Roasted Garlic & Onions
-Preheat oven to 400°
-Place 2 medium sized onions and 2 heads of garlic each on it's own square piece of tin foil
-Drizzle each item with Extra Virgin Olive Oil, wrap loosely and place on oven rack for 30-40 minutes until fragrant
While your garlic is roasting, chop up your fresh herbs, 1 TBS each
-Thyme
-Rosemary
-Sage
-Fresh Parsley
Once your garlic has been roasted, take 2 sticks of unsalted butter and add your fresh herbs, 4 cloves of the soft, roasted garlic, salt & pepper.
You can set that aside somewhere until you are ready to prepare your turkey. I rub this roasted garlic & herb butter all over my turkey and even put generous amounts underneath the skin. The herb butter is also great for basting and you can add it to your mashed potatoes, gravy, etc.
In the meantime, your family & friends need something to snack on to get them excited for the meal.
I love making candied walnuts or mixed nuts. I set them in the kitchen where I'm cooking to ensure that I don't get lonely.
This year, I used walnuts. I coated them in honey and brown sugar and placed them in the oven at 400° until fragrant. Uncle Stephen admitted that he liked my recipe from last year better...it was gooier and more sinful! Last Year's Recipe so you can decide for yourself.
If you slice a pomegranate into 4-6 parts and leave it on a giant cutting board, throughout the afternoon, the seeds get eaten. It's a fun snack. Just be sure to keep napkins close by.
Next, I prep the string beans for my Green Bean and Tomato Salad, and then I macerate the shallots for the salad which should be done a few hours in advance. For our group, I have to double this recipe.-2 large shallots thinly sliced and put in medium sized bowl
-pour 1/4 cup red wine vinegar over the shallots and let them sit (2-3 hours)
While the shallots are macerating, I have time to prep the turkey.
While the turkey is in the oven, I throw on my boots and head outside to find natural treasures to decorate with. This year I rounded up the troops!
My mother in law, husband, and Uncle all followed me around with baskets and bags and humored me (bless them!) as I instructed them to "find color!"
Once you've got your treasures, de-thorn them and clean them up a bit, and then separate them into categories to make the decorating easier.
What we did this year, was tie our natural pieces to mason jars and make them into candle holders which we used to line the staircase & decorate our table.
We found a bunch of twigs and made miniature scrolls that we used as place settings. Each person's scroll had a family member's name inside. We then had to write a list on the scroll of all the things we're thankful for about that person. After dinner and cleanup, we all sat around the fire and shared them with each other.
Once the table decorations are finished, it's time to head back to the kitchen.There is a specialty drink to be made, and this year, my husband and I chose the Bourbon Ginger Snap.
Now I've got a little time to get cleaned up and dressed up for dinner! After showering, I finish my Green Bean and Tomato Salad.
-In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the green beans until tender but still firm to the bite 1.5-2 minutes after the water returns to a boil. Drain, rinse under cold running water and drain well.
-3 pints of red and yellow cherry or pear tomatoes, halved lengthwise
-Dressing: Take the macerated shallots and whisk in 1 TBS of dijon-style mustard. Add salt & pepper and gradually whisk in 1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil. Stir in 1/2 cup of freshly shredded basil.
-In a bowl, toss the beans with half of the dressing. Arrange them on one side of a large platter. Toss the tomatoes with the remaining dressing and mound them next to the beans.
Believe it or not, this is the ONLY photo I have of this dish! It's taken from the cookbook where I got the recipe which is called "Great Recipes For Great Weekends."
This time of year, I can often only find the red pear tomatoes, but the bright color still makes the Thanksgiving Day plate pop! Don't you think?
KSW
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