Turkey Day - A Traditional Gluten-free Thanksgiving



The Country Home 1931



The first Thanksgiving was not a one day event - the Pilgrims had faced adversity, barely surviving the previous winter and finished reaping a very successful harvest sure to get them through another winter - CELEBRATE and celebrate they did!  The four men sent out for a day of "fowling" by the governor of the colony returned with enough for almost a week  - not including the venison provided by the Native Americans. Although the "big bird" is not specifically mentioned in the one existing letter providing our historical record of the event, turkey (along with eel and mackerel) was a staple of the times so it's probably a safe bet that it was included in the feast. 

Turkey is not a favorite of mine, that said, my husband prepares the bird in a manner that I just ----- wait for it ----- gobble up.  He first soaks it in an awesome brine that makes the end result so much more moist and it retains that moist goodness even as a leftover! 

BRINE:



Brad's Brine Bucket


You'll need a BIG container to hold the brine and the bird.  We've found that a new 5 gallon paint bucket with a lid from our local home improvement store is perfect for the size turkey we tend to buy - 14 to 25 pounders.  Of course, we sanitize it before use!

Brine the turkey for 8 to 24 hours before roasting.

1/2 C         Kosher Salt per 1 gallon of water

1/2 C         Brown Sugar per 1 gallon of water

3               Oranges, halved and squeezed

3               Lemons, halved and squeezed

10 Springs  Thyme, fresh

8 Springs    Rosemary, fresh

2 T            Peppercorns

1 Quart      Kitchen Basics Vegetable Stock

2 Gallons    Water

• Remove giblet package from turkey - save for gravy
• Place turkey in the brine - covering completely, if needed add more water keeping the salt and brown sugar ratio
• Cover and refrigerate 8 to 24 hours
• Remove from brine and rinse thoroughly
• Pat dry inside and out (paper towels most sanitary)

Your turkey is now ready to dress for the oven.  This brine will work equally well if cooking only the turkey breast.



TURKEY:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees

1                Turkey

1                Orange, quartered

1                Onion, quartered

1                Apple, quartered

1 Stalk        Celery, sliced

1                Carrot, sliced

1/3 C          Italian Parsley, fresh and chopped

2                Bay Leaves

1 Stick        Cinnamon

3 Springs    Rosemary, fresh

4 Leaves     Sage, fresh

Enough       Salt

Enough       Pepper

• Place turkey on rack in roasting pan breast side up
• Rub a little salt and pepper inside the bird
• Stuff all ingredients into the turkey cavity

1 Stick    Butter

1 Quart   Chicken Broth

Enough   Kosher Salt

Enough   Pepper

• Rub butter all over the turkey stuffing pieces randomly under the skin wherever you can
• Season outside with salt and pepper
• Baste with chicken broth every 45 minutes
• Cook until internal temperature reaches 161 to 165 degrees
• Before serving remove aromatics from inside and discard



I prefer to use my larger roasting pan for better browning





tip ~ for a Norman Rockwell looking turkey tie the legs together with kitchen string before cooking

The Centerpiece

worth the money ~ invest in a "leave in" thermometer - only one puncture, preserving the juices for a more juicy finished product.

Guess what?  The Pilgrims dressing was most likely gluten-free!  There was a scarcity of wheat flour while maize was in abundance...

DRESSING:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

3/4 C        Onions

1/3 C        Celery

1/4 C        Poultry Blend (Rosemary, Sage and Thyme)

1 T           Butter, to saute

2 T           Butter, melted

2              Eggs, beaten lightly

1/4 t         Pepper

1/2 t         Kosher Salt

2 C           Broth

3/4 C        Apples, chopped

3 3/4 C     Cornbread, crumbled

3/4 C        Bread Crumbs

• Saute onions and celery in 1 tablespoon of butter until transparent 
• Add poultry blend and cook another minute

• In a medium size bowl mix together melted butter, the onion mixture, melted butter, eggs, salt, pepper and broth
• In a large bowl put the breads and make a center well
• Add the contents of the other bowl and mix thoroughly
• Pour into a 9x9 baking dish
• Bake 25 minutes - should be moist

    

Thanksgiving - family, friends, food and fellowship...

CELEBRATE!