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Thursday, November 26, 2009

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving 1

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

This year with my brother and several cousins out of town, I ended up feeding only a dozen people. Haven't had a family gathering that small in quite a while.

Lil' sis and I started cooking around 1 p.m. for dinner at 6 p.m. I didn't even do the Salt Rub and Butter Turkey Dry Brine until 1 a.m. the night before and the turkey still came out perfect.

Going from the top of the table on down: lil' sis made pumpkin marbled cheesecake this year, along with the mashed potatoes and stuffing. She brought home leftover yams from her earlier Thanksgiving dinner with her friends. I told her best friend to bring the green bean casserole because I had a weird craving for it. My oldest uncle's wife sent over Cha Gio (Vietnamese Egg Rolls).

Thanksgiving 2

All the way in the back, you can see my red Crock Pot. I gave in and bought a 4.5 quart Crock Pot when it was on sale at Target for $16.99. I made Crock Pot Bo Kho (Vietnamese Beef Stew) with great results. Adjusted my normal Bo Kho (Vietnamese Beef Stew) so that no extra pots were needed as well as freeing up stove space for cooking Thanksgiving dinner.

Crock Pot Bo Kho (Vietnamese Beef Stew) 2

I made Aji Verde (Peruvian Green Chile Sauce) to dip with the dinner rolls that the middle '87 brought. Cousin Q's mom made com ga Hai Nam (Hainanese chicken rice) and a Vietnamese salad. New recipes to come include: Homemade Turkey Gravy, Pate Chinois (Canadian "Chinese" Cottage Pie), Pumpkin Marbled Cheesecake, Triple-Deviled Eggs with Black Pepper, Paprika, and Sriracha, and Turkey Liver Pate.

Thanksgiving 3

The 21-lb turkey was crispy on the outside and moist and juicy on the inside. Cousin Q's mom was so amazed she asked me how I seasoned it. Just salt, I told her.

Thanksgiving 4

Thanksgiving 5

My plate.

Thanksgiving 6

A preview of the Turkey Liver Pate. No part of the turkey goes to waste!

Thanksgiving 7

The Homemade Turkey Gravy.

Homemade Gravy 8

Triple-Deviled Eggs with Black Pepper, Paprika, and Sriracha.

Triple-Deviled Eggs with Black Pepper, Paprika, and Sriracha 1

Pate Chinois (Canadian Chinese Cottage Pie).

Pate Chinois (Canadian Chinese Shepherd's Pie) 2

Lil' sis' Pumpkin Marbled Cheesecake.

Thanksgiving 8

I hope you pigged out and spent time with your loved ones too!

I've been on an 80s kick lately. Usually, after dinner, everyone sits around the television vegetating before eating seconds or thirds. This year, I made them watch "V: The Original TV Miniseries," which used to freak me out sooo much as a kid. The girls groaned at its cheesiness, but lil' sis' best friend totally got into it. And, I did not realize back then how many Nazi references it had. I've got "V: The Final Battle" and "V: The Complete Series" too. :P

New recipes served this Thanksgiving:
Crock Pot Bo Kho (Vietnamese Beef Stew)
Homemade Turkey Gravy
Pate Chinois (Canadian "Chinese" Cottage Pie)
Pumpkin Marbled Cheesecake
Triple-Deviled Eggs with Black Pepper, Paprika, and Sriracha
Turkey Liver Pate

*****
1 year ago today, Charlie's Trio Cafe - Alhambra.
2 years ago today, Ryan Gosling's restaurant, Tagine - Beverly Hills.

10 comments:

  1. I wish we had cha gio at our Thanksgiving feast! sounds like you had a wonderful meal.

    ReplyDelete
  2. That shepherd's pie is beautiful.

    Your plate looks like mine - gravy everywhere.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Love the photo of your plate!

    And I am intrigued by that pate!! Last year I made foie gravy, but this year Wilson (my pooch) got the liver.
    LL

    ReplyDelete
  4. What a feast...and how wonderful to have members of your extended family to share it with. You really out did yourself. Kudos.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Now see,that's a good looking bird. We haven't seemed to grasp the concept of cooking a bird to standard at our house. Wow Lil Sis's pumpkin marble cake looks delicious too.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Happy Thanksgiving to you - what an eclectic meal.

    I've decided, with all my USA blog buddies, that I like Thanksgiving a lot. It seems a pure celebration of family, food and, of course, gratefulness for one's lot in life, without the baggage of religion or consumerism (here's looking at you, Xmas ...)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Wow, fantastic! So much variety. I like tons of gravy too. Had to request more of it at a restaurant as I felt that large amounts of gravy are perfect with turkey.

    The marbling of the cheesecake is subtle but beautiful :). I can't wait to hear what are triple deviled eggs!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Amazing! What a spread! I love how you made people watch V. Tee hee hee.

    ReplyDelete
  9. 12 is almost twice as many as are typically at our Thanksgiving dinner, but my family is a lot more spread out than yours. You did them proud-- that turkey is beautiful!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Tasty Eats at Home,
    I think we have cha gio at almost every meal. :)

    Susan,
    Gravy on my mashed potatoes, gravy on my stuffing, gravy over the turkey too.

    Lori Lynn,
    I didn't do much. Made a quickie version of my chicken liver pate.

    Mary,
    It was pretty simple this year and my little sister helped so that made it less work.

    David,
    Do the salt rub recipe! Perfect results every time.

    Oanh,
    That's why Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. Just family and food.

    ETE,
    Triple deviled means three kinds of pepper. :)

    Weezer Monkey,
    Haha. Lil' sis's best friend got so into it that he came back to finish it up and watched the Final Battle and borrowed the tv series. :P

    Anne,
    Keeps shrinking every year as cousins get married and have other commitments. Perhaps one day it'll increase if they all converge, especially when they have kids.

    ReplyDelete

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