Juicy Turkey

we kinda followed the citrus brine with this recipe from allrecipes

Prep Time:
20 Min

Cook Time:
3 Hrs

Ready In:
3 Hrs 20 Min

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons dried parsley
• 2 tablespoons ground dried rosemary
• 2 tablespoons rubbed dried sage
• 2 tablespoons dried thyme leaves
• 1 tablespoon lemon pepper
• 1 tablespoon salt
• (we used fresh rosemary, sage and thyme and rubbed under the skin with butter)
• 1 (15 pound) whole turkey, neck and giblets removed
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 orange, cut into wedges
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can chicken broth
• 1 (750 milliliter) bottle champagne
• (we skipped the carrots & celery and stuffed the bird with peeled oranges, wedged, & a peeled chopped onion)
• We dumped one bottle of sparkling grape juice over our turkeys and didn't even use the chicken broth.

Directions

1. Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a turkey roaster with long sheets of aluminum foil that will be long enough to wrap over the turkey.
2. Stir together the parsley, rosemary, sage, thyme, lemon pepper, and salt in a small bowl. Rub the herb mixture into the cavity of the turkey, then stuff with the celery, orange, onion, and carrot. Truss if desired, and place the turkey into the roasting pan. Pour the chicken broth and champagne over the turkey, making sure to get some champagne in the cavity. Bring the aluminum foil over the top of the turkey, and seal. Try to keep the foil from touching the skin of the turkey breast or legs.
3. Bake the turkey in the preheated oven for 2 1/2 to 3 hours until no longer pink at the bone and the juices run clear. Uncover the turkey, and continue baking until the skin turns golden brown, 30 minutes to 1 hour longer. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh, near the bone should read 180 degrees F (82 degrees C). Remove the turkey from the oven, cover with a doubled sheet of aluminum foil, and allow to rest in a warm area 10 to 15 minutes before slicing.

Citrus Turkey Brine

I got this recipe here at Allrecipes

we made this brine for our turkeys this year and "soaked" them for 2.5 days, in my opinion brine-ing is a MUST and turns our wonderfully juicy turkeys!

Prep Time:
10 Min

Cook Time:
15 Min

Ready In:
2 Hrs 25 Min

Original Recipe Yield 1 1/2 gallon

 

Ingredients

• 1 (12 fluid ounce) can frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
• 1 orange, sliced
• 1 lemon, sliced
• 1 lime, sliced
• 1 tablespoon dried thyme
• 1 tablespoon ground black pepper
• 3 cloves garlic
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 cup kosher salt
• 1 1/2 gallons water

Directions

1. Combine the orange juice concentrate, orange slices, lemon slices, lime slices, thyme, pepper, garlic, bay leaves, salt, and water in a large stockpot; bring to a boil. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.
2. Wash and dry your turkey. Make sure you have removed the innards. Place the turkey, breast down, into the brine. Make sure that the cavity gets filled. Place the bucket in the refrigerator. Allow turkey to marinate 1 to 2 days before cooking. Remove the turkey carefully. Drain and discard the excess brine and pat dry.
3. Cook the turkey as desired reserving the drippings for gravy. Keep in mind that brined turkeys cook 20 to 30 minutes faster.

Homemade Ranch

I got the basis for my Recipe from "Our Best Bites, Mormon Moms in the Kitchen"

1 1/2 to 2C Mayo
1 1/3C milk (last time I used powdered milk, this time I am trying plain Almond Milk)
1TBSP Lemon Juice
1/2 tsp white vinegar
2 tsp Parsley (I used fresh, about a handful, this time I used half fresh half dry)
1/4 tsp dill
1/2 tsp garlic powder (I used fresh minced garlic since I blend it in the blender)
1/2 tsp Onion powder
1 TBSP chives (I used fresh, a bunch the diameter of a pencil)
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp dry mustard
1/2 tsp Kirkland organic no salt seasoning instead of seasoned salt

blend everything in the blender  :)  refrigerate 4 hours before use.  Makes 32oz/4C.

I am going to try adding cilantro & lime juice next time!

24 hour potroast

YUMMY! The hardest part is smelling it for 24 hours, so fast Sunday may not be the best Sunday to make this.

1 roast

4 beef bouillon cubes

1 pkg Italian salad dressing mix

2 cups water

Put all ingredients in crockpot and cook on low for 24 hours. Yes, 24 hours! No stiffing or turning necessary.

Potato Soup

I haven't tried this, but it looked really good. It was posted in a forum where I would forget about it, so I thought I would put it here. I can't wait to try it!

8 potatoes peeled/chopped
6 chicken bollioun cubes
1 pint half and half
1 cup milk (I use 2%)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1/2 to 1 pound bacon cooked and diced (depends on what you like, could also use cubed ham)

Add all of these to crock pot on low for about 3-4 hours or till potatoes are soft. Then add:

8 oz cream cheese
2 cups shredded cheese (any combo will work, I used a 3 cheese one from sams club)

Stir this and let it cook on low another 1 hour till its all melted.

This is so good, rich I know but its great

Chicken Noodle Letuce Cups

I made these for dinner last night and all the kids had fun helping me cut the veggies and put it all together and on the table. Zoe, Austin & I really liked them. Makayla mostly liked them & Holden wouldn't try them at all. As a shortcut, we used leftover rotisserie chicken, shredded.

2 (8oz) skinless boneless chicken breasts

2 tsp olive oil

sea salt & black pepper

1 Tbsp sesamie seeds

1 Tbsp honey

1 bundle dried fine Chinese egg noodles or rice noodles

1/2 cucumber

2 small carrots, pealed

1 cup snow peas

2 scallions, trimmed

1/3 cup cilantro leaves

Juice of 1 lime

1 tsp soy sauce

1 head Bibb lettuce

Optional garnish: 1 red chili pepper, finely sliced

Cook the Chicken: Get your barbecue hot. If cooking indoors, put the grill pan on high heat. Score the chicken breasts with a sharp knife at 1-inch intervals to help them cook more quickly and evenly Drizzle with olive oil; add a pinch of salt & pepper. Cook, turning occasionally, for 10 minutes, or until golden and cooked through. Coat the chicken with sesamie seeds and honey. Move to a cutting board, then use 2 forks to shred the chicken.

Make the noodle salad: Meanwhile, cook the noodles according to package directions and rain well. While they're cooling, quarter the cucumber lengthwise, scrape out the seeds, then finely slice Use your vegetable peeler to cut the carrots into ribbons. Slice the snow peas in half, and finely slice the scallions. Toss veggies with cold noodles, cilantro, lime juice , and soy sauce. Peel whole leaves off the lettuce head, wash, and spin dry (or place between 2 paper towels).

Assemble the cups: Take everything to the table and let the family build their own lettuce cups.

Herb Roasted Salmon

1TBSP Olive Oil
1TBSP Butter, melted
1 tsp thyme
1/2C Onions finely chopped
salt and pepper to taste
4 salmon fillets

Pre-heat oven to 475°

In roasting pan, place the oil and melted butter.  "Roll" the salmon in it till well coated.  Sprinkle thyme, salt, pepper & chopped onion over the top.

Roast fish in the oven for 5 minutes, then turn and finish cooking 3 to 5 min. (my hubby didn't flip the fish just cooked until an internal temp of 142°)