Recipe: New Orleans, Louisiana Thanksgiving Feast - Menu and Recipes
Holidays, CelebrationsThis gorgeous Thanksgiving Feast will provide a different alternative to our traditional Thanksgiving dishes.
LOUISIANA THANKSGIVING FEAST
"Here are the Thanksgiving recipes everybody always asks me for. (And which I cook for my own family every year.) Now get that turkey thawed and get started!"
adapted from Source: Tom Fitzmorris (is New Orleans' leading restaurant critic and the writer and publisher of the New Orleans Menu. Tom was born on Mardi Gras in
New Orleans and has never left town for more than three weeks at a time. His passion for eating began with his mother's classic Creole cooking and grows in intensity every day.)
MENU:
Smoke-Roasted Turkey
Italian Sausage, Cornbread and Fennel Stuffing
Turkey Giblet Gravy
Savory Mushroom Bread Pudding
Root Beer-Glazed Ham
Sweet Potato Cheesecake
SMOKE-ROASTED TURKEY
"I cook my Thanksgiving turkeys in my barbecue pit. (It's one of those barrel-shaped Char-Grillers.) It gets hotter than a smoker, but because I keep the turkey away from direct heat, it cooks slowly and absorbs a lot of smoky flavor. The crisp skin takes on an appealing bronze color. It also smells wonderful, and the meat inside is moister than it is with any other cooking method. Even if I wanted to try a different style, my family wouldn't let me.
Another advantage: it gives you plenty of room in the oven for other dishes you need to cook or bake."
STEP ONE:
Thaw the turkey, if frozen. This takes at least three days, and should be done in the refrigerator. Put it into the pan you'll roast it in to catch any leaks-and to remind you to get a pan.
STEP TWO:
Marinate the turkey in salt water overnight. This old trick really works, and doesn't make the turkey salty. It keeps the bird very moist during cooking, and that's the big challenge in roasting a turkey.
Put the turkey in an ice chest or covered container with enough water to cover it. Dissolve one cup of salt per gallon of water (the amount is not critical). Add enough ice to keep the bird safely refrigerated.
STEP THREE:
Fire up the grill. Whether you use gas or charcoal (I greatly prefer the latter), you need something to generate smoke. I use sugar cane. I make a trip to the sugar plantations along the river and gather their leftovers. But any good smoking wood can be used. The best results come from wrapping them in a packet of aluminum foil and putting them right next to the fire. That fire should be on the op-posite end of the grill from where you're going to put the turkeys.
Remove the turkeys from the marinade. Disengage the metal gizmos holding them together. Remove the giblets. Season the outside with salt and pepper.
THEN STUFF THE CAVITY WITH:
2 ribs celery, cut up
1 onion, cut up
1 orange, cut into eighths
1 lemon, cut into quarters
A shake of tarragon
A stem of fresh rosemary
Then the turkey goes on a wire rack, which in turn is place into an aluminum pan. Make a tent of foil over the top. Place the turkey as far as possible away from the fire. All heat should get to the bird in smoke.
Close the cover and add coals throughout the morning to maintain a temperature of 200 to 250 degrees [F] inside the pit. It takes about five and a half to seven hours for the internal temperature of the turkey to reach about 175 degrees [F]. Use a meat thermometer for this; the little pop-up plastic thermometer only pops when the turkey is a touch overcooked. Take the turkeys out and put them on the table to rest and cool for 30 minutes before carving. Save the juices in the pan for making gravy.
ITALIAN SAUSAGE, CORNBREAD AND FENNEL STUFFING
1 1/4 pound bulk Italian sausage
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter
2 medium onions, chopped
2 bunches fennel, bulbs and lower inch of stems only, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
1 (10-ounce) package of fresh spinach, cooked and chopped
1 shotglass Herbsaint
1 large pan of cornbread, crumbled
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
In a skillet, fry the sausage, breaking it up with a fork, until fully cooked. Remove from the pan and set aside.
Add the butter to the pan. When it begins to bubble, add the onions, fennel, and celery. Cook until the celery and fennel are soft. Add the spinach and the Herbsaint, and cook until there is very little liquid left in the pan.
Combine the pan contents, sausage, cornbread, salt and pepper in a large bowl and mix well. Pack loosely into a baking dish and bake until toasty on top. If the stuffing seems a little dry (this depends largely on the quality of the cornbread), add a little turkey stock to moisten it.
TURKEY GIBLET GRAVY
Turkey neck and wing tips
Giblets other than liver
1 onion, cut up
1 rib celery, cut up
Stems from a bunch of parsley
1 small carrot, cut up
1/4 tsp. leaf thyme
1/4 tsp. marjoram
1/2 tsp. black peppercorns
1 bay leaf
Pan juices and drippings from turkey
1/4 cup flour
Bring two quarts of water to a boil and add the turkey necks, the giblets, onion, celery, parsley, and carrot. Put the thyme, marjoram, peppercorns, and bay leaf into an herb infuser or cheesecloth pouch and add to the pot. Keep at a low boil for two hours, or long enough to reduce the liquid by about half.
Strain the stock and chill until the turkey's ready.
After removing the turkey from the roasting pan, pour the drippings into a gravy separator or small bowl and let stand to allow the fat to rise to the top. Meanwhile, add a little water to the pan and scrape up the browned bits on the inside bottom. Add this to the drippings.
Remove all the fat you can from the drippings, but save about one-fourth of a cup of the fat. Use this with the flour to make a light roux in a separate pan.
Combine the stock, the defatted drippings and the roux in a saucepan over low heat. Whisk as it comes to a boil to get a smooth texture. Add salt and pepper, if needed, to taste.
SAVORY MUSHROOM BREAD PUDDING
Servings: 8
3 cups half-and-half
4 eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon Worcestershire
1/4 teaspoon Tabasco
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon butter
18 inches of a loaf of stale poor boy bread
[or other French or Italian Bread]
1 1/2 cups sliced mushrooms
3/4 cup thinly sliced green onions
1 1/2 cup shredded Gruyere, Fontina,
or other easy-melting white cheese
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees [F].
Combine the half-and-half, eggs, Worcestershire, Tabasco, and salt in a bowl and blend well.
Slice the bread into thin (about 1/4 inch) slices. Butter the inside of a 9 x 5 x 4 baking dish or casserole. Place a layer of bread along the bottom. Sprinkle one-third each of the cheese, mushrooms, and green onions over the bread. Pour one-fourth of the milk-egg mixture over this, enough to soak it well. Push down gently until the bread is soaked.
Repeat the layers in the same order as above, following with a dousing of liquid. Finish with a layer of bread and the last of the liquid.
Place the baking dish in a pan of warm water and put the entire assembly into the preheated oven. Bake for an hour and 15 minutes at 300 degrees. Let it cool for at least a half-hour before serving. It can be sliced, but it's perfectly fine to spoon it right out of the dish at the table.
SWEET POTATO CHEESECAKE
"We always have a cheesecake at our Thanksgiving dinner,
and it's always different."
2 sweet potatoes (about 1 1/2 pounds)
2 packets of graham crackers (out of the standard box of three)
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 packages (8-ounces each) cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 eggs
8 ounces sour cream
1 tablespoon cinnamon
Pinch nutmeg
Grated peel (colored part only) of one orange
Juice of half an orange
Boil the sweet potatoes for 40 minutes, till quite soft. Drain completely and cool.
Meanwhile, make the crust by grinding the graham crackers into a coarse meal in a food processor. Add the cinnamon and the butter and dump into a springform pan. Press a thick wedge into the seam of the bottom of the pan. Then form the rest of the crust up the sides and along the bottom.
When the sweet potatoes are cool, peel them and puree them, adding a little milk to help things along. Strain through a sieve or food mill to remove the strings.
In a mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese and the sugar and blend until the sugar is no longer gritty. Add the eggs, one at a time, breaking them in a cup outside the bowl to avoid getting a bad egg in your filling.
Add the sour cream, cinnamon, nutmeg, orange peel, orange juice, and 1 1/2 cups of sweet potato puree. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and be sure everything is well blended. If the mixture is unpourably thick, add a little cream or half-and-half to lighten it.
Pour the mixture into the springform pan. Place the pan in a larger pan with a half-inch of water in the bottom. Put the entire assembly in the 250-degree oven. Bake for one hour and twenty minutes, or until the lightest browning is seen on the top.
Turn the oven off. Allow the cheesecake to remain in the oven for 30 minutes. Crack the oven door and prop it open slightly, and let the cheesecake cool another hour. Remove the cheesecake from the oven and cool at room temperature for yet another hour. Unbuckle the sides of the pan and refrigerate the cheesecake. (The slow cooling will prevent a crack from forming in the top.)
LOUISIANA THANKSGIVING FEAST
"Here are the Thanksgiving recipes everybody always asks me for. (And which I cook for my own family every year.) Now get that turkey thawed and get started!"
adapted from Source: Tom Fitzmorris (is New Orleans' leading restaurant critic and the writer and publisher of the New Orleans Menu. Tom was born on Mardi Gras in
New Orleans and has never left town for more than three weeks at a time. His passion for eating began with his mother's classic Creole cooking and grows in intensity every day.)
MENU:
Smoke-Roasted Turkey
Italian Sausage, Cornbread and Fennel Stuffing
Turkey Giblet Gravy
Savory Mushroom Bread Pudding
Root Beer-Glazed Ham
Sweet Potato Cheesecake
SMOKE-ROASTED TURKEY
"I cook my Thanksgiving turkeys in my barbecue pit. (It's one of those barrel-shaped Char-Grillers.) It gets hotter than a smoker, but because I keep the turkey away from direct heat, it cooks slowly and absorbs a lot of smoky flavor. The crisp skin takes on an appealing bronze color. It also smells wonderful, and the meat inside is moister than it is with any other cooking method. Even if I wanted to try a different style, my family wouldn't let me.
Another advantage: it gives you plenty of room in the oven for other dishes you need to cook or bake."
STEP ONE:
Thaw the turkey, if frozen. This takes at least three days, and should be done in the refrigerator. Put it into the pan you'll roast it in to catch any leaks-and to remind you to get a pan.
STEP TWO:
Marinate the turkey in salt water overnight. This old trick really works, and doesn't make the turkey salty. It keeps the bird very moist during cooking, and that's the big challenge in roasting a turkey.
Put the turkey in an ice chest or covered container with enough water to cover it. Dissolve one cup of salt per gallon of water (the amount is not critical). Add enough ice to keep the bird safely refrigerated.
STEP THREE:
Fire up the grill. Whether you use gas or charcoal (I greatly prefer the latter), you need something to generate smoke. I use sugar cane. I make a trip to the sugar plantations along the river and gather their leftovers. But any good smoking wood can be used. The best results come from wrapping them in a packet of aluminum foil and putting them right next to the fire. That fire should be on the op-posite end of the grill from where you're going to put the turkeys.
Remove the turkeys from the marinade. Disengage the metal gizmos holding them together. Remove the giblets. Season the outside with salt and pepper.
THEN STUFF THE CAVITY WITH:
2 ribs celery, cut up
1 onion, cut up
1 orange, cut into eighths
1 lemon, cut into quarters
A shake of tarragon
A stem of fresh rosemary
Then the turkey goes on a wire rack, which in turn is place into an aluminum pan. Make a tent of foil over the top. Place the turkey as far as possible away from the fire. All heat should get to the bird in smoke.
Close the cover and add coals throughout the morning to maintain a temperature of 200 to 250 degrees [F] inside the pit. It takes about five and a half to seven hours for the internal temperature of the turkey to reach about 175 degrees [F]. Use a meat thermometer for this; the little pop-up plastic thermometer only pops when the turkey is a touch overcooked. Take the turkeys out and put them on the table to rest and cool for 30 minutes before carving. Save the juices in the pan for making gravy.
ITALIAN SAUSAGE, CORNBREAD AND FENNEL STUFFING
1 1/4 pound bulk Italian sausage
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter
2 medium onions, chopped
2 bunches fennel, bulbs and lower inch of stems only, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
1 (10-ounce) package of fresh spinach, cooked and chopped
1 shotglass Herbsaint
1 large pan of cornbread, crumbled
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
In a skillet, fry the sausage, breaking it up with a fork, until fully cooked. Remove from the pan and set aside.
Add the butter to the pan. When it begins to bubble, add the onions, fennel, and celery. Cook until the celery and fennel are soft. Add the spinach and the Herbsaint, and cook until there is very little liquid left in the pan.
Combine the pan contents, sausage, cornbread, salt and pepper in a large bowl and mix well. Pack loosely into a baking dish and bake until toasty on top. If the stuffing seems a little dry (this depends largely on the quality of the cornbread), add a little turkey stock to moisten it.
TURKEY GIBLET GRAVY
Turkey neck and wing tips
Giblets other than liver
1 onion, cut up
1 rib celery, cut up
Stems from a bunch of parsley
1 small carrot, cut up
1/4 tsp. leaf thyme
1/4 tsp. marjoram
1/2 tsp. black peppercorns
1 bay leaf
Pan juices and drippings from turkey
1/4 cup flour
Bring two quarts of water to a boil and add the turkey necks, the giblets, onion, celery, parsley, and carrot. Put the thyme, marjoram, peppercorns, and bay leaf into an herb infuser or cheesecloth pouch and add to the pot. Keep at a low boil for two hours, or long enough to reduce the liquid by about half.
Strain the stock and chill until the turkey's ready.
After removing the turkey from the roasting pan, pour the drippings into a gravy separator or small bowl and let stand to allow the fat to rise to the top. Meanwhile, add a little water to the pan and scrape up the browned bits on the inside bottom. Add this to the drippings.
Remove all the fat you can from the drippings, but save about one-fourth of a cup of the fat. Use this with the flour to make a light roux in a separate pan.
Combine the stock, the defatted drippings and the roux in a saucepan over low heat. Whisk as it comes to a boil to get a smooth texture. Add salt and pepper, if needed, to taste.
SAVORY MUSHROOM BREAD PUDDING
Servings: 8
3 cups half-and-half
4 eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon Worcestershire
1/4 teaspoon Tabasco
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon butter
18 inches of a loaf of stale poor boy bread
[or other French or Italian Bread]
1 1/2 cups sliced mushrooms
3/4 cup thinly sliced green onions
1 1/2 cup shredded Gruyere, Fontina,
or other easy-melting white cheese
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees [F].
Combine the half-and-half, eggs, Worcestershire, Tabasco, and salt in a bowl and blend well.
Slice the bread into thin (about 1/4 inch) slices. Butter the inside of a 9 x 5 x 4 baking dish or casserole. Place a layer of bread along the bottom. Sprinkle one-third each of the cheese, mushrooms, and green onions over the bread. Pour one-fourth of the milk-egg mixture over this, enough to soak it well. Push down gently until the bread is soaked.
Repeat the layers in the same order as above, following with a dousing of liquid. Finish with a layer of bread and the last of the liquid.
Place the baking dish in a pan of warm water and put the entire assembly into the preheated oven. Bake for an hour and 15 minutes at 300 degrees. Let it cool for at least a half-hour before serving. It can be sliced, but it's perfectly fine to spoon it right out of the dish at the table.
SWEET POTATO CHEESECAKE
"We always have a cheesecake at our Thanksgiving dinner,
and it's always different."
2 sweet potatoes (about 1 1/2 pounds)
2 packets of graham crackers (out of the standard box of three)
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 packages (8-ounces each) cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 eggs
8 ounces sour cream
1 tablespoon cinnamon
Pinch nutmeg
Grated peel (colored part only) of one orange
Juice of half an orange
Boil the sweet potatoes for 40 minutes, till quite soft. Drain completely and cool.
Meanwhile, make the crust by grinding the graham crackers into a coarse meal in a food processor. Add the cinnamon and the butter and dump into a springform pan. Press a thick wedge into the seam of the bottom of the pan. Then form the rest of the crust up the sides and along the bottom.
When the sweet potatoes are cool, peel them and puree them, adding a little milk to help things along. Strain through a sieve or food mill to remove the strings.
In a mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese and the sugar and blend until the sugar is no longer gritty. Add the eggs, one at a time, breaking them in a cup outside the bowl to avoid getting a bad egg in your filling.
Add the sour cream, cinnamon, nutmeg, orange peel, orange juice, and 1 1/2 cups of sweet potato puree. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and be sure everything is well blended. If the mixture is unpourably thick, add a little cream or half-and-half to lighten it.
Pour the mixture into the springform pan. Place the pan in a larger pan with a half-inch of water in the bottom. Put the entire assembly in the 250-degree oven. Bake for one hour and twenty minutes, or until the lightest browning is seen on the top.
Turn the oven off. Allow the cheesecake to remain in the oven for 30 minutes. Crack the oven door and prop it open slightly, and let the cheesecake cool another hour. Remove the cheesecake from the oven and cool at room temperature for yet another hour. Unbuckle the sides of the pan and refrigerate the cheesecake. (The slow cooling will prevent a crack from forming in the top.)
- Post Reply
- Post New
- Save to Recipe Box
ADVERTISEMENT
Random Recipes from:
Holidays, Celebrations
Holidays, Celebrations
- Egg Cheese
- Mother's Day Recipe Collection, Menus and More
- Christmas Creative Dinner Party! Spiral Cut Ham, Appetizers, Side Dishes, and Desserts
- Popcorn Santas
- For Vegas party ideas do a search for casino on this board
- Creepy Crawly Cake Truffles (using crumbled cake)
- Wizard of Oz Party Theme Food Ideas
- Super Bowl Recipes and Football Watching Food!
- Wedding Reception Menu and Tips
- My Family's New Year's Day Brunch
UPLOAD AN IMAGE
Allowed file types: .gif .png .jpg .jpeg
Allowed file types: .gif .png .jpg .jpeg
POST A REPLY
Post a Request - Answer a Question
Share a Recipe
Thank You To All Who Contribute
Post a Request - Answer a Question
Share a Recipe
Thank You To All Who Contribute
- Do not use the message boards for advertising or solicitation of our visitors.
- Do not post personal data about yourself or others such as resumes, phone numbers, addresses, etc.
- Be kind. Rude or offensive posts are not acceptable. If you should find a posting that is objectionable to you please do not post a response. E-mail a message to: help@recipelink.com If a complaint is made against a message it is removed.
- Choose the board topic that best suits your post. Off topic messages may be moved or removed. Posts of the same request to more than one message board will be deleted.
- Please do not request that responses be e-mailed directly to you - we work together as a group and we all want to enjoy the replies!
- Please keep posting of URLs to a minimum and limited to exact responses to requests. Posts with links included are removed if they are inaccurate, if they don't lead to the exact answer to the request or if the site content doesn't meet our criteria for sites we link to.
- E-mail all site-related questions and comments to:help@recipelink.com
-
The message
boards are monitored and not all posts are accepted. We reserve the right to
modify, move, use or remove (or not remove) information posted at our discretion
and without prior notification or explanation. Failure to follow the guidelines
may result in loss of access. These guidelines are subject to change without
notice.
Not required, but a request:
Please take a moment to post a thank you to those that take the time (sometimes hours) to find the recipe or information you requested!
Thank you for participating!
POST A NEW MESSAGE
Post a Request - Answer a Question
Share a Recipe
Thank You To All Who Contribute
Post a Request - Answer a Question
Share a Recipe
Thank You To All Who Contribute
- Do not use the message boards for advertising or solicitation of our visitors.
- Do not post personal data about yourself or others such as resumes, phone numbers, addresses, etc.
- Be kind. Rude or offensive posts are not acceptable. If you should find a posting that is objectionable to you please do not post a response. E-mail a message to: help@recipelink.com If a complaint is made against a message it is removed.
- Choose the board topic that best suits your post. Off topic messages may be moved or removed. Posts of the same request to more than one message board will be deleted.
- Please do not request that responses be e-mailed directly to you - we work together as a group and we all want to enjoy the replies!
- Please keep posting of URLs to a minimum and limited to exact responses to requests. Posts with links included are removed if they are inaccurate, if they don't lead to the exact answer to the request or if the site content doesn't meet our criteria for sites we link to.
- E-mail all site-related questions and comments to:help@recipelink.com
-
The message
boards are monitored and not all posts are accepted. We reserve the right to
modify, move, use or remove (or not remove) information posted at our discretion
and without prior notification or explanation. Failure to follow the guidelines
may result in loss of access. These guidelines are subject to change without
notice.
Not required, but a request:
Please take a moment to post a thank you to those that take the time (sometimes hours) to find the recipe or information you requested!
Thank you for participating!