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Lauren Eberspacher

AUTHOR | SPEAKER | COFFEE DRINKER

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Thanksgiving Dinner Series

in Uncategorized on November 22, 2013

Thanksgiving Dinner Series
 
The first time I made a turkey, I was scared out of my mind. There is nothing more frightening than knowing you have to reach inside that big, raw bird and pull out the innards. Am I right, or am I right?
No but really, it’s overwhelming making youturkey for the big day. Lucky for me, my Dad is the KING of turkey making and he has graciously passed down his recipe for the turkey, stuffing and gravy, given to him by his mother. And it’s killer. No lie. The stuffing is my FAV part of our Thanksgiving dinner, by far. It makes me smile just thinking about it.
Normally, we go big or go home when it comes to the “bird.” I usually buy about a 15 pound butterball turkey from Aldi (I like to have leftovers). And it never disappoints. Unlike some, I do my stuffing INSIDE of the turkey. It gives it a moistness that you just can’t get by baking it in a pan and a taste you can’t beat. The gravy is super simple and is made from the turkey drippings.
So let’s get started on how to dress your turkey for Thanksgiving Day!
 
Start by thawing out your turkey. I usually take the turkey out 24 hours before I want to put it in the oven to thaw. To do so, fill your sink with hot water and plop the bird in there and let it sit, still in the packaging, occasionally adding hot water as the day goes on. By the time you are ready to stick it in the oven, it should be completely thawed.
Take off the packaging and get your hands ready. Reach inside and pull out the innards. The gizzards should be in a package and the neck should be….well…a neck. It’s awful and disturbing. But it MUST be done. Deep breaths, friends. Deep breaths. Hold your husband’s hand while you do so, if you must (while he is laughing at your gagging). It will make you feel better. Rinse your turkey off, from the inside out, until he is all nice and clean (and by clean, I mean until the juices run clear, instead of bloody), pat him dry and place him in your dish.
After your done with that, it’s time to start on your stuffing. In a large saucepan, throw in 2 sticks of butter and let it melt. While it’s melting, cut up an onion and throw it in the melted butter. Let it simmer until the onions are translucent. Cut up 3/4 of a loaf of white bread (or wheat, if your healthy like that) in big chunks and throw them in a bowl. Once your onion/butter mixture is done, pour it over the bread and give it a good stir. It will be beautiful and buttery. YUM! Once it’s mixed, sprinkle (more like engulf) the mixture with poultry seasoning, salt and pepper until it’s thoroughly covered. It will smell delightful!
Next, stuff your stuffing – literally. There should be two cavities of the turkey to place your stuffing in. One in the rear, and one where the neck once was. Most of your stuffing should fit into the back cavity and the rest can be placed in the neck cavity. There should also be flaps of skin that will cover both. I like to seal these up with a few tooth picks to make sure that everything is held in well.
After your stuffing is placed, pour your hands full of olive oil and rub the oil all over the turkey. This will help give the turkey that beautiful, brown glaze. Then generously sprinkle salt and pepper all over the bird. Cover with tin foil, making sure the foil doesn’t touch your turkey. Place the turkey in the oven at 325 degrees for 6 hours, basting every hour to ensure that the outer skin is moist. The last 45 minutes, remove the tin foil so that you have a perfectly crusted skin. IT. IS. BEAUTIFUL. When your 6 hours is up, remove the toothpicks and scoop out the stuffing into a bowl and cover it with tin foil to keep it warm. Try and not sneak a bite. I TRIPPLE DOG DARE YOU.
And that’s that for the turkey and stuffing! Simple, right. I promise, it will be wonderful!
 
The good news is, the gravy is just as easy. Once your turkey is done, remove it from the baking pan and transfer it to wherever your going to cut it (I use my favorite, rimmed pan. It’s old and gross and awesome. Everyone should have one). Place your pan with the drippings in it over two burners of your stovetop OR pour the drippings into a large sauce pan over medium-low heat. In a covered cup, shake up a half a cup of water and 1/4 cup of flour until it’s mixed well. Pour the mixture into the turkey dripping, stirring continuously. The mixture should thicken within about 5 minutes or so, but if you need to, add a TBSP or two more flour to get it to the right consistency. Add salt and pepper to taste. Sometimes some of the turkey/stuffing fall into the drippings mixture. If there is a lot, strain the gravy into a bowl to make sure that your guests don’t have “turkey chunks” over their dinner. Nobody likes turkey chunks. ICK!
I hope this recipe, and all the other ones in this series, have given you some helpful hints and new ideas for dishes at your Thanksgiving dinner. Whether your cooking everything, or bringing a side dish, each piece adds a unique flavor to your guest’s plate. Later this week, I will be going over some hosting tips and suggestions to make your guests feel welcome and some ways to emphasize the spirit of “being thankful.” Because being thankful for all that God has graciously blessed us with is what this special day is all about 🙂
 


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Comments

  1. Elisabeth Pall says

    November 22, 2013 at 2:46 pm

    YUM! This is how we do our turkey too. We also boil the neck and innards for awhile and simmer it down and add that "juice" (without innards) to the gravy for more flavor. Also you can use the water you boiled the potatoes in for more volume. 🙂 Love your blog!

    • lmeberspacher@gmail.com says

      November 22, 2013 at 4:46 pm

      Liz, those are great suggestions! Ill have to try them out. Thanks so much for following along with me on here, friend 🙂

  2. Katie Stirton says

    November 22, 2013 at 2:50 pm

    Thank you Lauren! I will be following these instructions for our thanksgiving this year! 🙂

    • lmeberspacher@gmail.com says

      November 22, 2013 at 4:47 pm

      So glad you will be able to use these recipes. They are so yummy! Thanks for following along on the blog!

  3. Katie Stirton says

    November 22, 2013 at 4:44 pm

    also — one question! What kind of bread do you use for the stuffing??

    • lmeberspacher@gmail.com says

      November 22, 2013 at 4:47 pm

      I just buy the cheapest white bread they have at Aldi. Nothing special, but I always use white bread.

Thanksgiving Dinner Series

in Uncategorized on October 20, 2013

Thanksgiving Dinner Series 

Canadian Thanksgiving was this past week, and sadly, it was the first Thanksgiving that we missed. We have had quite a bit going on around our house the past couple of weeks with getting the house ready to be put on the market the first week of November, running around keeping up with the day to day activities of the house of Spach and everything that surrounded the passing of our dear friend’s precious little baby boy last week.
With that being said, I thought it would be fun to start a fun new series on my little ole’ blog, the Thanksgiving Dinner Series. Those of you who know me, know that I LOVE to cook, host and entertain, so I thought it would be fun over the next couple of weeks to share the different dishes that complete our family’s big turkey dinner. I’m going to cover everything from my favorite recipes to setting up your home on the big day! So with that being said, let’s get started with one of my family’s all time favorite dishes, sweet corn casserole.
This recipe is one that was lovingly hand-written to me by my sweet mother-in-law in a cookbook she gave to me when Eric and I got married. I love using recipes from that book and seeing her handwriting in it. It makes me feel like she is right there in the kitchen with me cooking something warm and buttery (Eberspachers ALWAYS use butter…lots of butter). Another fun thing about this yummy dish is that I always use farm fresh sweet corn to make it. There is something beautiful about knowing your corn comes from family: picked, shucked and packaged with farm-love.
Here is what you are going to need:

1 package (2 cups) sweet corn
1 can cream corn
1 cup macaroni (I like to use the shell kind)
1/2 cup sauteed onions (you can also use 1 TBSP dry onion)
1 stick of melted margerine
1 cup diced Velveeta cheese (cut a little extra aside so you can chomp on it while you cook)

1. Start by putting your shells in a couple of cups of water and nuke it in the microwave for about 3 minutes. This makes the shells not as crunchy after baking it in the oven. Drain off the water and set shells aside in a large mixing bowl.
2. While the shells are getting soft, cube up one cup of Velveeta cheese. Throw it in a bowl and microwave for about 2 minutes, stirring half way through. Add the cheese to the shells.
3. Dice up your onion and throw it in a skillet on medium until they are translucent, then toss them in the bowl as well (cook them in butter, of course!).
4. Once the Velveeta is melted, melt your stick of butter in the microwave or stove top and add that into your mixing bowl.
5. Throw in your can of cream corn and package of sweet corn and mix everything well. This is probably my favorite part of making this dish: LISTEN to the creamy sound you hear when you mix everything together with your spatula. It is buttery-corn heaven, I tell you what.
6. Once everything is good and combined, pour the mixture into an 8X8 dish (I always use a ceramic dish that my Auntie Diane gave me) and stick in in the oven at 350 for 30 minutes. It should be nice and bubbly when it’s done and will smell FAH-ablulous!

**Note** if you have more of a sweet tooth, you may want to add a TBSP or two of sugar to your final mixture. I don’t normally add it to mine, but I have had it with sugar before and gives it a little extra sweet kick.

So there is our first dish for our Thanksgiving meal! The nice thing about this dish is that it can be used all year round and makes for a great side for any meal. Personally, I’m a little partial to mixing this with my mashed potatoes 🙂
This Thanksgiving is going to be a special one for us. This will (hopefully) be our last holiday meal in our little house before we move. I am bound and determined to get my very handicap Grandma Mary into our house to join in the festivities, and we have invited my folks, brother and my Uncle Fred and his family as well. We are excited to have a house full of precious family and lots of great food.

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Comments

  1. leanne says

    November 5, 2015 at 1:52 am

    This is a favorite at our house

I'm Lauren, a city girl turned farmer's wife. Learn more>>
“For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.” 2 Timothy 1:7
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