Sage & Cider Butter Roasted Turkey and a Happy Thanksgiving

I'm going to go ahead and admit this right off the bat.... the scene in our house is not a pretty one right now. On the dining room table are approximately 6 empty, post- turkey wine bottles, the kitchen counters are covered with half eaten pies and roasting dishes that, unfortunately, don't fit in the dishwasher, and on the couch sit 2 handsome, yet very hungover men (Richard and Marco, obvi) 7 puppies (we will get to that later) and 1 tired hostess with the sniffles (nope, still haven't kicked the post napa cold from hell, yet.) I guess that all means last night's Thanksgiving feast was a pretty huge success.

Thanksgiving is my absolute, number one, favorite day of the year. I get to show off and cook wayyyy too much food to enjoy with family and close friends while sitting at a beautifully decorated table that is nothing less than brag worthy (if I do say so myself.) It is just the perfect day. It kicks off the holiday season (for those procrastinators that decorate for Christmas after their turkey dinner) and it makes you feel downright mushy gushy and cheerful inside.

refurbished seating chart from our wedding....

This year's menu:
Deviled eggs with jalapeños and crispy pancetta
A fruit and cheese platter to make you weak in the knees
Caramelized beet salad with arugula and goat cheese

Sage and cider roasted turkey
Cranberry relish with a hint of ginger
Creamy mashed potatoes (my dad's specialty... I refuse to make them because he always will do it better)
Sausage and cornbread stuffing (compliments of my fabulous mother)
Sourdough and apple stuffing with leeks and bacon
Shallots roasted with white wine
Dill roasted carrots
Scalloped sweet potatoes with pancetta
Crispy roasted brussels sprouts
Balsamic glazed sweet potatoes with shallots

And for dessert......
Maple pecan pie
Spiced pumpkin pie

Needless to say, I made quite a substantial amount of food for 9 guests. Rich and I had the pleasure of spending Thanksgiving with my parents, my sister, and a few wonderful, close friends. While we wish so much that we were able to be with a few other family members as well (Bruce, Cindy, Matthew, and Jonathan) it was a beautiful evening to say the least! 

We also had a few unexpected guests......

Rich and I are currently fostering the most darling puppy family through Tails of the City Animal Rescue. A sweet mama and her three 3 week old puppies. Yes.... that face..... ah. 

mmm.

And.... although it is coming to you a day late, I will leave you with my absolute favorite turkey recipe. I have made this recipe for the last 4 years and it never disappoints! You can keep it in mind for next year!

Sage Butter-Roasted Turkey with Cider Gravy

Ingredients:

Turkey
3 tablespoons coarse kosher salt

1 tablespoon dried rubbed sage

1 16- to 18-pound turkey, rinsed, patted dry

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter

1/4 cup chopped fresh sage

3/4 cup fresh refrigerated apple cider or fresh refrigerated apple juice

Gravy
2 cups turkey stock or low-salt chicken broth

3/4 cup fresh refrigerated apple cider or fresh refrigerated apple juice

2 tablespoons all purpose flour

2 to 3 tablespoons Calvados (apple brandy) or applejack brandy

1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage

Method:
Turkey
Rub salt and dried sage together in small bowl. Place turkey in roasting pan; sprinkle all over with sage salt. Cover pan with plastic wrap; chill turkey overnight.
Set rack at lowest position in oven and preheat to 375°F. Pat turkey dry. Tuck wing tips under; tie legs together loosely. Stir butter and chopped sage in small saucepan over low heat until butter melts. Brush all over turkey; sprinkle with pepper.
Roast turkey 1 hour; baste with any pan juices. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F. Roast turkey 45 minutes. Pour 3/4 cup apple cider over; turn pan around. Continue to roast turkey until instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of thigh registers 165°F, basting and turning pan occasionally for even cooking, about 1 1/4 hours longer. Transfer turkey to platter; tent loosely with foil and let rest 30 to 45 minutes (internal temperature will rise 5 to 10 degrees).

GravyPour all pan juices into large measuring cup. Spoon off fat that rises to surface. Transfer 2 tablespoons fat to heavy large saucepan; discard remaining fat. Place turkey roasting pan over 2 burners. Add 2 cups stock or broth and 3/4 cup cider. Bring to boil over high heat, scraping up browned bits. Boil liquid until reduced to 1 1/2 cups, about 6 minutes. Add mixture from roasting pan to degreased pan juices. If necessary, add enough stock to measure 3 1/2 cups stock mixture.
Place saucepan with turkey fat over medium-high heat. Add flour; whisk 2 minutes. Whisk in stock mixture. Boil until gravy thickens enough to coat spoon thinly, about 6 minutes. Whisk in 2 tablespoons Calvados, or more to taste, and sage. Season with salt and pepper.
Serve turkey with gravy.

It is moist, and tender, and delicious! And let's be honest, looks amazing as a centerpiece on the table! Always a crowd pleaser!

I hope everyone enjoys their leftovers today!

Perfectly Indulgent Hot Chocolate

Funny story.... my last post was written by a girl with the sniffles and here I am once again... sniffling.

As usual my immune system was compromised by over indulging in cabernet... only this time the crime took place in Napa, which may in fact be my new favorite city of all time. I have never eaten so much in my life, which is saying A LOT coming from me. My life will not be complete until Rich and I move there and have a chicken coop and a vineyard.

Anyways, the hubby and I have both been couch ridden having only pulled it together enough in the last 4 days to decorate for Christmas and spend our last pennies on soup from Erewon (the only place to ever buy soup if you are too lazy to make it.) I must say though, sniffles and all..... being shamed to the couch for my less than responsible behavior last weekend could be worse (see photo below and start being jealous.....)

Yes, it's true. Christmas came early in the Keith household. Buuutttt, before you start sending me hate-emails, I will have you know that our dining room is still decked out for Turkey Day- just as it should be. I would rather serve dry turkey that put the pumpkins back in storage just yet. 

So, we have a fire, a christmas tree, 3 snuggly pups (one wearing a Santa coat, obvi) the only thing that was missing was a steaming cup of hot chocolate, which in this house is completely unacceptable.......

to. die. for. hot chocolate. 

Ingredients:

4 cups 2% milk 

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder 

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup raw sugar

1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

marshmallows

whipped cream

Method:

Heat milk on low/medium heat. Do not boil. Add sugar, cocoa, and vanilla and stir constantly until everything is dissolved and hot.

Serve with marshmallows or whipped cream.... or go crazy and use both. 

This recipe makes quite a bit and it is very rich. I think it's enough for 3 or 4 servings. So, here's the best advice I will ever give you......

If your husband has decided to deny his sweet tooth.... put the extra hot chocolate it in the fridge and it's ready to go when you need it. There's nothing better than packet-free hot chocolate ready to go when you are. I mean... there's a few things better, but not many. 

A warning.... be careful heating it the microwave- if it boils over it is a very sticky mess. I always reheat on the stove. 

I left my heart (and appetite) in Napa.

I have been full for three days and I actually am repulsed by the very thought of wine.

Rich, Marco and I were in Napa this past weekend and you can only imagine the shape we left that town in. We left no glass empty and no perfectly cooked pork rib behind.

I don't even know where to begin..... between the amazing Napa restaurants, the wine tastings, and the parties, I left Napa 15 pounds heavier, with permanently purple stained teeth, and not a regret in my mind.

I guess we will start with the most important part of the weekend----besides Richard's film, "Grow Up Already" being a selection in the Napa Valley Film Festival.... you know, the whole reason we were there......

W.I.N.E.

Private tasting at Shafer. 

We did some AMAZING tastings including: Stags' Leap Winery, Shafer, Cliff Lede, Regussi, Heitz (one of the few American vineyards to grow Marco's favorite, Grignoliono), Grigch, Mumm Napa, Dutch Henry, Page Wine Cellars & Revolver Wine Co., Pine Ridge, and Silverado Vineyards (owned by Walt Disney's Daughter), to mention a few...  and by few I mean NOT EVEN HALF of the wonderful wines we tasted.

Richard, Marco, and I with our lovely friends Erin and Joe 

in front of the manor house at Stags' Leap Winery. 

The opening night gala was held at Robert Mondavi and featured some amazing chef's from Napa as well as some amazing wine. We indulged in a '98 Reserve Cabernet for the majority of the evening.

Once we found the man pouring this wine we managed to stay next to him until he ran out......

My handsome hubby.

My other handsome hubby.

so much amazing food.

We also were lucky enough to attend a tasting of all of the Stags' Leap District Cabernets (to die for), most of which, as you can see we already visited in person. We also had a fabulous dinner (complete with all you can drink wine pairings) at Allora Vineyards that evening, both put on by the festival. 

Winemaker's Dinner

The only photo I remember taking at the Cabernet tasting :/ the rest were lost with my memory and dignity from that afternoon. 

We managed to squeeze in a late night sushi stop at Morimoto Napa where I had some of the best pork ribs I have ever had in my life. 

Yes, I am the girl who orders ribs at a sushi restaurant.

While we decided dropping $500.00 per person at French Laundry was out of the question, we did manage to fit in a stop at Thomas Keller's Bouchon for some hot chocolate and Better Nutters.... the best cookie known to man. 

Pastries at Bouchon

My favorite restaurant that we ate at was called Farmstead in St. Helena. Farm-to-table on the farm? I'll take it. My hubbies and I ate there our first night in town and ordered enough food to feed a  medium sized country. Prosciutto sandwiches, grilled artichokes, beet salad, ribs, a pork chop with apple relish and pickled shallots, polenta, brussels sprouts, and 2 orders of cast iron mac and cheese. Yes, that's all. Left overs? Barely.

We even returned on Sunday for brunch......

new friends!

a much needed bacon bloody mary

grilled artichokes

oysters

harvest vegetable rissoto

bacon, obviously.

eggs benedict

Clearly we were not very waistline minded while there, but we did leave a little wine left for Rich and I's return in January... though, not much. 

Hendrix and Lucy also enjoyed Napa.... from inside the car. They were asked to leave the hotel during the day due to "terrier chattiness...." or as we call it- excessive barking. However, we were so surprised at how dog friendly Napa was.... they made lots of friends and Hendrix now owns the majority of the grape vines at all of the vineyards that we visited........

*A disclaimer for our mothers*

We know we should not have drank so much wine because it can be harmful for our health. We are sorry. But since we can't lie to our mothers, it will happen again.

To my mother- I know I have a family history of high cholesterol... in the future I will try not to coat my insides with pork fat and brie cheese. Oopsie.