Matt and I hope you all had a wonderful holiday with your family and friends. As this was our first year living in Kansas we were unsure if we would be able to celebrate with our family back in Massachusetts. As luck would have it, with my school schedule it worked out that we could spend an entire week at home! It was wonderful to have that time but at the last minute we decided to fly home on Black Friday.
We are now those people who are chasing frequent flyer miles! With all of Matt's travelling we discovered that we are extremely close to earning "Companion Status" with Southwest which would allow me to fly unlimited with Matt for free next year! We have a deadline of December 31st so we are taking every opportunity we can to earn that reward ... I can smell the long weekend getaways already!!
We are now those people who are chasing frequent flyer miles! With all of Matt's travelling we discovered that we are extremely close to earning "Companion Status" with Southwest which would allow me to fly unlimited with Matt for free next year! We have a deadline of December 31st so we are taking every opportunity we can to earn that reward ... I can smell the long weekend getaways already!!
It was a rainy, cold weekend and Kansas so Matt and I took the opportunity to do what we love - cook all day. Since we had no leftovers to make turkey soup - we made an entire Thanksgiving meal Saturday so that we could make soup on Sunday!
Menu | Roasted Turkey Mushroom and Sausage Cornbread Stuffing Mushroom and Vegetable Cornbread Dressing Turkey Gravy Mushroom Gravy Butternut and Acorn Squash Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Kale Creamed Pearl Onions Cranberry Sauce Biscuits |
Nothing goes to waste in our family: Matt simmered the turkey neck with onion, garlic, celery, and fresh herbs to make a turkey stock. We used that to keep dishes moist, added it to the gravy, and used it the next day in soup!
Up first: Herbed Butter. We cream two sticks of unsalted butter and use it to baste/flavor all the sides and serve it along side warm bread for the meal. We like to tie the meal together with threads of similar flavors ... and the fresh herbs bring a brightness to the meal that is needed. We like to use sage, thyme, and rosemary.
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First side: Butternut & Acorn Squash. When you take the time to roast the squash in the oven the sugars caramelize and bring another depth to the dish. Matt's family introduced me to this dish ... my family is more a sweet potato with marshmallow kind of crew!
Second Side: Cornbread Dressing. This side is 100% for vegetarian, for me. We combine two types of bread: country white and cornbread with roasted mushrooms, carrots, onion, and celery. For extra flavor and crisp on top: Herbed butter!
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Sauce #1: Mushroom Gravy. This was actually the first time I made a gravy for myself and it will absolutely be a staple in the years to come. Much like the herbed butter, its nice to have a constant thread of flavor to tie the food together.
Main Course: Turkey! Matt has perfected his turkey-roasting skills over the years. This one was by far his most juicy and flavorful turkey to date. We have learned that the pop-thermometers that are pre-inserted are unreliable. They often pop when the turkey is over done. We use our own thermometers and baste with herbed butter every hour of so. Matt also stuffs his bird with the same dressing shown above, but with the addition of sausage. A childhood favorite.
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Last but not least: Photos of our gluttonous plates...
Thanksgiving Turkey Soup
A favorite in our household. Oddly I started doing this years before I met Matt. His family also made turkey soup with the leftovers. A match-made in Thanksgiving heaven.
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