
Fun with Vinaigrettes
July 27, 2014
Salsas and Moles
June 12, 2015It’s that time of the year when everyone is supposed to be with their family during the holidays, but if you are like me, this year that’s just not possible. So not only are you by yourself but you are also mostly eating a TV dinner or at the Chinese restaurant because honestly, how would you do a turkey all by yourself? Do not fear! You can still have that home cooked holiday feeling with little work and have enough for a reasonable amount of left overs or you can invite another person over and share it with them. Gentlemen and ladies…this would be a great time to invite that special someone in your life and turn what is traditionally a family holiday into a romantic one.
Instead of roasting a turkey switch to a smaller, more manageable chicken instead. Serving it with a couple sides instead of the whole line up will make this quite easy. Another nice thing about a chicken i that you can easily buy it close to Thanksgiving and probably won’t have to get it frozen. I bought my fresh chicken and picked out two of my favorite sides. I picked creamy mashed potatoes and roasted brussle sprouts. Feel free to change these to suit your taste. Pick some fresh fruit and/or vegetables to stuff your bird with. I like the citrus from lemons and onions are my favorite vegetable to use for roasting.
The day before you are going to roast the bird,brine it. Take a container large enough to submerge the bird in and fill with cool water and about a half-cup of salt. the finer the salt the easier it is to dissolve. Canning salt works great but you can use any kind. Dissolve the salt into the water then lower the bird in to the brine. Let sit in the refrigerator over night or eight to twelve hours. Brineing it for longer times doesn’t do anything but it doesn’t hurt it ether.






When you are done eating don’t forget that a lot of other great meals can come from what you still have left. Pick over the carcass and remove all remain pieces of meat you can and place them into a resealable bags. The large pieces I use a lot for hot or cold sandwiches or lettuce salad. The little bits I put into soups or chicken salads. The carcass itself can be used to make stock or broth right then or freeze it in a resealable bag and make it at a later date.
Have a great Thanksgiving! Go Da-Bears!



