Post-Post Thanksgiving Leftovers

Oh Thanksgiving, I'm already plotting your return next year. What will I do differently? Well, I'll definitely do less broth and a drier bread in the Artichoke Parmesan Sourdough Stuffing. We'll probably add another veggie, as there was far too much starch on the table this year. Oh yeah, and I won't lose my wedding rings. That would be nice.

But the traditional smoked turkey? That's coming back. Because two days later, I still can't get enough. I've had straight up cold turkey, sandwiches, salads, you name it. But this turkey salad sandwich created by Noah really takes the cake, er, sandwich.

Turkey Salad Sandwich
by Noah

3-5 c. Thanksgiving turkey, cold
a third of a small jar of mayonnaise
3 shallots, finely chopped
2-3 tbsp. Dijon mustard
salt
pepper
tomato
spinach
Havarti cheese (optional, I opted out)
bacon
bread or rolls

Mix all but the last five ingredients in a bowl. Cut the bread or roll to desired sandwich size and scoop as much of the turkey salad onto it as you desire. Top with tomato, spinach, cheese and as many slices of bacon as you feel comfortable eating only two days after the gorge-fest known as Thanksgiving (in my case one slice, in Noah's it was two).

En. Yoy.

Feast from the East

Here is a sample of the Kissel family Thanksgiving buffet before we all dug in and destroyed the beautiful dishes. It was scrumshiss to the last drop... turkey, stuffing (two types; oyster and plain), company carrots(thanks to Jen and Ben), home made mac and cheese (thanks to Amanda and Scott), green beans (thanks to Robin), corn pudding with a kick (thanks to Kathe), sweet potatoes, smashed potatoes (thanks to Debra)...Dinner for 18 is a major effort but well worth the work to have everyone together. We're about to sit down to dessert so I'm signing off and hoping your feast is going as well as ours...Miss you all more than you can ever know...Love,Mom & Auntie D

Turkey Day...Early Morning...Los Angeles

Not to be outdone by Robin, Deb and the gang, here are some pics from Turkey Day LA. This is the strawberry rhubarb pie for tonight (mom's recipe, to follow) that I made Tuesday night. 'Cause I'm on top of it like that.
Isn't it pretty in close up? It's my favorite pie in the world (Pumpkin? Pass). They only had rhubarb a few times at the Farmers Market this year, so I snatched some up and froze it when I saw it, in preparation for this day. Literally today, as I knew I wanted a strawberry rhubarb pie on Thanksgiving the minute last year's dinner ended. Yeah, man, it's that good.
And this is our smoker, smoking away on the turkey, a 20 lb. beast that we barely squeezed into the tiny barrel. Trust me, I had words with the lady when I picked it up yesterday at the Santa Monica Farmers Market (I'd ordered a 16 lb. one). Luckily it fit, otherwise our smoked turkey would have come in two pieces.

My dad's made smoked turkey for Thanksgiving for as long as I can remember, it's the only way I can eat turkey today (and my mom and sister have promised to post pics from their T-Day smoking extravaganza as well). We brine ours, using Alton Brown's recipe which is crazy easy and really good. So not only is it moist due to smoking and brining, but it's got a nice sweetness to it as well. Anyway, when I married Noah I made him take over the smoking duties for our Thanksgivings down in LA. He's pretty darn good at it, too.

And did I mention we've both been up since 5:20 am working on the turkey, starting the Almost No Knead Bread, and, of course, putting up this post. We'll try and check in throughout the day, so y'all can see what we're up to.

Thanksgiving Greetings from Cincinnati

We are gathered together in Cincinnati to enjoy a family Thanksgiving. Andres has come from Switzerland, Debra from New York State, the Kissels of Cincinnati and the Kushners (Amanda's family) from Cleveland. Here are some pictures from the morning preparations to show how we are getting ready for the holiday. Larry, aka The Pieman of Cinci, outdid himself this year as you will notice in the pictures. The chocolate cake (recipe to follow) is absolutely to die for and there are two kinds of pumpkin pie, a killer apple pie with little apple pie babies, and mince meat pie as well. There is also a picture of the Stupid Swiss cutting up the onions wearing the famous "onion goggles". Hope you are all enjoying a wonderful holiday... send pictures so we can all share.

Guilt Free Pumpkin Pie

I'm a Weight Watcher and holidays scare me, but I've found a great way to beat the calorie blues for this Thanksgiving. Hungry Girl, cookbook and website, has lots of options for the holidays. Here's one I've tries that really passes the muster. So Thank you Hungry Girl, all credit goes to you for making Thanksgiving a sweet thing...

No one loves pumpkin as much as Hungry Girl does -- the fat orange fruit (yes, it's technically a fruit 'cuz it has seeds!) and HG have been BFFs forever. So it was inevitable that a fantastic pumpkin pie swap would come from the HG kitchen. Well, here it is. Grab a can of pumpkin and your trusty box of Fiber One, and get busy! We present to you HG's Too-Good-To-Deny Pumpkin Pie...


Photos from Hungry Girl

Ingredients:

For Crust
2 cups Fiber One bran cereal (original)
1/4 cup light whipped butter or light buttery spread (like Brummel & Brown); melted & mixed with 1 oz. water
3 tbsp. Splenda No Calorie Sweetener, granulated
1 tsp. cinnamon

For Filling
One 15-oz. can pure pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie filling)
One 12-oz. can evaporated fat-free milk
3/4 cup Splenda No Calorie Sweetener, granulated
1/2 cup fat-free liquid egg substitute (like Egg Beaters)
1/4 cup sugar-free maple syrup
1 tbsp. pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. salt
Optional Topping: Fat Free Reddi-wip

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a blender or food processor, grind Fiber One to a breadcrumb-like consistency. Combine crumbs with all other crust ingredients. Stir until mixed well. In an oven-safe 9-inch pie dish sprayed lightly with nonstick spray, evenly distribute mixture, using your hands or a flat utensil to firmly press and form the crust. Press it into the edges and up along the sides of the dish. Set aside. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients for the filling. Mix well. Pour mixture into pie crust. (Filling may be taller than the crust -- trust us, this is okay!) Bake pie in the oven for 45 minutes, and then remove it and allow to cool. Chill in the fridge for several hours (for best results, chill overnight). Cut into 8 slices, and if you like, top with Reddi-wip before serving! MAKES 8 SERVINGS


Serving Size: 1 slice
Calories: 133
Fat: 3g
Sodium: 236mg
Carbs: 28g
Fiber: 9g
Sugars: 8g
Protein: 6g

POINTS® value 2*

Cake with A-Plum

I made this cake a few weeks back in the throes of my "We're going to Paris for Christmas, so let's eat French food" fit. It's from Ina Garten's Barefoot in Paris cookbook. I'm not usually into those Food Network AM ladies (Giada, Rachel, Ina, etc...), but this book has proved to be a solid source of good, easy, French (sometimes French-lite) recipes. And since we had a ton of end of the season plums, this seemed like a good recipe to use them in. I mean, who doesn't like cake?
As per usual, I tweaked the recipe a bit - subbing these Emerald plums for the purple "prunes" Ina asks for, as well as cutting them into slices and making this cool spiral pattern v. her idea of just halving them. This seemed like a prettier, not to mention more fork-friendly, way to go.
This is the end result. Noah and I had a few slices warm out of the oven and shared the rest with our friends a few days later at an Election Night party (told you this post was overdue). Everyone voted "yes" on Prop Plum Cake.

Oh yes, the fruit part seems to invite many, many variations. Ina suggests pears as an alternative. I think apples, persimmons and cherries would also be lovely. And I'm seriously considering a cranberry version for Thanksgiving.

Plum Cake "Tatin"
from Barefoot in Paris by Ina Garten

6 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temp, plus extra for greasing the dish.
10 to 12 purple "prune" plums, cut in half and pitted (I used 8 or so Emerald plums, cut into 1/8ths)
1 3/4 c. granulated sugar, divided
2 extra large eggs, at room temperature
1/3 c. sour cream (I used 1/3 c. non-fat greek yogurt)
1/2 tsp. grated lemon zest (I used grated grapefruit zest since we were out of lemons)
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
Confectioners' sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Generously butter a 9-inch glass pie dish and arrange the plums in the dish, cut side down (or in a circular pattern of slices, as I did).

Combine 1 c. of the granulated sugar and 1/3 c. water in a small saucepan and cook over high heat until it turns a warm amber color, about 360 degrees on a candy thermometer. Swirl the pan, but don't stir. Pour evenly over the plums.

Meanwhile, cream the 6 tablespoons of butter and the remaining 3/4 cup of granulated sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, until light and fluffy. Lower the speed and beat in the eggs one at a time. Add the sour cream, zest and vanilla and mix until combined. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt, and, with the mixer on low speed, add it to the butter mixture. Mix only until combined.

Pour the cake batter evenly over the plums and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool for 15 minutes, then inverth the cake onto a flat plate. If a plum sticks, ease it out and replace it in the design on top of the cake. Serve warm or at temperature, dusted with confectioners' sugar.