Thanksgiving Menu Magazine Extravaganza!

[teaberryblue]

So, as many of you know, every Thanksgiving, I spend a full week cooking up a lovely Thanksgiving meal for my parents and grandparents. I use recipes from a growing collection of cooking magazines that now span two decades.

Sadly, this is the last year of the old classic, Gourmet, and I am heartbroken by the departure of a magazine that I have read since I was a teenager. I decided that this year, I would highlight my favorite recipes from each of the cooking magazines we subscribe to, so that if any of you are looking for ways to experiment with your Thanksgiving dinner or need an idea for something to take to a potluck, you can play along.

To start, Cook’s Illustrated has a great recipe on tips for different ways to prepare your turkey. This is highly recommended, especially for those of you who might be roasting a whole turkey for the first time, or who are taking over roasting chores from an older relative. If any of you aren’t familiar with Cook’s Illustrated, I highly recommend it! They will even send you a free trial issue.

And now, for the menu! I’ve sorted these by dish types and starred the ones I will be cooking or adapting! These are all November, 2009 issues of the magazines in question

Appetizers
Chicken Liver Mousse with Pickled Red Onion, Food and Wine, Page 174* (as finger food)
Scallops with Chestnut Sauce and Crisp Sage, Food and Wine, Page 166* (as sit-down appetizer)
Beet-Pickled Deviled Eggs, Gourmet, Page 96* (With the salad)
Golden Onion Pie, Gourmet, Page 96
Savory Leek and Carrot Tart, Cucina Italiana, Page 23
Oyster Casserole, Gourmet, Page 110*

Soups
Creamy Carrot Soup with Scallions and Poppy Seeds, Food and Wine, Page 118
Scarlet Carrot Soup, Gourmet, Page 40
Roasted Fennel Soup with Cranberries and Hazelnuts, Cucina Italiana, Page 55*

Salads
Asian Pear and Arugula Salad with Goat Cheese, Food and Wine, Page 102
Escarole Salad with Apples, Candied Walnuts, and St. Andre Cheese, Bon Appetit, Page 68
Shaved Beet and Bitter Green Salad with Garlic Balsamic Vinaigrette, Gourmet, Page 64*
Escarole Salad with Citrus and Grana Padano, Cucina Italiana, Page 21

Turkeys
Sage Butter Roasted Turkey with Cider Gravy,Bon Appetit, Page 105*
(This isn’t to say this was the only good turkey. It’s just that we had a very particular idea about how we want our turkey and didn’t see a recipe, so we’re combining this one with a throwback to a turkey from Bon Appetit 2005

Stuffing
Fig and Almond Bread Stuffing with Fennel, Food and Wine, Page 153
Bacon, Onion, and Rye Bread Stuffing,Food and Wine, Page 124*
Whole Wheat Stuffing with Pancetta, Chestnuts, and Parmesan, Bon Appetit, page 111
Cornbread Stuffing with Andouille, Fennel, and Bell Peppers, Bon Appetit, page 113

(Bon Appetit has by far the best stuffing selection this year. I only wrote down ones that would go with the meal I envisioned. They have a rice stuffing, a sweet potato stuffing, a cornbread stuffing, and several bread stuffings)

Vegetables
Baby Winter Squash with Spiced Orange-Currant Stuffing, Bon Appetit, page 130*
Brussels Sprout Slaw with Mustard Dressing and Maple Glazed Pecans, Bon Appetit, page 130*
Broccolini with Smoked Paprika, Almonds, and Garlic, Bon Appetit, page 133*
Green Beans and Walnuts with Lemon Vinaigrette, Bon Appetit, page 133
Sauteed Green Beans and Brussels Sprouts with Chile and Mint, Gourmet, page 64
Cauliflower Sformato, Cucina Italiana, Page 60

(I also make the same Mashed Potatoes from Gourmet 2005 every year.

Sides
Real Creamed Corn Pudding, Bon Appetit, Page 130
Toasted Sweet Corn Pudding, Gourmet, Page 99*
The crispy shallots from Mashed Potatoes with Crispy Shallots, Food and Wine, Page 128
Jellied Cranberry Sauce with Fuji Apple, Food and Wine, Page 122
Cranberry, Clementine, and Pumpkin Seed Conservem Food and Wine, Page 122*
Cranberry-Mustard Relish, Bon Appetit, Page 119

(I also make an adaptation of this Cranberry-Pomegranate Relish from Bon Appetit 2005 with less sugar.

Intermezzo
Cranberry-Vanilla Sorbet, Bon Appetit Special Tear-Out Section (toward the back, no page number)*

Note for those of you who are looking for vegetarian Thanksgiving options: Gourmet has an excellent vegetarian section this year with a vegetarian shepherd’s pie that looks super yummy.

Mirrored from Antagonia.net.

Comments

[mel06.livejournal.com]

Vegcooking.com also has a great section for vegetarian and vegan holiday cooking :)

[zia-narratora.livejournal.com]

Om nom nom nom thanks! Also I have a recipe I'll be posting later this week for three nommy vegan soups that would all be good for Thanksgiving.

[pewter.livejournal.com]

This is the recipe I use every year.

I use goose fat as well, actually, and also use the goose fat for the roast potatoes (which are essential as far as my family is concerned).

I use a good quality, locally made cider, and hand make the stuffing.

I had good success with brussel sprouts and bacon bits. However my parnips always turn out burnt. The problems of only having one oven I suspect.


And..uh, the above is all for Christmas, as we don't have thanksgiving here in the UK!

[zia-narratora.livejournal.com]

That sounds yummy! I think cider is the best thing for turkeys. Well, that and suffing the skin with butter.

I do goose fat potatoes for Christmas a lot, but I do mashed potatoes where I mash in clarified goose fat nom nom nom. I think geese are more of a British staple for Christmas; they're hard-ish to get here and we have to special order them in advance if we want them.

Have you tried putting the parsnips in the same pan with the turkey or the stuffing? Or put them in with a little soup stock in the bottom of the pan. Parsnips tend to get a little black on the outside if you don't have something to steam 'em.

[gildedage.livejournal.com]

I am going to my uncle's for Turkey-day, and his mom-in-law cooks Italian (like a lasagna, etc). Is there a dessert or a dish I could premake for them? I think I am already getting them wine.

[zia-narratora.livejournal.com]

Aw, you are not going to your mom's? Is she coming there?

For good do-aheads that go with anything, I would recommend any of the cranberry sauces. They don't replace someone else's cranberry sauce if there is more than one, but they are all unique and yummy.

If you like squash, doing a baked squash dish that you can prepare and bake halfway is good. Then you just bake it the rest of the way to warm it up and you are good to go.

Another one that you can completely do beforehand is Mashed Root Vegetables (http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Mashed-Root-Vegetables-102505) from Bon Appetit 1999. These are AMAZING.

I'll look through Cucina Italiana tonight. I can think of a few really good do-ahead soups but you don't want to make a soup if she already makes a soup.

[misssatori.livejournal.com]

Oh noes, I love Gourmet! One issue I that is particularly AMAZING featured manchego cheese, fall fruit tarts, and Pedro Ximénez sherry. I will miss this publication, and will have to keep a lookout on Amazon for a copy of the cookbook.

All of those sound incredibly delicious (particularly those stuffings). I am envious of your impending feast!

[zia-narratora.livejournal.com]

I believe they're keeping the website going, and of course many of the old recipes will be at http://epicurious.com!