Turkey Recipe . . It's That Time Again!

The Pilgrims made seven times more graves than huts. No Americans have been more impoverished than these who, nevertheless, set aside a day of thanksgiving. ~ H.U. Westermayer

We all learned, in elementary school, that Thanksgiving Day was a celebration established in colonial time about 1621 between the Plymouth Rock colonist and the Wampanoag Indians. The European residents of Plymouth had not fared too well on their own because of a brutal winter and disease. So the Wampanoag tribe combined their autumn harvest with those less fortunate Pilgrims and their harvest bounty creating the first celebration of Thanksgiving.

The term Thanksgiving was not used at this first festival of thanks, but the celebration lasted for three days. Cementing the relationship between the colonist and the Indians for the next fifty years. A relationship that was the only one of it's kind between European settlers and the first nations people, during the settling of America . . a very sad connotation to such a wonderful beginning.

During the Civil War in 1863, President Abraham Lincoln declared a day in November as Thanksgiving Day.

Wild game was the main dish on the first menu consisting of deer, fowl and fish. Freshly harvested corn, yams, assorted greens, turnips and flat breads. All flavored with Indian spices and cooked in methods akin to the Wampanoag tribe since they had the only "kitchens" at the time. No pies, puddings, cakes or cookies were added to the menu, because the Pilgrims had run low on the sugar supply in the fall of 1621.

There is one day that is ours. There is one day when all we Americans who are not self-made go back to the old home to eat saleratus biscuits and marvel how much nearer to the porch the old pump looks than it used to. Thanksgiving Day is the one day that is purely American.

O. Henry

I f you want a mouth watering, tender, moist never fail turkey recipe you've come to the right place. I've been cooking my turkeys with this recipe for at least 10 years. The length of cook time depends on how you like your turkey. Mine I want falling off the bone tender.

Ingredients:

1. Turkey (but of course!) I usually cook a 10 - 20 lb turkey depending on how many guest, if any on any given year.

2. 1 large brown paper bag. This is free and can be found at the end of your check out stand in your local grocery market.

3. Sea or Kosher Salt

4. Pepper

5. Tony Chachere's Cajun Seaoning

6. Tony Chachere's Injectable Marinade Butter Flavor

7. Poultry seasoning

8. Olive Oil

9. Butter (1 stick)

10. Lemon Pepper

It has been an unchallengeable American doctrine that cranberry sauce, a pink goo with overtones of sugared tomatoes, is a delectable necessity of the Thanksgiving board and that turkey is uneatable without it. ~Alistair Cooke

First and most important read the cooking instructions found on the turkey wrapper regarding estimated cook time. Secondly, remove turkey from wrapper and thoroughly wash the bird inside and out. Remember to remove the giblets from cavity! On at least two occasions, as a young cook, when unable to find that little bag I gave up the search thinking it was lost during packing. NOT!

I then brine my turkey. Poking holes, with a folk or knife, in the turkey from neck to tail, paying special attention to the breast and thigh areas. Place the turkey in a very large bowl, bucket or roasting pan that has previously been filled with lukewarm water, and sea or Kosher salt (about 2 large tablespoons full). Put the turkey in enough water to cover it, breast side down.

I usually do this 3 hours before prepping to place in the oven. 1 1/2 hour on breast side then turn 1 1/2 on the backside of bird. Whenever I prepare fowl even for frying I brine it first for at least an hour. The brine and turkey should be kept in the refrigerator during this process.

While the bird is in the brine mix you can take this time to prepare your stuffing, if you plan to stuff turkey before placing in the oven. Or place your giblets in a slow cooker on the slowest setting for a tasty giblet gravy with onion, and thinly sliced celery . I personally have not stuff a turkey for the last five years due to the threat of Salmonella poisoning. I prep my dressing later and serve as a side dish.

Now you're ready to prepare your turkey for the oven. Remove turkey from the brine mixture and dry. Take a sauce brush and dip into your olive oil (about a half a cup) spread over entire turkey surface and inside cavity. Place Sea or Kosher Salt, black pepper, lemon pepper, poultry and Cajun seasoning (1 - 2 teaspoons of each) in a small bowl mixing with the butter put this to the side.

Using the Tony Chachere's Injectable Marinade Butter Flavor. Fill the accompanying syringe with marinade and begin to inject all over the bird paying special attention to the meatier parts such as breast, thighs and drum sticks. Once you've emptied the jar rub your season mixture all over the bird.

Spray the inside of the brown paper bag with Pam or wipe down with olive oil. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Then place your seasoned bird into the bag breast side down closing opening of bag securely. Place bag in roast pan and cover with top, breast side down. Put roast pan in oven and set timer and / or your alarm clock for eight hours. I usually place turkey in oven at 1:00 a.m. Thanksgiving eve, and remove at 8:00 a.m. the next morning.

What we're really talking about is a wonderful day set aside on the fourth Thursday of November when no one diets. I mean, why else would they call it Thanksgiving? ~ Erma Bombeck, "No One Diets on Thanksgiving," 26 November 1981

Our traditional spread is made complete with a ham, collard greens, cake, sweet potato pie, rolls, cornbread, cornbread dressing or seasoned rice and giblet gravy. No cooking for at least a week!

I would like to take this time to thank all my friends, new and old, here at Hubpages for your continued support during my absence. Wishing all a wonderful blessed celebration of Thanksgiving Day.

The thing I'm most thankful for right now is elastic waistbands. ~Author Unknown