How to Brine a Turkey

I'm afraid people are going to start calling me the Crazy Turkey Brining Lady....the subject has come up many times this past week, and I've certainly done my best to share my enthusiasm. If you haven't already heard this in person at Isle Style, Publix or the Basilica School, here is how to do it:

In a large stock pot or brining bag (they have those now at the grocery store), combine about 2 gallons cold water with 1 cup kosher salt and 1 cup brown sugar. Stir to dissolve. Slice two oranges into quarters....do the same to two lemons. Toss in lime if you've got it or want to use it up. Add a handful of fresh rosemary stems, and a handful of fresh thyme stems. Add the thawed or fresh turkey - make sure you removed the package of giblets from inside the cavity! This needs to sit in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours, and I usually do it overnight.

When it is time to get the turkey ready for the oven, remove it from the brine (discard the brine) and drain any remaining liquid by turning it upside down. Place in your roasting pan and dry with paper towels. Rub with softened butter or oil, and season liberally with salt and pepper, inside and out. I roast my turkey at 325 degrees. And here is another tip - start roasting it BREAST SIDE DOWN. About half way through, flip it over. This ensures that the breast meat won't dry out and the dark meat will cook through. There are many cooking time charts online to figure out just how long to cook your bird....just type in the weight. The photo is last year's Thanksgiving turkey....it was delicious!

Six days out....Thanksgiving prep

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday and the traditional turkey dinner is my favorite meal to prepare. I look forward to it, and I really enjoy the planning and preparations. Brining the turkey is truly the best thing you can do for a moist, flavorful bird. Seriously. If you haven't done it yet, make this year the year....you will never go back, I promise! (I will post my brine recipe in my next post.) In Maryland, I would put the turkey and brine mixture outside on the patio over night, with a rock on the stock pot lid to prevent any squirrels or other critters from getting involved. The outside temp was always in the high 30s or low 40s, just like the inside of the refrigerator. Not the case here in Key West! So my first official prep project is to clean out our outside 'beer and bait' fridge to make room for the turkey and all the extras. I've been cleaning out the refrigerator in the kitchen all week, using up or discarding leftovers and produce. It's nice to have the space available, plus it's a great way to start the shopping list. This morning I am also going to go through the freezer and check the cabinets to see what staples I already have on hand. My small island kitchen dictates these inventories....I don't have the space to keep extra stuff. The photo below shows John's cooler contraption to brine the turkey for our first Thanksgiving here in 2010, before we had the second refrigerator. We had only lived here for seven months but we had a house full of friends join us. The more the merrier on Thanksgiving, for sure. :)

Two Recent Soups

Last week I made a minestrone, which is a great clean out the fridge and freezer soup. Any veggie can go in. I started it with onion, celery and carrot sweating in olive oil. I added a thick slice of ham I had frozen for just this purpose, dicing it into cubes. A few inches of chicken stock, and I brought it to a boil to form the flavor base. Eventually zucchini, potato, corn, green beans, canned tomatoes and white beans joined the pot. More stock, some chopped garlic, finely chopped rosemary, and some grated parmesan finished the soup. We ate it for two dinners. On Monday of this week I got a text that they needed a vegetarian soup for a luncheon at the girls school. Again, I looked to the veggies I already had on hand since I had just gone grocery and didn't want to make a special trip. Onion, celery, and carrot in oil. A few small red-skinned potatoes diced. Two crowns of broccoli, and three cloves of garlic, chopped. I added water to cover and let it simmer for 20 minutes or so. No chicken stock this time. Salt and pepper. I found a jar of roasted red peppers, so I chopped several slices for some color and sweetness. I used my immersion blender to puree the mixture, and I decided to add some shredded cheddar for body. Usually I would add a tablespoon or two of chicken base at this point, if I feel the soup needs some flavor. Instead, I added a tablespoon of Dijon mustard and a dash of hot sauce to round out the finished product. I hope the vegetarian teachers and staff enjoy it!

70 Wonderful Things about My Dad

Today is my dad's 71st birthday. Last year I wrote this list for him, and now I am sharing it with all of you.  Have a great day, Dad! We all send our love from Key West.

70 Wonderful Things about Dad

70. He is the cook in the family.

69. He loved taking care of Mari when we went to Guatemala to get Josie, feeding her cake and Chinese food, her two favorite things.

68. He was only around Josie a few times before he pronounced 'she's gonna give them trouble'....ha ha!

67. When I got my accidental crew cut in Key West, he had approximately 50 one liners, just off the top of his head.

66. He is a good judge of character.

65. It is fun to get him going on people who are morons.....especially if those people happen to be related to one of us.....bonus points if they are related through marriage!

64. I love the picture of the first time he met Josie. Sweethearts from the start.

63. He surfed the 'net to find Mari her special Clifford dog.

62. I ran into one of his old girlfriends from high school at one of my cookbook signings, and I think she still missed him!

61. He played the cello in his high school orchestra.

60. He can probably quote most episodes from MASH from beginning to end.

59. He makes one hell of a meatloaf!

58. He makes up funny things like Home & Garbage.

57. He has always been very kind to his grand-dog, Murphy.

56. He can watch "The Christmas Card" over and over and enjoy it every time.

55. I can't watch the Weather Channel in the morning without thinking of him sitting in his chair watching it, too.

54. His peanut brittle, coconut bon bons, and other Christmas treats are legendary.

53. He has built cars for Boy Scouts and lots of other projects for the grandkids.

52. He was an excellent provider for his family.

51. He reads stories with Mari, Josie and Zach.

50. He sat through many dance recitals and chorus, orchestra and band concerts.

49. He can build or fix just about anything!

48. He has been a 'surrogate dad' to lots of people over the years.

47. He always gave Penny a piece of cake when it was someone's birthday.

46. Even though he is turning 70, he can text, skype, and find stuff on the internet.

45. He flew to Key West to see us, even though he hates to fly and hates the heat.

44. He turned our house into a hoagie shop for my homecoming fundraiser.

43. He is extremely generous and would give you the shirt off his back.

42. He has fixed or painted most of our cars over the years....even the husbands' cars.

41. He voted for Obama! (OK, probably not this time, but I am still impressed!!)

40. He can sing really well but almost never does.

39. He was tolerant when I developed a relationship with my biological family, knowing I would quickly learn they were losers. ;)

38. He put up with various boyfriends over the years, and was nice even when he didn't like them.  OK, maybe fairly nice to them.... ;)

37. He worked building cabinets and other things for the 'extras' in life for us, even though he worked full-time as a policeman.

36. His orange doughnuts are amazing!

35. He loves his grandkids, even the little brown ones, just like George HW Bush. :)

34. He has turned himself into a computer, cell phone, and photography genius!

33. He loves to watch every mushy Christmas movie on Hallmark Channel.

32. Mom Mom & Pap's house is Mari and Josie's favorite place on earth.

31. His list of hobbies over the years is quite impressive....gardening, candy making, quilting, hunting, etc.

30. He picked up the upstairs phone while I was talking with my girl friends in junior high school and made the Road Runner noise.

29. He can build a kitchen from scratch, including custom cabinets.

28. He got up early to walk me through cooking my first Thanksgiving turkey at my house.

27. He carried old Murphy up the basement stairs for a week, even when she bit him, because he didn't want us to leave.

26. He is a great father-in-law to the husbands.

25. He takes care of Zach with such love and gentleness.

24. Every day he talks to friends and family from all over on facebook and emails.

23. He showed my girls how to make his famous candy cane cookies here in Key West.

22. He helped all of us renovate, repair, or re-do our various houses over the years.

21. He let us take our friends and boyfriends on vacation to Myrtle Beach every year.

20. He loves Christmas!

19. He takes good care of his mother, even if he doesn't always want to.

18. He is the apple of Kacie, Brady, Mari, Josie and Zach's eyes.

17. He gave his kids a boat, a pop-up camper, a go-cart, and lots of fun things.

16. He makes the best chocolate layer cake with peanut butter icing.

15. He taught me how to drive a car....even though I didn't want to learn. And I am an excellent driver to this day!

14. He made it through open-heart surgery and a few procedures but keeps on ticking.

13. He goes on errands with John when we visit, just to hang out.

12. He took his kids on some pretty awesome vacations....Disney World, Busch Gardens, Myrtle Beach, Virginia Beach, etc.

11. He is the best at putting the tinsel on the Christmas tree.

10. He created a successful quilting business, just to keep him and Mom out of trouble.

9.  He volunteers his time every Monday counting the collection at the church.

8.  He makes the best ham pot pie. Ever.

7.  Josie's favorite thing about Pap:  'He always picks me up. I like him very much.'

6.  Mari's favorite thing about Pap:   'Because he is so cute, and he likes me!'

5.  Murphy's favorite thing about Pap:   'If I stare at him long enough he will give me something to eat.'

4.  We were all so worried when he was in the hospital for bypass surgery because we just couldn't imagine the world with him.

3.  He adopted me and raised me as his own.

2.  When I say 'my dad' I am only talking about him.

1.  He is a great dad and pap and we all love you!! Happy birthday!

Bougainvillea

Wow, it is gorgeous in Key West this morning. Breezy, sunny, with temps in the mid 70s. The cool breezes of fall and winter are finally here. I said cool, not cold. These tropical breezes are like a caress on your skin. I love, love, love this time of year and I will happily sweat through the rest of the year knowing I will so enjoy November through March. Right now the fronds on my palm trees are making a lovely swishing sound, and there are some chickens making some noise some where close by. I am enjoying a quiet moment outside with a mug of coffee. I'm a happy girl. I walked around the property to check out the blooms and snapped some shots of my Bougainvillea. It blooms it's brightest during the cooler months. The colored part is the bract, and the tiny white bloom is the actual flower. I've got hot pink, salmon pink and purple....enjoy!!

Breakfast, Lunch & Monday

Unless we go out to breakfast, I don't have much of an appetite for it. When I'm at home I tend to drink lots of coffee and then feel kind of woozy eventually.....oh, that's right, I should eat something. Not only does this habit cause me to overeat at lunch time, it isn't great for my metabolism, blood sugar, or general well being. I buy yogurt, and toss it when the expiration date passes. Healthy cereals and bars.....bleh. So what I do is eat what actually appeals to me. This morning I had green salad leftover from last evening's dinner with some sliced chicken breast. I often have hummus, on a slice of bread or with a few pita chips. Sometimes I will make a sandwich with ham and sliced tomato. And what is funny is that when I'm ready for some lunch a few hours later, some of the things that most people eat for breakfast start to appeal....fruit, hard boiled eggs, toast with peanut butter, etc. It's kind of strange, but it works. Monday mornings are always a treat to me, and I realize that is as unusual as eating lunch for breakfast and breakfast for lunch. Most people are not a fan of Mondays. But I always appreciate the calm and quiet. Wow....the girls are gone until 3, my husband is out doing good things for the community, and I am ALONE. ALONE!! Well, just me and Murphy and the mess of the weekend, but I'll take it. This morning it is cool and breezy in Key West and every window is open. Now that I've had my lunch, I can do some cleaning while the curtains flutter in the breeze. Until it's time for breakfast. ;)