Thanksgiving - The Menu

For the first time in 40 Thanksgivings I will be the primary cook for the great American Feast. My grandmothers, mom, and step-mom have been at the helm for my entire life. Now that we are in Colorado and hosting our first TG, I am charged with preparing the meal (along with enormous assistance from the lovely Juliet).

A few times in the late 90s I did the turkey and in 2005 I made a 15 pound pan of Mac and Cheese for my only San Francisco Thanksgiving. (wound up hammered and singing Hank Jr on that occasion). However, this is my first go at the whole menu.

Of course, as I tend to do in my everyday cooking life, I take the best of what I learned from our great family traditions and meld them with my Italian tendencies and need to be "different".

My mother and step-father as well as some dear friends here in Colorado have graciously accepted to be guinea pigs for my first foray into the grand American feast. As you will see in my first course, tradition stands side-by-side with my travels and tastes.

If you happen to be in Colorado tomorrow, come see us and eat!

Apps

Hard Cheddar - Vermont

Farmstead Cow's Milk Cheese - New Hampshire

Carboncino - Soft Cheese with charcoal rind - Piedmont, Italy

Saint Andre - Triple Cream Cheese - France

Creminelli Wild Boar Salumi - Utah

Tres Petits Cochons (three little pigs) - Mousse Truffee (truffle, pork and chicken liver Pate')

3 types of olives (lemon Stuffed, Cerignola Nera, and Castelvetrano from Sicily)

Cornichons

Hand Rolled Deviled Eggs with Dijon Cream

Salads

Toasted Walnut and Butter Lettuce with French Feta and Walnut Oil Vinaigrette

Texas Ruby Red Grapefruit with Kiwi, Blueberry, Anjou Pear and Persimmon

The Feast

Roasted Mary's Heritage Free Range and Organic Turkey (herb salt dry brined for 24 hours then barded with dry-rubbed bacon and butter-glazed)

Odie's cornbread dressing with sage pork sausage(my take on Tradition)

Russet Potato and Celery Root Puree'

Turnip and Pork Loin Hash

Caramelized Sweet Potatoes in the style of Singapore

Collards and Chard braised with onions, guanciale, and chicken stock

Turkey Giblet and Mushroom Gravy

Cranberry Chutney Negroni Style

Rhodes Slow Rising White Rolls and Salted Butter

Desserts

Ellis County Texas Pecan Pie

Posh Bakery Lattice Apple Pie and Vanilla Bean Ice Cream

Odie's Pumpkin Pie

Fresh Whipped Cream with Mexican Vanilla

I Vini - The Wines

2010 Commaderie de la Bergemone Rose' Coteaux d'Aix en Provence

2004 Koehler Ruprecht Riesling Kallstadter Steinacker Kabinett

2005 Hexamer Riesling Meddersheimer Rheingrafenberg Spatlese * (thanks to Sean Beck)

2010 Sottimano Mate' Brachetto (still and dry)

2005 Terralsole Brunello di Montalcino (from our guests)

2005 Clarendon Hills Grenache Hickinbotham

2005 Taylor Fladgate LBV Porto

Amaro e Grappa

Happy Thanksgiving to All Blissful Adventurers!

Much Love,

Michael and Juliet

My Thanksgiving Turkey (and a HUGE recommendation)

This year I have decided to go out on a limb and order a heritage breed turkey for my 1st Thanksgiving in Colorado. I have found two sources that I like very much for these birds and I have yet to decide between Heritage Foods USA or Good Shepherd Turkey Ranch Inc. It looks like the bird sized as I would like is going to run me around $125 no matter which company, so it will come down to a personal rec from a friend (hint to any of you with experience out there) or which company I feel answers my numerous and nosy inquiries the best. In essence, when I consider those kind of "stacks" for a bird, I need to make sure my cooking method is precise and delivers the most delectable (shout out to DRH) turkey possible for my wife and our 4  , now 5 esteemed guests.

When I need a recipe or a method of doing some piece of protein in a way I know will succeed I turn to the legendary John GL  and his amazing blog The Alcoholian  (the link to the turkey I am going to do). John and his "spousal unit" tirelessly test recipes and post the results with full color directions on what they did and how they achieved success. What they do reminds me of Cook's Illustrated, although since John provides all his own ingredients and cooks passionately only what he wants I think The Alcoholian has a leg up on more famous cooking periodical.

My entire group of friends in Austin, TX adore John GL and his maniacal campaign to only prepare the best dishes possible. Corners are not cut and this  site is not for those looking for Rachael Ray 20 minute...stuff, this is about real cooking with fires, torches, sheet metal, and facial hair. The Alcoholian also features some sardonic humor and copious references to love and how to attain it. If you want to make deep-flavored, complex food, then look no further than John GL and the Alcoholian.

Please send me your turkey thoughts and your world series predictions.

Voi Saluto,

Michael

Photo Credit - Jeremy Parzen and DoBianchi Blog