crab cakes
Cheese platter
Ginger martinis
Pomegranate martinis

Turkey
Lamb
Mashed potatoes
Stuffing - two kinds
Mushroom gravy
Yams
Mushroom risotto
Leek mushroom gratin
Brussel sprouts with bacon and cream
Cranberry sauce - two kinds
Corn muffins
Herbed rolls
Salad

Pumpkin pie
Bourbon pecan pie
Banana cream pie
Creme brulee
Pumpkin roll
Brownies with caramel
Truffles

There were 16 people and enough food for about 40. I usually wet brine the turkey and roast it covered for the first few hours and then uncovered for the last hour or so to get the skin browned but this year I did something completely different: 1) I dry brined instead of wet brining; and 2) I spatchcocked it instead of slow roasting .

Definitely going to be my turkey making method from now on.

The dry brining was actually better than my usual wet brining for three reasons: 1) sooooo much easier; 2) better flavor and texture; and 3) the drippings were not salty like they can be with wet brined turkeys.

The spatchcocking was amazing for a couple of reasons: 1) instead of the usual 4+ hours it takes to roast a 20 lb turkey it took 1.75 hours; 2) the white meat and dark meat finished cooking at the same time so the meat was amazingly juicy; 3) waaaayy easier to carve; and 4) takes up way less room in the oven.

The only downside to the spatchcocked turkey is that when it's done you don't have this intact, round, beautiful brown turkey but, we always carve our turkey before taking it to the table so that didn't matter to me.

So, next year I'm going to have it spatchcocked first (this year my brother did it for me post-brine-rinse), then brine it which should make the dry brining even easier because it will take up less room in the fridge and make applying the brine even easier.

I don't really drink, only very occasionally, but had heard this piece (on NPR) about this ginger martini that won a ginger recipe contest and was intrigued. So, I made fresh ginger juice, made the martinis and made everyone try them. They were a hit but I was a little disappointed because when I heard the piece about this drink, they made it sound like the ginger flavor was the big thing but it was barely noticeable. Most people didn't even realize that there was ginger in there. Mostly what you got was this hit of something a little spicy at the end but really couldn't tell what it was.

We had our massive feast and then played liar's dice, watched football, hung out, napped, etc. My 86 year old aunt came, which was unusual, and she stayed until almost midnight which was remarkable. She usually goes to my sister's for holidays and wants to head home before dark but, she lives in the same area as my bro so just has to drive residential streets back home so maybe that's why she stayed.

I got home around 2:00 a.m. and conked out. Slept until 9:30, which is amazing, and woke up feeling like I'd been hit by a truck. I think I'm just exhausted.

Gonna spend today cleaning and start decorating for Xmas.

Hope you all had a good day.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

In case I get too busy to stop and say it tomorrow, hope you have a safe and happy holiday.

Real Life

I bought this bedding set a couple of weeks ago -- the duvet, shams, sheets, etc. I've been busy so didn't get around to swapping it out until last night and . . . why is it that try as I might, I can't make it look as purty on my bed as it does in the picture? It's comforters and pillows and sheets! But they make it look so lovely and try as I might . . . I can't make it look as spiffy no matter how I arrange the pillows, the comforter, etc.

Bah!

Wild Kingdom

I know that there are debates whether animals can love humans but, I know that my cats love me. Or, definitely have some sort of bond or affection for me. I know this because they seek out and display affection with me.

They each have their own ways of doing this. Jack is the most demonstrative – he wants to lie on me and sleep, he rubs his forehead on mine, gives kisses, pets my face with his paw while laying on my chest purring, he looks at me from across the room and starts purring and runs to get a hug and a kiss and then runs back to what he was doing, etc.

Scout also wants to lie on my chest and sleep, she wants to give and get kisses, and she loves to lie scrunched up with me with her head on my shoulder purring (this one might be for body warmth), she puts her paws on my face to hold it in place and gives me kisses, she wakes up and looks for me and comes running over to cuddle in with me and get some physical comfort, etc.

They often sleep right up against the front door waiting for me to come home. And if they're not, they come running when I come in and beg to be picked up and cuddled and paid a little "welcome home" attention.

So, this morning as Scout was cuddling and purring I noticed she was making little movements and noises with her mouth like a kitten would if it were nursing and I started wondering . . . does she think I’m her mother? If not, what relationship are we emulating? I know that cats aren’t naturally pack animals so, if they were wild, feral cats – what relationship would they have in that environment that ours replaces?

I also know that in the wild, cat families don’t stay together forever and I don’t know that they remember that a cat is their mother or sister or father or brother so it’s interesting to me that at the age of 7 she seems to still have memories – physical or mental – of a “mother” or maybe it’s the equivalent of thumb sucking in a human?