RECIPE: Thanksgiving Dinner Trader Joe's Style

Every year of my life I have had Thanksgiving dinner with my family in Tennessee. Well, all but a couple of years when we were flying there on Thanksgiving Day. This year we are at home in California. Since I've always been in Tennessee, we've always spent the day with my family. My sister-in-law wasn't there this year either. Her daughter just gave birth to a beautiful baby earlier this week, so she's at their home helping them. She said this was the first time in 27 years she's not been with our family, too. Not to mention this was the first Thanksgiving without my dad. Anyway, we will be getting together soon, so we'll make up for lost time then. Dad definitely was the glue that held our family together. I miss you, dad.

So, with many changes in traditions, it's time to try new things and start our own traditions. Conrad and I talked over options of what to do for Thanksgiving dinner and we quickly ruled out making reservations at local restaurants. We discussed ordering a meal from a local restaurant or grocery store and quickly ruled that out, as well. We ended up cooking at home. We bought a 12 pound turkey ...

 I rinsed it, dried, it, put salt, pepper, fresh sage, rosemary and thyme inside, along with the neck and the organs and a slices sweet onion … 

 I also placed a couple of slices of bacon inside the cavity, as well. I rubbed the skin with olive oil, then generously salted and peppered the skin.

 I added a few more fresh herbs … 

 Then covered the bird in BACON! I had preheated the oven to 500°, so I put the bird in for 30 minutes before reducing the temperature to 350° for the duration of the roasting time. As you know, cooking time varied by oven and size of the bird, but it's done when the temperature reached 161 degrees in the thickest part of the breast. After it's done, take the bird out of the oven, place it on a large platter, cover it with foil and let it rest for 30 minutes before carving. 

While the bird was roasting I made dressing. Some folks call it stuffing, but I grew up calling it dressing.  I had never tried Trader Joe's Thanksgiving dinner fixin's before, but I will definitely use them again. To sum it up in one word … DELICIOUS!!!

I added a few of my own ideas to their stuffing mix recipe, including a pound of sage sausage, chicken broth instead of water for a richer flavor, and an egg to hold it together better.
First you empty 4 cups of water (or broth), 4 tablespoons butter, and the seasoning mix packet into a sauce pan and bring to a boil. Stir often and let it gently boil for 3 - 5 minutes. I let it go 6.

 Fry the sausage … 

 Oh, and I added poultry seasoning! What stuffing/dressing is complete without it!

 Ready to go in the over … 350° for 50 minutes.

Yum! Finished product!

We also had grilled asparagus with olive oil, fresh thyme, salt, pepper, and fresh grated parmesan. In the background there's a triple crock pot with mashed potatoes for Conrad, mashed sweet potatoes for me, and Trader Joe's turkey gravy in the third one. 

Ding! And, the bird is ready! The bacon kept it moist, golden brown, and crispy skin with tender meat throughout!

Conrad made his famous deviled eggs, too. We splurged a little by having the dressing, a small piece of homemade rosemary bread, and cranberry sauce … Also from Trader Joe's. 

The table is set and dinner is served!

 Definitely a member of the clean plate club tonight!

RECIPE: Green Soup

I saw a recipe for green soup that looked very healthy and easy, but there were several vegetables we don't care for in the list of ingredients, so I decided to improvise. I'm glad I did because this soup IS easy, healthy and VERY tasty!
GREEN SOUP

INGREDIENTS:
1/4 cup Olive Oil
2 large bunches of Broccoli
1 large bunch of Asparagus
6 cups Spinach
6 cups organic Chicken Broth (I substituted Wildtree Chicken Bouillon Soup Base and water)
Sea Salt
Pepper

DIRECTIONS:
1. Wash and chop vegetables.

2. Put olive oil in a large deep soup pot, turning heat to medium-high.
3. Put asparagus in the pot and allow the pieces to soften. Watch and stir often, as you don't want the asparagus to brown.

4. Add broccoli pieces all at one time. Allow them to soften - about 2 - 4 minutes. 

5. Add 2 cups of organic Chicken Broth and cook for 10 minutes.
6. Add remaining chicken broth and cook another 5 minutes.
7. Add all the spinach and cook an additional 3 - 5 minutes.

8. Turn flame/heat off and add sea salt and pepper to taste. 

9. Transfer the soup into a blender (2 cups at a time) and puree soup. Pour pureed soup into a large pot and continue until all the soup has been pureed.
10. Taste. Season, as needed. Other seasonings may be added, but it's recommended to add any extra seasoning per bowl rather than seasoning the entire batch.
Serve and enjoy!

The photo below has been added since the original post. I just wanted to show the soup with our dinner the following evening. Left over Vegetable Breakfast Casserole, a baked acorn squash and a steamed artichoke. Yes, we're definitely eating our veggies! (Dessert was blueberry sorbet!)

**This soup freezes well and can be doubled. Be sure to cool completely before storing it in containers.

RECIPE: Roasted Vegetables - Asparagus, Carrots and Sweet Potatoes

You've probably seen my version of Roasted Broccoli - If not, give it a try - You'll be glad you did!

ROASTED VEGETABLES - PLAIN AND SIMPLE

INGREDIENTS:
Olive Oil

1 bunch fresh Asparagus
Sea Salt
fresh ground Pepper
Greek seasoning
Parmesan Cheese

6 Carrots
Sea Salt
ground Cinnamon

1 Sweet Potato (I used a white sweet potato)
Sea Salt
fresh ground Pepper (use a dash of Cayenne pepper for an added bite!)
1 tablespoon pure Maple Syrup (or Agave)
1 tablespoon Coconut Oil (or ghee or butter)
2 tablespoons chopped pecans

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Wash vegetables, making sure they are all thoroughly dry before you season them. The seasoning sticks better when they are dry, so it's best to wash it well in advance.
A) I left the asparagus in whole spears.
B) Peel, then cut carrots into bite-sized pieces. (You could use baby carrots instead.)
C) Cut the sweet potato into thin slices.
3. Put about a tablespoon of olive oil in a deep dish baking stone or whatever kind of dish you'd use for roasting. Coating the dish evenly. This time I used a 9X13 dish lined with aluminum foil.

 4. Place vegetables into pan and sprinkle olive oil evenly on top. Sprinkle the asparagus with sea salt and pepper. Toss and repeat. You can do all of this in a plastic bag, but I think it leaves too mush olive oil on the vegetables. Sprinkle the carrots with a dash of sea salt and some cinnamon. Sprinkle the sweet potatoes with sea salt and pepper.

5. Bake in center of the oven for a total of about 30 minutes, depending on your oven. Check at 10 minutes to turn vegetables to expose bottom sides. Roast 10 more minutes, then check again.
6. Melt the coconut oil, add syrup and chopped pecans.
7. At 20 minutes sprinkle asparagus with parmesan cheese, if desired. (We do!) Stir syrup/butter/nut mixture over sweet potatoes, coating them somewhat evenly. It's okay if some gets on the carrots ... =)
8. Continue roasting for another 10 minutes. Some of the vegetables will be golden brown. The glaze with caramelize on the sweet potatoes.

 Makes for a colorful, healthy, nutritious meal!