Turkey

Turkey (my family buys 10 lbs for now)
4 onions, 1 of them sliced into rings or slivers, the other 3 cut into chunks
full head of garlic cloves
2 sticks of butter, softened
lots of fresh rosemary, 1/2 c or more plus stems for cavity, chopped into little bits
lots of fresh sage, at least 20 leaves, plus full stems for cavity, chopped into little bits
salt & pepper
poultry seasoning
roasting pan
electric thermometer (invest in a good one with a 20% Coupon at Bed, Bath, & Beyond)

I make my basting butter the day before. My kids and I go pick the fresh herbs from the school where I used to teach. It has become a neat tradition. Then I chop the herbs into tiny bits and mix with the 2 sticks of softened butter. You can also use pressed garlic cloves and seasonings. Using a rubber spatula, I scoop the butter into the bottom of a baggie and with my hands, I smoosh the butter to the bottom and try to shape it into a log. Refrigerate overnight. Thanksgiving/Christmas morning, remove and slice into 1/4" disks to place under the skin of the turkey.

I saw on 'The Chew' where you can actually season and butter baste the turkey the night before so that Thanksgiving morning you can just fill the cavity and start the oven.

We buy our bird at least 5 days before Thanksgiving/Christmas. We put it in the fridge to start defrosting on Saturday before Thanksgiving (allow 24 hours for every 4 lbs). A 12 lb bird should take 3 days to thaw, but recommendations are to allow an extra day just to be sure. It's safe to keep a thawed bird in the fridge a day or two. If you find it still frozen TG morning, fill clean sink with cold water. Place bird in and change water every 30 minutes.

DIRECTIONS:
1. Open the bird (7 am at our house) and remove neck and giblets pack. Discard if you're not using them. Preheat oven to 325.
2. Gently slide your fingers between the skin and the meat, loosening the skin so you can place your butter disks inside. Do this all over the entire bird.
3. Place the butter throughout the turkey and pat it down a bit. Save some to rub on the outside of the skin or use oil. Salt and pepper the outside. We also use poultry seasoning.
4. Put one onion (cut into rings or slivers) onto the bottom of the roasting pan. Place the bird on top. Shove the other onions (chunked) and peeled garlic cloves inside the cavity. I also place any leftover herb branches. If possible, reclamp the legs.
5. Place the thermometer probe into the meatiest piece of the thigh, not touching any bone, and set it to 180 degrees.
6. Place the turkey in the oven.
7. If turkey is browning too quickly, you may loosely cover with a foil tent.

Last year our 11 lb bird took 5 hours.

Roasting times according to Better Homes and Gardens magazine at 325 degrees:
8-12 lbs......unstuffed: 2 3/4 to 3 hours stuffed: 3 to 3 1/2 hours
12-14 lbs...unstuffed: 3 to 3 3/4 hours stuffed: 3 1/2 to 4 hours

Click here for leftover ideas.
Click here for stuffing recipes.
Click here for pie recipes.

Skinny Greek Chicken for Crock Pot

by Skinny Crock Pot on Facebook
Total Time: 5 Hours

Ingredients:
1 Lemon, Juiced
4 Garlic Cloves, Minced
1/4 Cup Olive Oil
1/2 Cup White Wine
1/4 Cup Chicken Broth
1 tsp Dill
1 tsp Rosemary
1 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
1/4 tsp Pepper
1/2 tsp Salt
1 Whole Chicken, Broken into it's Respective Pieces

1.Add all the ingredients with the exception of the chicken to the marinade.

2. Mix up well.

3. Add in the chicken and coat all the pieces completely.

4. Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours or on high for 4 to 6 hours.

5. Serve over noodles with sauce from the slow cooker spooned over the noodles and a little feta and olives for good measure.

In my opinion: This was good. I love using a whole chicken, it save so much money and you can use the leftover chicken for other recipes.

Halloween Treats

My hubby made these hot dog mummies. Just cut strips out of crescent roll dough and wrap them around the dog. Bake according to directions.

Aren't these the cutest little juice boxes?

The best way to make these witch's hats is to use some icing to place a ring of icing onto the perimeter of the kiss and pressing it down on the the cookie.

Tahchin

32 oz Plain Non-fat yogurt
1 lg package (20 oz) saffron rice
6 servings instant rice
3-4 medium potatoes (peeled & thinly sliced-about 1/4")
3-5 large chicken breasts, enough to cover bottom of 10x13" baking dish.

Preheat oven to 350 and spray 10x13 baking dish.

1. Cook rice halfway (if using instant, follow directions and let sit on stove about 3 minutes).
2. Boil the yellow rice halfway and drain.
3. Boil chicken until just cooked through (8 minutes for thin chicken).
4. Spread yellow rice onto bottom of 10x13" dish.
5. Lay potato slices on top, placing thinner potatoes in the middle. 6. Place chicken on top of potatoes.

7. Mix yogurt and white rice in pot you used to cook the rice.

8. Spread white rice mixture over the chicken and cover with foil.

9. Cook for about an hour. Test doneness by stabbing potato with a thin knife.

10. If you have a serving platter larger than the 10x13, cover the dish with the upside down platter and invert. Otherwise, cut and serve from the baking dish.