Tag: thanksgiving
Unlock with PatreonThanksgiving Prep: GF Sides & Desserts
This video is longer than I normally post, but we’re also going on an adventure through four different dishes that we’re making in preparation for Thursday. I thought it would be a good idea to do this one in advance, in case anyone wanted to use any of these recipes.
I’ll try to go in the same order as the video. I didn’t plan it out well, though. Which, I mean, that’s what everyone has come to expect from me.
Oh, really fast before I continue: If you like this blog and follow it for updates, please consider creating an account for WordPress.org–because this blog is moving! In efforts to expand this blog and the YouTube channel, I have purchased kwos-food.com and have been importing all of my posts to the blog there. There will be more about this on Thursday, but I wanted to let all of you know about the impending change. When you visit this URL (starting next week), you will be redirected to kwos-food.com to read the content there. I would love for you to join me there and continue supporting this blog. To do the things I want to do, it would be extremely cost-prohibitive to keep the WordPress.com site going.
Now! Onto the food!
Pumpkin Pie
I used the recipe from WholesomeYum for the filling. Mostly. I made my own pumpkin puree, though. Because it’s me and I love pumpkin. Not pumpkin spice; pumpkin. But I also made my own pumpkin spice blend. There are many different recipes available on the internet for it. It’s a lot of cinnamon, not as much ginger and nutmeg, then a little allspice and clove. Even though the pie crust was store-bought, so it’s only gluten-free and not low carb, I still chose a low-carb option for the filling. Same with the cranberry curd tart we’ll talk about in a few minutes.
Gluten-Free, Paleo Dressing
I’m used to cooking a Paleo/Primal style Thanksgiving dinner. In last week’s post about dressing a turkey, I made one type of stuffing that is made with ground meat (I think the recipe wanted pork; I used turkey. Lamb would have been better). This dressing (or stuffing, if you want to go that route) is made with a variety of veggies and some fruits. It cooks up pretty quickly and smells amazing. I’m sure it will also taste amazing.
Boozy Cranberry Sauce
Tori Avey is one of my favorite people to follow. She is a real person with a real life and has amazing recipes that favor a variety of diets, but specifically are kosher-friendly. She is Jewish, after all. Her recipe for boozy cranberry sauce came to my attention via Cameraman Ken and we decided to try her recipe instead of the one I do every year that is pucker-your-mouth tart. If we decide to use this recipe forever, I will definitely plan to make some sugar-free Cointreau or Triple Sec specifically to use in this recipe. I also need to make sugar-free Limoncello. But, that’s a story for another time–as well as another video!
Cranberry Curd Tart
One of my Facebook friends posted a link to a beautiful and vibrant red tart. I read the words “Cranberry Curd” and decided I needed to, at least, make that part. I was originally going to wait til after Thanksgiving to make the curd, but Cameraman Ken suggested that, since I had two pie crusts, I could just use both and make the tart, as well. By the time I got to this part in filming, though, I was out of spoons (or spell slots, whichever you identify with). I was having a difficult time recalling anything and my hands were starting to not work anymore. Cameraman Ken ended up doing the straining of the cranberry puree through a medium-mesh strainer, off-camera.
This entire 33:18 video took a total of 5 hours of prep and work to do. That’s also after we had to run an errand first thing in the morning. Long day was long.
Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like what you see here, please consider heading over to Patreon and supporting me there. I do have content for Patrons-only, starting at the $5 tier. Let me know if you decide to make any of these dishes for your Thanksgiving. Stay safe. Wear a mask; wash your hands; stay 2m apart! Have a Happy and Healthy Thanksgiving!
Dressing & Stuffing a Turkey
Originally, this was going to be two separate videos. Cameraman Ken suggested just making it one video both for content and my sanity. I also got a new toy that we were playing with throughout this video–it’s a light ring. Let me know if it helps the lighting at all? I don’t normally watch my own videos until a lot later, so commenting or, if you’re a Patron, pinging me on Discord is the way to go.
First of all, what is the difference between stuffing and dressing? Technically, stuffing gets stuffed into whatever you’re stuffing and dressing is baked on the side or in its own container. The recipe in this video is, obviously, stuffing from Primal Palate, one of my go-to websites for Paleo/Primal dieting. We’ve been stuffing meats since the medieval times, honestly. I had stuffed tilapia the other night for Fish Friday. It’s not a new concept. Dressing is simply how a meat is prepared. Salting, peppering, and dry rubbing a steak are how you dress the steak. When did this get confusing? The Victorian era. Everyone was so prudish–which was funny because Queen Victoria herself, was not. They also, apparently, had the humor of a 9-year old boy and found the term “stuffing” to be mildly offensive–especially when it came to birds. If you need a little help with that one, I’ll just leave this post here and say no more.
So, “stuffing” became “dressing,” despite it still being shoved into the carcass of a bird. They really confused everyone, but now it’s more of a regional thing. Some place–I think the South–refer to stuffing as anything with bread in it and dressing as anything else. I think? I don’t know. I use the terms to indicate if the dish has been cooked inside the meat or if it’s been casserole’d, basically. So, you’ll notice in this video, I talk about the stuffing inside the chicken, but the dressing in the casserole dish. That’s just for clarity. For me, they’re pretty interchangeable. Especially since I can’t have regular bread and any bread I make molds before it goes stale.
When it comes to dressing a bird, there’s so many different things you can do. I’m using a chicken for this video because I don’t have room for a turkey in my fridge. Truth be told, I barely had room for the chicken! I don’t like skin. I can’t think of a single animal whose skin I eat. I don’t like the texture and it’s just… icky. So, I have Cameraman Ken remove it for me while I prep up other things I’m going to need for dressing my fowl. So, if you like skin, my recommendation is to peel it back and put small cubes of butter under the skin to help keep the bird moist and crisp up the skin. Rub it down with salt and pepper and any other spices you’re using, and make sure to get the inside of it, as well. Stuff your bird, and then tie its legs together. I was struggling, mostly because my brain shut off almost completely and I couldn’t figure out how to tie the legs. Cameraman Ken says to do a Figure-8…which I then had to figure out how to do because my brain was just done.
I can’t remember if I said this, but you’re going to roast your chicken or turkey for 20 minutes per pound (so a 6lb bird goes for 120 minutes, or 2 hours) at 325F. Please note, your bird is not done until it reaches an internal temperature of 165F at the thickest part of the meat. The USFDA doesn’t recommend stuffing turkeys or chickens because of “Food Safety,” meaning a lot of people just take out the bird when the timer goes off instead of verifying it’s safe to eat. Get yourself a meat thermometer and use it. Clean it off after each use to avoid bacteria and transfer.
Make sure to stay tuned for more Thanksgiving-related cooking and projects, and if you’re not already a Patron, consider becoming one and, as always, thank you for your support!
PS: It’s my parents’ 54th Wedding Anniversary today! Congratulations, Mum & Dad!
Mabon Ritual: Solitary Practitioner
During the time of filming this video, Cameramen Ken was out of town. So, I had to do this myself. And it occurred to me that I really don’t have a clue as to what I’m doing. Plus, I’m not comfortable being by myself doing my practice outside. At least not near my neighbors. Who don’t wear masks or use social distancing. I thought everyone was gone, but no! I had neighbor aggro.
Oh, well. I suppose that’s what my focus for the Autumnal Equinox season should be: Being proud of my faith and my practice and not allowing myself to feel less-than simply because others may find it weird or “unnatural.”
So, this ritual came from the Mabon book from Llewellyn’s library. I copied the words into my own grimoire and then did the ritual for you! Sans the sage sticks because I wasn’t comfortable burning sage outside. Not with the ever-encroaching tree. The house is made of wood and it would go up like a tinder box, I suspect. But, I showed you how to do it in the video, sans the actual sage stick. I also don’t have a tray for my items, so you can definitely improvise.
If you want to use a wand, go for it, otherwise you don’t need it. Just make sure you have enough room to walk around (I did not). Give yourself more space than you think you’ll need, if possible. Personally, I would use water for an outdoor ritual since you’re pouring it onto the ground. Cider, beer, and wine could be sticky if allowed to dry and may damage plants or grass. If you do the ritual inside, use whatever you like as you’d be pouring it into bowls.
I hope you have a blessed Mabon.