Well, it was a first for many things this Thanksgiving. Cooking for 4, well really three since Stella and Will probably equal what one adult could consume at a holiday feast, was something I just had to put to the side and decide to prepare some not-so-traditional holiday dishes. The goal was to make spending Thanksgiving without family seem a little more festive. I planned to use a few recipes & ideas from my Bon Appetite & Martha Stewart Living mags. First, a trip to the market for some fresh vegetables and herbs on Wednesday - since my herb garden in TN couldn't fit in a box and I haven't had the time to design & plant one. I will spare you the details but I did have therapy in the kitchen....spending hours on your feet chopping, dicing, roasting & basting does your soul a lot of good. I love, love, love to cook and experiment but seldom find enough time with a full-time job, a traveling husband, and two fun-loving, busy children. Here is the menu for 4 that I came up with:
- Roasted Beet Salad with Pecans & Blue Cheese (Martha Stewart Living)
- Grilled Turkey - YUM! (Bon Appetite - alternative to free up the oven)
- Long Grain Rice Stuffing with Roasted Pecans & Shitake Mushrooms & Parsley (My creation)
- Sweet Potato casserole with Sage Butter (Martha Stewart Living)
- Turkey Gravy (no recipe here, either...sorry!)
- Rolled Sugar Cookies & decorative icing (Joy of Cooking p.711)
*Click on the magazine for link to the recipe.
