Thanksgiving idea: Place cards

Over the years, my kids have used the traditional method for making place cards: computer + printer. But how fun are these fall fruit place card holders? They're easy to make and will undoubtedly ensure the perfect seat assignments.

On a separate (but also holiday-related) note, I recently discovered Doozy Cards, a small, family owned and operated animation studio and ecard company. A father and daughter team founded Doozy Cards with the intention of uplifting each person who views their cards. They've been creating original ecards since 2003, including popular funny Thanksgiving ecards, and have a huge selection of charming and humorous musical greeting cards for practically every holiday or special occasion.

A few gluten free Thanksgiving recipes...

Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms
(6-8 servings)

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 pound gluten free Italian sausage
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 cup (3 ounces) Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1 large egg yolk, lightly beaten
24 large mushrooms, stemmed
1/3 cup dry white wine
3 tablespoons Italian parsley, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly grease 15-by-10-by-2-inch glass baking dish. Set aside.

Heat olive oil in large skillet over medium high heat. Add sausage and oregano, cook. Break sausage into small pieces, cook until sausage is brown and no pink traces remain. Using slotted spoon, transfer sausage into large bowl, let cool. Add 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, Worcestershire, and garlic powder. Stir to combine. Stir in cream cheese; salt and pepper to taste. Stir in egg yolk.

Place mushroom caps in prepared baking dish, stemmed side up. Brush each with white wine. Fill with about 1 tablespoon filling, sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese. (Can be prepared ahead, covered and chilled.)

Bake uncovered for 25 minutes. Place under broiler 5 minutes until tops are lightly browned. Serve.

Roasted Parsnips with Horseradish Herb Butter
(6 servings)

3 medium parsnips, peeled and cut into 2-by-1/2-inch pieces
large carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup gluten free chicken stock
1/4 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 teaspoon prepared gluten free horseradish sauce
1 tablespoon Italian parsley, chopped
1 tablespoon chives, chopped
1 small garlic clove, minced

Preheat oven to 400 F. In medium baking dish, toss parsnips and carrots with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Add chicken stock; cover with aluminum foil and roast. Stir once or twice until parsnips and carrots are tender and the stock has evaporated (about 45 minutes). Meanwhile, in medium bowl, mix butter, horseradish sauce, herbs, and garlic. Adjust seasonings to taste with salt and pepper. Toss roasted vegetables with horseradish butter. Serve.

Two additional recipes (Roast Turkey with Apples and Deep Dish Cranberry Pie) can be found at The Saturday Evening Post.

Is there a special dish you particularly enjoy at Thanksgiving?

(Photo via Flickr)

Weekly links

Have a fab weekend! Here are your links...

live like stylish vampire Edward Cullen of The Twilight Saga: New Moon at Apartment Therapy (The house is for sale and movie opens today!)

make gluten free Thanksgiving cranberry cobbler at Ginger Lemon Girl

crochet flower fridgies at Salihan Crafts via WhipUp

learn the art of giving good directions at Apartment Therapy (Useful if you will be entertaining during the holidays.)

stump your guests with turkey trivia place cards at Martha Stewart

make a beefy bolster pillow from old towels at Curbly

use drinking straws to make a contemporary pendant light at Addicted 2 Decorating via Curbly

(Photo via weheartit)

Oh Sh@#! Thanksgiving is next week

While I do feel somewhat inspired to attempt this Roast Turkey with Black-Truffle Butter and White-Wine Gravy (sans the gluten), I think it's a good thing that I won't. My mother-in-law and brother-in-law are visiting us next week from Los Angeles. He has suggested that we go out to an Italian restaurant on Thanksgiving. Hah. I don't think so.

You may, however, wish to try this lovely recipe from Gourmet food editor Shelley Wiseman. *Please note: this is not a gluten free recipe.*

Ingredients

* 1 (12-to 14-pound) turkey at room temperature 1 hour, neck and giblets (excluding liver) reserved for turkey stock
* 6 ounces black-truffle butter, softened, divided
* 3 cups water, divided
* 1/2 cup finely chopped shallots
* 2 cups dry white wine
* 4 cups hot classic turkey stock
* 5 tablespoons all-purpose flour

* Equipment: kitchen string; a 17-by 14-inch flameproof roasting pan with a flat rack; a 2-quart measuring cup or a fat separator

Preparation

Preheat oven to 450°F with rack in lower third.

Rinse turkey inside and out and pat dry. Working from large cavity end, gently run your fingers between skin and meat to loosen skin, being careful not to tear skin. Push two thirds of truffle butter (4 ounces) under skin, including thighs and drumsticks, and massage skin from outside to spread butter evenly. Mix 2 1/2 teaspoons salt and 1 1/2 teaspoons pepper in a small bowl and sprinkle it evenly in turkey cavities and all over skin. Fold neck skin under body, then tuck wing tips under breast and tie drumsticks together with string.

Put turkey on rack in roasting pan and pour in 2 cups water. Roast, rotating pan 180 degrees after 1 hour of roasting and adding remaining cup water, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into fleshy part of each thigh (test both; close to but not touching bone) registers 170°F, 1 3/4 to 2 hours total.

Carefully tilt turkey so juices from inside large cavity run into pan. Transfer turkey to a platter and let stand, uncovered, 30 minutes (temperature of thigh meat will rise to 175 to 180°F). Discard string.

Strain pan juices through a fine-mesh sieve into 2-quart measuring cup and skim off fat (or use a fat separator), reserving fat. Straddle roasting pan across 2 burners and cook shallots in 1/4 cup reserved fat over medium heat, stirring, until golden, about 2 minutes. Add wine and boil, stirring and scraping up brown bits, until mixture is reduced to about 1 cup, 5 to 8 minutes.

Add enough turkey stock to reserved pan juices to bring total to 4 cups, then add to wine mixture and bring to a boil. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a 2-to 3-quarts heavy saucepan, pressing on and then discarding solids, and bring to a boil.

Mix flour with remaining 2 ounces truffle butter to make a paste, then add to boiling sauce, whisking until thickened. Simmer, whisking occasionally, 3 to 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve turkey with gravy.

Cooks' notes: •Butter can be put under skin 1 day ahead; chill turkey, covered with plastic wrap. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour before roasting.
•Flour paste (with truffle butter) can be made 1 day ahead and chilled.

OK, I'm tired now.

Pre-made bird from Whole Foods anyone?

(photo by John Kernick)