Things I Learned When I Hosted My First Friendsgiving
| Channel | Publish Date | Thumbnail & View Count | Actions |
|---|---|---|---|
 Ambitious Kitchen | 2022-12-20 17:26:08 |  1,407 Views |
Brussels sprouts kale honey crisp and apple salad with maple syrup dressing
• As I realized last week it’s not so much the cooking that makes big meals (we had 16 people) scary but the sheer volume of them and the logistics of managing them. I mean who here has a kitchen built to feed 16? Trust me it’s not you it’s your kitchen that makes it difficult.
• The more time you spend planning things out the less stressful it will be. Since I’m Team Casserole i.e. I prefer dishes that are deep and bubbly can be made well in advance and reheat well they’re all pretty forgiving of over- or under-reheating times. Too long and they get a little extra crispy and toasty on top (yum) too short and they still retain a lot of heat even if they’re not bubbling hot. I reheated all the dishes before the turkey went in then slid one or two in while it was roasting. When the turkey came out and we had 30 minutes to rest and carve all the sides all the sides went back to reheat. • Anything that can be done ahead of time should be done as early as possible. You’re doing it for yourself. When we have a lot of people over it often leads to me exhausting myself the night before trying to prep everything I can but then I wake up refreshed and we’re 80% there. It’s not really a stressful day which means we enjoy the party a lot more. If I can’t finish the prep the night before I do it in the morning. I find it essential to have a small window of vegetative/non-cooking time between prepping things and cooking the last-minute stuff. It’s also a good time to do something new. • All the pies were made earlier in the week and went into the fridge (pecans) or freezer (pumpkin) until needed. • Finally I think we should all buy each other coasters for Christmukkah. I have… 4? What kind of Thanksgiving only has 4 hot dishes coming out of the kitchen? None that we want to be around thank you very much.
About that turkey • Turkeys are funnily enough hard to find the week before Thanksgiving. • Brining is a delicious nightmare. I know a lot of people don’t do it. I know you don’t have to. I know there are less crazy options like dry brining. But I’m not a fan of turkey anyway because I find it dry and often tasteless. And I don’t want a little overcooking to ruin it. So: brining. Oh but what a comedy it was and by comedy I mean cry-laugh emoji. It involved a 19.5 pound bird 1 of these bags and 2.5 gallons of brine which apparently created enough pressure on the bag to pop it open. Mopping was involved. Then I put it in the fridge (40 pounds no mean feat but still easier than that time I had to carry my 20-pounder sideways with my back hunched out of the grocery store… math is crazy) and discovered that there was a tiny hole in the bottom and I don't know if normal people whose mothers weren't microbiologists count salmonella among their worst fears but raw turkey juice dripping all over the fridge and into the crisper drawers required a cleanup as dangerous as a hazmat suit until I didn't have to worry about it anymore. • Where's the recipe Deb? We were so happy with the turkey but I can't in good conscience share with you a recipe for something so epic that I've only made once. I mean what if I missed something important and ruined all your holiday parties? I promise it's coming and it'll be worth the wait.
