Who is hosting Thanksgiving Dinner??

[MichaelB]

Out of curiosity, how large a package does a duck have?

Don't be jealous. Size doesn't matter.

 

[REWahoo]

Don't be jealous. Size doesn't matter.

Have you been told that often?

 

[MichaelB]

Have you been told that often?

Hey - I'm not the one asking ...

 

[martyp]

We've done Thanksgiving at our house for the last 30+ yrs. Usually just 5-8 people (we have a small house). Pretty traditional menu: oven roasted heritage turkey, mashed potatoes, a vegetable dish, salad. Everyone expects this menu so I can't really change the basics but I try do variations on this theme.

 

[Throwdownmyaceinthehole]

Well if you have alot of time on your hands, make a turducken
Chef Paul's Recipes - Chef Paul Prudhomme

I've made this a couple of times, it is soooooo good, but takes me 3 days to get it all together and about 10 days to eat it all.
We are now over in Australia, so no Thanksgiving for us. Can't even find pumpkin pie mix, but I have lots of other things to be thankful for!

 

[NW-Bound]

Out of curiosity, how large a package does a duck have?

Small, very small...

I looked up Costco's description of the duck package. Nice, very nice... Large, very large...

Here's the excerpt from Costco so the reader can see for him/herself.

Magret duck breasts are plump, juicy and meaty and often referred to as a “Duck Steak”. Magret duck breasts are also twice as big as a regular duck breast.​

Price: $130 for 6 duck breasts and 6 duck leg confit. A lot less than what one would pay in a restaurant. It's too bad my wife is not crazy about duck as I do. I also got my fix recently in a restaurant, so my craving has subsided for now. Still, when one thinks of the description above...

 

[W2R]

We are now over in Australia, so no Thanksgiving for us. Can't even find pumpkin pie mix, but I have lots of other things to be thankful for!

If you can get pumpkin, then here is an easy way to make pumpkin pie with no mix. Hope this helps!

Perfect Pumpkin Pie Recipe - Allrecipes.com

 

[Meadbh]

Well if you have alot of time on your hands, make a turducken
Chef Paul's Recipes - Chef Paul Prudhomme

I've made this a couple of times, it is soooooo good, but takes me 3 days to get it all together and about 10 days to eat it all.
We are now over in Australia, so no Thanksgiving for us. Can't even find pumpkin pie mix, but I have lots of other things to be thankful for!

Just a seasonal question....

I Googled "pumpkin and Australia" and found this site

Gardening Australia - Growing pumpkins

"In frost-free tropical and subtropical gardens, pumpkins can be grown all year round. In temperate Australia plant or sow outside after the last frost."

If the last frost was in, say, September, the prime season for harvesting pumpkins in temperate Australia might be, say, December. Are pumpkins commonly found on the supermarket shelves in Oz? When are they in season? How popular are they?

I grew up in Ireland and the only thing I knew about pumpkins as a child was that Cinderella's carriage was made out of one.

 

[brewer12345]

I looked up Costco's description of the duck package. Nice, very nice... Large, very large...

Here's the excerpt from Costco so the reader can see for him/herself.

Magret duck breasts are plump, juicy and meaty and often referred to as a “Duck Steak”. Magret duck breasts are also twice as big as a regular duck breast.
​

Price: $130 for 6 duck breasts and 6 duck leg confit. A lot less than what one would pay in a restaurant. It's too bad my wife is not crazy about duck as I do. I also got my fix recently in a restaurant, so my craving has subsided for now. Still, when one thinks of the description above...

At those prices, I should learn how to hunt ducks.

 

[brewer12345]

Just a seasonal question....

I Googled "pumpkin and Australia" and found this site

Gardening Australia - Growing pumpkins

"In frost-free tropical and subtropical gardens, pumpkins can be grown all year round. In temperate Australia plant or sow outside after the last frost."

If the last frost was in, say, September, the prime season for harvesting pumpkins in temperate Australia might be, say, December. Are pumpkins commonly found on the supermarket shelves in Oz? When are they in season? How popular are they?

I grew up in Ireland and the only thing I knew about pumpkins as a child was that Cinderella's carriage was made out of one.

Then you should hear the obligatory pumpkin joke:

What do West Virginians do on Halloween?

Pump Kin.

 

[audreyh1]

I looked up Costco's description of the duck package. Nice, very nice... Large, very large...

Here's the excerpt from Costco so the reader can see for him/herself.

Magret duck breasts are plump, juicy and meaty and often referred to as a “Duck Steak”. Magret duck breasts are also twice as big as a regular duck breast.​

Price: $130 for 6 duck breasts and 6 duck leg confit. A lot less than what one would pay in a restaurant. It's too bad my wife is not crazy about duck as I do. I also got my fix recently in a restaurant, so my craving has subsided for now. Still, when one thinks of the description above...

What is amazing to me is that they say 6 duck breasts = 5 pounds minimum. That means each breast is over 0.8 lbs - that's huge! The legs are 5 oz each in comparison.

By the way - the above price is shipping included - 2 day UPS.

 

[audreyh1]

Just a seasonal question....

I Googled "pumpkin and Australia" and found this site

Gardening Australia - Growing pumpkins

"In frost-free tropical and subtropical gardens, pumpkins can be grown all year round. In temperate Australia plant or sow outside after the last frost."

If the last frost was in, say, September, the prime season for harvesting pumpkins in temperate Australia might be, say, December. Are pumpkins commonly found on the supermarket shelves in Oz? When are they in season? How popular are they?

I grew up in Ireland and the only thing I knew about pumpkins as a child was that Cinderella's carriage was made out of one.

Pumpkin is routinely eaten as a vegetable in Australia, like we eat butternut squash or sweet potatoes.

 

[MBAustin]

We'll be headed to BIL's house about 3 hours away and will spend a few days in the area. Most of DH's family is local there so we should have a large group including some nieces and nephews and their families. I need to figure out a side dish that is very easy to prep, as I'm going to visit my mother this weekend and won't be back until Wednesday.

 

[audreyh1]

BTW, Costco is offering a special on a real Louisiana Big Easy Foods Creole Style Tur-Duc-Hen. Stuffed with cornbread and pork rice dressing. I don't think there's enough time to get it by Thanksgiving though. Looks like they're throwing in Cajun Red Beans and Rice with Pork Sausage as well. Big Easy Foods Creole Style Tur-Duc-Hen

Just in case anyone had a turducken fantasy.........

 

[FUEGO]

From my Thanksgiving 2012 planning spreadsheet:

The meal will consist of the following per person:

Turkey 1 lb
Bread 1 piece
Mashed potatoes 6 oz
turkey gravy 2 oz
country gravy 1.5 oz
cream corn 3 oz
green beans 2 oz
stuffing 1.5 servings
Green bean casserole 4 oz
mac n cheese 5 oz
beef chili - 3 oz
cranberry sauce 1 oz
Deviled Eggs - 1.5 halves
Sausage, egg, and cheese biscuit casserole - 1 serving

DESSERTS
Pumpkin pie - 1/10 pie
pumpkin roll
chocolate cake

(I had to estimate what will be eaten and quantities in order to plan how much to make in total, and not knowing what my in-laws will bring but knowing it will be something, and probably a lot)

And then who knows what other people will end up bringing.

My side of the family isn't coming this year (they're out of town), so just DW's family. That means ~21 adults or teenagers, and 5 kids (not counting all the infants/young toddlers).

Oh and the liquor cabinet is stocked... 3 kinds of brandy/cognac, a few Canadian blend whiskeys, rum, tequila, mud slide, vodka, goldshlager, Kentucky whiskey, wine, beer.

Weather says it will be 60 degrees next Wednesday so hopefully it will stay about the same for Turksday so we can eat and lounge (and nap) outside.

 

[Nords]

A couple public service announcements.

First, do not (do NOT) clean your oven this month:
http://fixitnow.com/wp/2012/11/02/appliantology-newsletter-keep-your-oven-cooking-for-thanksgiving/

Second, USNA '85 alumni apparently don't have enough to do at the football game. If competitive turkey-cooking is your hobby, here's the challenge:
The Scoop Deck
In an unrelated coincidence, if you show up at this location around 6:05 PM you may score enough deep-fried turkey-based leftovers to last you until 2013...

We got not one but two invitations from neighbors & good friends. It's going to be a great holiday!

 

[Moemg]

Thanksgiving is being hosted by a nearby waterfront restaurant .We opted out of the hosting this year but we will still do the big Christmas event .

 

[dtbach]

OK, have a head count of 21. Have about 8# of turkey left from one I made 2 weeks ago and a quart of gravy to go with it. Just got a 23# turkey at the store (with deep discount) and then a $10 coupon from Miller Lite. So the turkey will end up costing about $5!! Yeeee Haawww!!

Have my sausage stuffing recipe ready and smashed tato's, corn and rolls. Have the beer and wine ready to go.

Let it happen

 

[freebird5825]

Try to get this song out of your head this Thursday

I will Survive - The Thanksgiving Version.m4v - YouTube

 

[FUEGO]

The cooking has started here! 25 pound turkey is busy brining away in the fridge in a huge stock pot filled with salt, vinegar, brown sugar, crushed garlic, cracked black pepper, and maybe more (DW prepped the brine). That was one big turkey. I could barely handle it to rinse it out and get it into the stock pot.

 

[braumeister]

What is amazing to me is that they say 6 duck breasts.

Sounds like genetic modification run amok.

 

[pb4uski]

DD is hosting this year. She is 4 hours away and we figured it was better for the three of us to ride together for 4 hours down and 4 hours back than for her to ride alone - especially since she will be doing it alone in December for Christmas.

We had bought a nice 8lb turkey breast on sale a couple months ago so we'll bring that and some other raw materials and do a bit of grocery shopping once we get there.

Quick trip - out tomorrow and back Friday afternoon.

 

[foxfirev5]

DW and I will be hosting our family of 10. DW just set a new all time record - $270 at the grocery store - NOT including the 24# turkey and beer !!

 

[Free To Canoe]

We will be hosting Thanksgiving. We are very thankful for our family. After we retired to the Upstate of South Carolina, my son and family moved within 30 minutes of us. My daughter, who was working in Florida, just got a job in a town 40 minutes away. We will have the entire family together. We are blessed!

That is great! Enjoy.

 

[Free To Canoe]

DW and I are having about 12 of family up to the forest. We got our bird already. Saw 12 wild turkeys in the back yard yesterday. We gave these big ones a pardon (this year).