Future Farmboy miraculously recovered in the midst of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade…I had abandoned the doctor-prescribed BRAT diet and started giving him mild, but energy enhancing foods, like smoothies.
He felt so much better so quickly that we hustled, got dressed and headed to break bread with Virtual Farm Husband’s family in NW Indiana.
We had a fabulous time. And the food was excellent! Those Southern Indiana 4H’rs sure know how to put good food on the table.
The next day we headed farther south and started all over, except I was cooking.
Our menu:
- Turkey – rubbed with lemon and butter beneath the skin, then stuffed with thyme, carrots, garlic, lemon and onions for flavor, then rubbed with olive oil to make the skin crispy.
- Turkey gravy (ala Playful Spirit Farmgirl)
- Brussels sprout hash w/carmelized shallots.
- Cranberry sauce infused w/port wine and cinnamon.
- Grandmother’s mashed potatoes and carrots.
- Green beans tossed w/roasted slivered almonds (w/canned homegrown green beans).
- Bourbon sweet potato mash w/walnuts.
- Whole wheat yeast rolls (ala Real Farmgirl).
- Apple Cider (ala Hainlen Orchard) [Why they don’t have a website nobody knows.]
- Sweet potato pie w/chocolate sauce and whipped cream (ala Virtual Farm Husband).
- Pumpkin cookies (ala Real Farmgirl).
- Pumpkin bread (ala Real Farmgirl).
A feast to say the least!
This was only my second turkey, so I was pretty nervous. I had a tricky oven to deal with, so that’s my excuse for the breast meat being a little overdone on top. But overall, I was pretty pleased with the outcome. Shout out to the NW Indiana 4H Champion for all the seasoning ideas…and to the Food Network for the tip about rubbing the bird with olive oil for crispy skin.
The Brussels sprout hash was a bigger hit than I expected.
Best of all was the company. My sister-in-law had a great little exercise she learned from her pastor…in which five kernels of corn are placed in front of each place setting. This is a reminder…a tradition dating back to the pilgrims…to be thankful for:
- God’s earth and its beauty.
- Freedom.
- A reminder of our love and care for one another.
- Friends.
- God’s love and care for all.
She asked us to share the five things we were most thankful for. Here’s my five:
- My husband.
- My children.
- My new community.
- The doctors at Children’s Memorial and Loyola.
and, of course…
- Farmers.
Virtual Farmgirl 