Signature Thanksgiving Dish

[P_Willenberg]

yes I do. there are lots of sous vide hacks out there but the higher than normal temps needed mean the hacks don’t work as well for this. to get the right texture you need near boiling temps, 185F iirc. Induction burner could work.

[Corey_N]

@P. Willenberg

I confit turkey thighs in duck fat and separately, I put uncooked stuffing mix in the waffle maker, thus maximizing the crunchy surface area.

Ok, this sounds fantastic, but I’m curious, does each person get their own waffle topped with turkey meat or do you just sort of put a few on the table and have the family go to town?

[T_Altmayer]

@P. Willenberg

yes I do. there are lots of sous vide hacks out there but the higher than normal temps needed mean the hacks don’t work as well for this. to get the right texture you need near boiling temps, 185F iirc. Induction burner could work.

Thanks again, this is great. Because I’m not going to be able to sous vide, I found this process/recipe by Even Kleinman: Thanksgiving recipe: Evan Kleiman’s Turkey leg confit | KCRW

[Sarah_Kirschbaum]

@Jay Miller

Actually, that’s the recipe I mention above (I said mousse instead of chiffon - my bad). It’s from Rose Levy Berenbaum’s Pie and Pastry Bible.

My mother has been making that pie my whole life, so I am pretty sure it pre-dates that book. I will take a look and see if it’s the same. I don’t own it, but I think Jonathan does. Neat!

[Jay_Miller]

@Sarah Kirschbaum

@Jay Miller

Actually, that’s the recipe I mention above (I said mousse instead of chiffon - my bad). It’s from Rose Levy Berenbaum’s Pie and Pastry Bible.

My mother has been making that pie my whole life, so I am pretty sure it pre-dates that book. I will take a look and see if it’s the same. I don’t own it, but I think Jonathan does. Neat!

Might be a different recipe with the same name then, or it came from a common source. I’ll try and remember to check what the cookbook says when I get home tonight.

[Bruce_Leiser_owitz]

I don’t know if this is the same pumpkin “chiffon” pie mentioned above, but it’s become a family staple now for many, many years:

Layered Pumpkin Pie

1 1/2 cups finely crushed gingersnaps
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 envelope gelatin
1 cup canned pumpkin (small can)
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon each ground ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon
3 egg yolks
1/2 cup evaporated milk or light cream
3 egg whites
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 cup whipping cream
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Stir together crushed gingersnaps, melted butter, and first 1/4 cup powdered sugar. Press into bottom and up sides of 10 inch pie plate. Bake at 325 degrees for 10 minutes. Cool.

Combine granulated sugar and gelatin. Stir in pumpkin, 1/2 t. salt, allspice, ginger, nutmeg,and first 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon. Add egg yolks, mix well. Sir in evaporated milk. Cook and stir over medium heat until bubbly. Cook 2 minutes more; stirring constantly. Remove from heat; cool. With electric beater beat egg whites to soft peaks; gradually add the second 1/4 cup powdered sugar beating to stiff peaks. Fold into cooled custard.

Whip cream with remaining powdered sugar and vanilla to soft peaks. To half of the whipped cream mixture stir in the remaining cinnamon; cover. Chill. To assemble, fill crust with half of the pumpkin mixture. Top with plain whipped cream mixture. Then add remaining pumpkin mixture. Chill 6 hours or overnight. To serve, top with remaining cinnamon-whipped cream mixture. Garnish with orange peel if desired.

[Sarah_Kirschbaum]

Not the same. Mine is much simpler. That one sounds good, too.

[Michael_Sopher]

When I end up eating in with a significant other’s family or at a "Friendsgiving if I am not doing the turkey I often bring short ribs… And usually a good “from real ingredients - scratch made” green bean casserole.

I have not eaten with blood relatives in years… I have even sat at the bar at a local restaurant (where there is a longstanding Thanksgiving Orphan scene) to avoid it.

[P_Willenberg]

@Corey N.

@P. Willenberg

I confit turkey thighs in duck fat and separately, I put uncooked stuffing mix in the waffle maker, thus maximizing the crunchy surface area.

Ok, this sounds fantastic, but I’m curious, does each person get their own waffle topped with turkey meat or do you just sort of put a few on the table and have the family go to town?

I plate individually. half a thigh each which is about an 8 oz portion on top of an individual waffle. They sauce it themselves from a choice of traditional gravy, cranberries, or turkey demi glace and maple syrup gastrique.

I carve Brussels sprouts off the stalk tableside.

[P_Willenberg]

@T. Altmayer

@P. Willenberg

yes I do. there are lots of sous vide hacks out there but the higher than normal temps needed mean the hacks don’t work as well for this. to get the right texture you need near boiling temps, 185F iirc. Induction burner could work.

Thanks again, this is great. Because I’m not going to be able to sous vide, I found this process/recipe by Even Kleinman: Thanksgiving recipe: Evan Kleiman’s Turkey leg confit | KCRW

I’d say that temp is too high. 87C per this chart

You can pack in a bag, then submerge in water and set your oven to 87C/188F. Takes about a day.

[Michael_Sopher]

@P. Willenberg

I confit turkey thighs in duck fat and separately, I put uncooked stuffing mix in the waffle maker, thus maximizing the crunchy surface area.

How much duck fat goes into the bag with each thigh?

[P_Willenberg]

maybe a cup with 6 thighs.

[Nancy_Dolce]

Since DH and I will be alone this Thanksgiving I think we will do the turkey thighs in duck fat. We have an Anova. Thanks, Paul!

[P_Willenberg]

@Nancy Dolce

Since DH and I will be alone this Thanksgiving I think we will do the turkey thighs in duck fat. We have an Anova. Thanks, Paul!

enjoy! PM me or e-mail if you have any questions. I field them all day, day of, as a service to friends.

[Nancy_Dolce]

@P. Willenberg

@Nancy Dolce

Since DH and I will be alone this Thanksgiving I think we will do the turkey thighs in duck fat. We have an Anova. Thanks, Paul!

enjoy! PM me or e-mail if you have any questions. I field them all day, day of, as a service to friends.

Much appreciated.

[Paul_Miller]

We did something with brussel sprouts one year. Take each head and separate the leaves. Put them in a skillet with some butter or olive oil. Add in some salt, pepper, garlic, and soften/toast them in the skillet. Actually, we do this a lot, and also on the grill outside. Anyway, served that dish one year for Thanksgiving. My wife’s aunt leaned over and said, “You don’t have to make this dish again.”

[mattcitrang]

@Paul Miller

We did something with brussel sprouts one year. Take each head and separate the leaves. Put them in a skillet with some butter or olive oil. Add in some salt, pepper, garlic, and soften/toast them in the skillet. Actually, we do this a lot, and also on the grill outside. Anyway, served that dish one year for Thanksgiving. My wife’s aunt leaned over and said, “You don’t have to make this dish again.”

That’s funny. At least she was honest.

[Nancy_Dolce]

Auntie was free not to put the sprouts on her plate, too!

[David_Walker]

@Paul Miller

We did something with brussel sprouts one year. Take each head and separate the leaves. Put them in a skillet with some butter or olive oil. Add in some salt, pepper, garlic, and soften/toast them in the skillet. Actually, we do this a lot, and also on the grill outside. Anyway, served that dish one year for Thanksgiving. My wife’s aunt leaned over and said, “You don’t have to make this dish again.”

That’s great. We love brussel sprouts in our house too, but I can just hear my mother-in-law saying the exact same thing.

[Robert_Pollard-Smith]

@DavidZ

I’ve converted all of my inlaws to stuffing in a dish, …

Recipe?