Saturday night, I transferred three pounds of Great Northern Beans to two quart canning jars. When I remove the jar of Navy beans in the freezer, I will place one of these in the freezer. I am careful with canning jars in the freezer because if one falls out, it will break. So, I cleaned a space on a shelf where it can lie securely. Freezing beans will kill any pest eggs in the beans.
Today, I will cook a turkey breast for Thanksgiving. Then, I will thaw another and bake it. They store easier in packets of meat for several meals. Plus, it sure is nice to have a cooked protein ready to eat. It is so cold that running the oven is not a problem.
While Tommy was waiting for me in the Big Box, he said he looked at all the things up front for Thanksgiving. He said he was amused that some boxes of Stove Top Stuffing were "dedicated" to Turkey and some were dedicated to Chicken. "Dedicated"? I told him that meant Turkey flavor and the Chicken was chicken flavor. He said the ingredient list did not say so. Well, he might be surprised there is a Cornbread variety and Traditional Sage variety and Herb variety. He says the cutest things sometime. He had no idea the ingredients were different.
At Piggly Wiggly I bought enough groceries to earn a free Graham Cracker Pie Crust. I bought aluminum loaf pans for breads. However, I forgot to go to Publix for more turkey breasts.
I have my Thanksgiving menu:
Turkey breast
mashed potatoes
gravy in a jar and make it into giblet gravy with diced boiled eggs
sweet potato casserole (maybe not)
green bean casserole
Stovetop Stuffing
cranberry sauce
Jello Salad
I might make a couple of deviled eggs for me since Tommy won't eat deviled eggs. There are an awful lot of carbs in the meal, but we will eat judiciously. I may not cook the mashed potatoes, but if I do I will use Yukon Gold. They make the most delicious mashed potatoes. Do you ever cook with Yukon Gold potatoes? I have definitely decided against sweet potato casserole, I think. We will have that on a low-carb day.
Of course, the gravy will have chopped boiled eggs. The cooking starts today with the turkey breast. This menu might change according to whims and my energy level.
The tricky part of this meal is buying bananas and having them just right, right ripeness to put in the Jello. I can eat them very soft, but I want bananas a little firmer for the Jello, but not green smelling or tasting. I have to divide this into two small bowls because Tommy hates bananas.
Today or tomorrow, I will gather everything to make sure I need nothing else to get this meal on the table. Like last year, I will make a dish or two each day. We will probably eat a bit of it for a meal and the rest of the dish will be served on Thanksgiving for a honest-to-goodness meal of our favorite Thanksgiving foods.
There is a can of cherry pie filling that I would like to use, not for Thanksgiving, but this season. I really hate cherry pie, but Tommy would love it. Maybe at Christmas.
Friday, I finally sent the Bread and Butter letter to our Monday night host. I realized I did not know her last name or address, so I stuck the note into a sandwich bag and put it under her windshield wiper. My intentions had been to put it in the mail on Tuesday so she would get it on Wednesday.
Do you ever use Yukon Gold potatoes? Do you send Bread and Butter letters?
Your Thanksgiving menu sounds divine! I will invite myself and be sure to send you a Bread and Butter note afterwards. LOL! I think that term is Southern; I only ever heard of them as "thank you" notes. And I have sent my share of them. But it's nice that y'all have a term that specifically applies to hospitality. And as we know, Southern hospitality is the highest standard.
ReplyDeleteBananas in Jello are so tricky, aren't they? That line between chalky green and mush is so dang narrow. I have given up on regular bananas and only buy organic now. I find the regular ones completely flavorless, even when ripe.
I DO cook with Yukon Golds and I love them unreservedly. So buttery, so flavorful! The perfect tater, IMO.
That can of cherries needs to meet up with a refrigerator cheesecake with a crumb crust!
Sue,
DeleteCome n over! We do have high standards! A friend kept bringing mashed potatoes to Thanksgiving, and I finally asked her. Yes, it is perfect potato. I though a cheesecake was what the cherries needed, too.
Well, as is often the case on this site, I called upon Google to learn more about something shared here.
ReplyDeleteAnd by golly--Bread and Butter is actually of English origins! And it can also be called a Collins, which I have doubly never heard of.
https://wordhistories.net/2018/08/30/bread-butter-letter-collins/
https://www.edwardianpromenade.com/etiquette/writing-the-bread-and-butter-letter/
I have been meaning to write about that note, and today was about food, so time. So many of our etiquette is of English origins. I will have to read at those links.
ReplyDeleteI love Yukon Gold potatoes! They have more flavor and seem to cook better in dishes.
ReplyDeleteI am impressed you have T-giving already in motion.
Urspo,
ReplyDeleteI rarely buy them, but they cannot be beat! This early prep is in self-defense. I cannot do it all in 24 hours like I could at one time. And, I made pies, too. As I get older, the prep time stretches.
Dinner sounds delicious. I have used Yukon Gold in the past but mostly just use russet, the least expensive variety I can purchase. Since mashed potatoes are high carb, I usually roast sweet potatoes for myself to have and others can eat the mashed. Or I serve myself a small amount of mashed. Around here they never last that long, lol. I've never heard of eggs in gravy. That must be a southern thing. I don't know what Bread and Butter letter is either. I had to google it.
ReplyDeleteJoyful,
DeleteI have other cheaper potatoes here, bought for Thanksgiving. I will probably just use those. I suppose eggs in the giblet gravy is Southern.
I send a thank you note every time we eat with someone, because it would be rude if I didn't. The only exceptions were meals at my MIL's or Mom's (or pot luck family reunions where only the host got a note)
ReplyDeleteAnne,
DeleteIt is a good habit to develop.