Thankful for the Four -- Air, Earth, Fire, and Water

The Light in the Leaves

Josie Helps Get Ready

Turkey Time

These fellas roam free, secure in the knowledge that our Thanksgiving turkey is already in the freezer.

Snow and Recipes

Not much snow but enough to put an end to a few lingering blooms and to make it feel like the proper season. 

And for Misty, who asked, some of the recipes from yesterday's post.

PUMPKIN CHIFFON PIE  (from The Southern Junior League Cookbook whose recipe also calls for caramel sauce drizzled over the pie along with the whipped cream and almonds but really, there's wretched excess, which this pie is, and there's a step too far.)

 ¾ c milk

2 c canned pumpkin

1 ½ c brown sugar

1/8 tsp salt

¾ tsp ginger

¾ tsp cinnamon

1/3 tsp nutmeg

5 egg yolks

2 envelopes unflavored gelatin

1/3 c cold water

5 egg whites

1 ½ c heavy cream

1/4 cup sugar

2 10” baked pie shells

Caramelized almonds (see below)

Whipped cream for topping (1 cup heavy cream, dark rum or vanilla, a very little sugar)

***

 Heat milk with pumpkin, brown sugar, salt, and spices. Beat egg yolks slightly and add hot mixture gradually to yolks. Mix well and cook in double boiler till thick, stirring constantly.

Soften gelatin in cold water and add to hot custard. Stir till dissolved. Cool till it begins to thicken.

Beat egg whites till stiff but not dry. Fold in custard. Cool a little but not until set.

Whip cream, fold in the 1/4 c sugar, then fold cream into pumpkin mixture. Chill till very thick then pour into baked pie shell. (I do all this the day before Thanksgiving.)

Before serving, top with whipped cream flavored with dark rum or vanilla and sprinkle with caramelized almonds.

CARAMELIZED ALMONDS (also terrific as an ice cream topping)

 ½ c sugar

1 c slivered blanched almonds

Stir in heavy skillet till sugar melts and caramelizes. Spread on greased cookie sheet. Break apart when crisp and store in airtight tin.

 

BA’S CRANBERRY GELATIN SALAD

(I know, gelatin salads are so Fifties. But this is really refreshing as a part of a heavy meal , crunchy with celery and nuts and tart rather than sweet. Ba (my grandmother) served it with a dollop of mayo -- which I still like but usually forgo because calories.)

2 TB gelatin

½ c cold water

1 c boiling water

3 TB sugar

½ tsp salt

¼ c lemon juice

1 c crushed pineapple

1 ½ c cranberry sauce

1 c finely chopped celery

½ c chopped pecans

Soak gelatin in cold water for 10 minutes. Dissolve in boiling water then add sugar, salt, lemon juice, and pineapple. Allow to cool but not congeal. Add cranberry sauce, stirring thoroughly. Add celery and pecans last pour into mold which has been rinsed with cold water and not dried. Chill till set. Serves 8

Getting Ready . . .

Rain, rain, and more rain. Perfect weather for getting a jump start on Thanksgiving cooking. We are having our feast on Wednesday as Claui has to work on Thanksgiving.

On Wednesday I made a gallon and a half of turkey broth from wings and backs.  This will be used in the gravy and the dressing. On Thursday I made sweet potato rolls, bagged them up and stuck them in the freezer. On T day, it'll just be to thaw and heat them. 

I also made quite a lot of cranberry sauce -- some for the table and some for my grandmother's cranberry gelatin salad which I'll make on Monday. (I also copied and printed out the recipe which is almost illegible from fifty-odd years of use.)

Another recipe that needed copying was the pumpkin chiffon pie -- the recipe that makes pumpkin pie worth eating. It's too early to make that -- but I may make and freeze the pie crusts this weekend and I can do the almond brittle ahead too.

More turkey backs got roasted so I would have the drippings to make my gravy. (A gravy which turned out so good I had to stop myself from consuming a bowlful.) Into the freezer it went to be thawed and heated in a crockpot on The Day.

And I chopped celery and onions and sautéed them in butter. They'll go into the dressing -- which I blush to say is Pepperidge Farm - one cornbread, one regular. I've made my own before using homemade bread and homemade cornbread and it's never been as good. Possibly memory plays a part here -- Pepperidge Farm was the basis for my mother's and my grandmother's turkey dressing.

Of course others will be bringing their own additions to the feast. There'll be more  than we can eat and the leftovers will be delectable.

This cook will enjoy the whole thing even more since so much will be done ahead of time. 

 And who knows, maybe there'll be sunshine.

Addendum as of 10 pm -- I'm not sure if it was snow or sleet but I walked barefoot in it for my health.

Josie Is Eighteen Months Old!

A note from one of Josie's staff: She's not a baby any more. Technically a toddler but more and more a little girl. She's having fun saying words -- she recognizes far more than she articulates but she's getting the hang of copying what we say. (Got to be careful of the language we use.) 

She's recognizing colors, some numbers, some letters (M and O are favorites) and the written words Josie and cat.  And she's helping when I try to dress her. As a matter of fact, she loves to help -- to pick up things or put back things (long may it last.)

She has a few music videos she loves to watch with me on my laptop (Wheels on the Bus and Where Are the Duckies? play in my head at odd moments.) And she has found that by saying "Anmals!" she can get John to put her in his lap and show her pictures of animals on his computer.) 

We are making a conscious effort to keep screen time to a minimum. When she asks for Wheels of the Bus (by doing the hand-circling thing that accompanies the song,) I tell her we will watch it after lunch, and she accepts that. I think that understanding delayed gratification is a big deal for someone who's just 18 months old.

As her mother said to me recently, 'I know I'm biased but I think she is incredibly smart and pretty much perfect in every way.'

Oh, and she's an ambidextrous (though messy) eater.

A Message from December