I realized a few weeks ago that I have never unmasked myself to this blog, and I thought now would be a great time. Well here I am with my fist thanksgiving turkey! :) I know this is a little late to post about Thanksgiving but I completely forgot there were even pictures of my turkey in my camera till I went to post a new recipe the other day. This being my first turkey, I thought it would be fun to share!
Here is my first turkey all prepped and ready to roast. A couple weeks before Thanksgiving I was reading on how to prep, roast, carve...pretty much everything you do to prepare your turkey for dinner. I watched several videos on how to prep and season, but there was one that I found more to my liking. I know that many people like to put their stuffing in the bird and cook them that way, but I don't find that very sanitary. Plus, I don't really like stuffing too much. So, instead of stuffing it that way, I liked the idea of putting a bunch of herbs inside and underneath. Before stuffing it I seasoned the outside with pepper, salt and a little olive oil, and shoved a couple sage leaves underneath the skin. Along with handfuls of rosemary, thyme, and sage I also added a handful of chopped of onions inside to add to the flavor, and let me tell you, that bird had flavor! You could definitely taste the herbs. This is how I will do my turkey every year!
Here is the finished product! I did put it back in the oven for a little bit, but forgot to take a picture of the deliciousness.
Here a few other things I contributed too. I found a great recipe for these parmesan knots from Pillsbury. The best thing was that I didn't have to use yeast (which I am still a little afraid of). All I had to to was buy the "Golden Layers" tube and roll it into strings and tie them into knots. So easy, and really delicious. I was surprised how good they were with hardly any effort.
Below is my pumpkin cheesecake. My mom said she wanted the traditional pumpkin pie. I agreed, then mentioned cheesecake, she instantly changed her mind. So, I offered Pumpkin Cheesecake...we had a winner. Of course, I wasn't listening for the timer while it was baking so it sat in the oven for a little bit longer than asked and the top got a little brown. No problem when you pile on the whipped cream. I was able to take off the top layer and it was beautiful again. One of the many mistakes I can learn from this year. :)
I also made cranberry sauce (which I will post the recipe for later) and helped with the mashed potatoes. My mom's mashed potatoes are the best and I am determined to make them the same way. All in all, I think this holiday dinner went great, and I can't wait to make many more!
My husband is still across the country, so this year it was just me and my mom. Having just got married, I wanted to learn how to cook thanksgiving dinner so my mom gave me a few pointers on how she usually did things. It was a great learning experience, especially since next year we will be in a completely different country and won't be able to spend the holidays with family. I wanted to do things for myself this year, so next year I can make the holidays fantastic; even though we will be away from our loved ones. I am very confident that dinner will be even better next year. We can even start our own traditions with the holidays, which I look forward too! :)
Happy Holidays!
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