Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Totally Turkey

I know it's not Thanksgiving...in fact today's 90 deg. weather proves we are not even close to Thanksgiving. My family loves turkey though. When ever they go on sale I pick one up and we make several meals out of it. I know what your thinking...turkey is dry, hard to cook, and no taste. Not when I make it! :) Not to brag or anything.
1st make sure your turkey is completely defrosted. Next you need to clean your turkey. This part might gross you out a little. It's really not that bad...just do it, and don't think about it! Inside the turkeys rib cage area take out the gizzards (umm some people use it, but I just throw it out). Now rinse it out.
2nd put turkey in a pan with at least a one inch lip. You want to make sure you have enough room to hold all the yummy juice.
3rd chop up one onion and two celery stocks and stick inside turkey. Rub butter over the outside of the turkey and then sprinkle dried herb mix over top. Now pour either 2 cups of apple juice or apple cider around turkey. I know you think I'm crazy with this one but just trust me it works.
4th in a preheated oven (350 deg) place turkey. Every half hour use either a turkey baster or ladle (if your son is using your turkey baster as a water gun) to pour liquid from the pan over the turkey to keep it moist. If your turkey is starting to brown a little too much cover with aluminum foil. Oops as you can see I did not use the foil. It's okay it will still taste good.  Your turkey should reach a temp of 190 deg. Don't cut it yet!!! It needs to sit and cool for a bit.
Next I made sour cream mashed potatoes. I could eat an entire bowl of these!!! They are so easy to make that you will never make instant again (I hope). For my family I used three yellow potatoes and cut into cubes. No need to peal, just scrub first. Then add enough water to cover potatoes. Boil for 15-20 min. until potatoes are soft. Drain water and transfer potatoes to a bowl. Now mash with a potato masher if you have one...but a large wooden spoon will work too. Now add half a cup of sour cream and mix until potatoes are creamy. You can add more sour cream if needed or salt, or even green onion. I like mine with  brown gravy though!
Now you can cut your turkey. Set up a plate for leftovers...you know your going to want turkey sandwiches tomorrow. Try to keep son and husbands out of the turkey until dinner (maybe that just happens in my family).
Oh and don't throw away the bones from the turkey. Put the bones in a large pot and cover with water. Let it simmer on the stove for a few hours. Then drain out the liquid and save. Now you can throw out the bones. :) Use the broth to make soup. Just add chopped up turkey, noodles, and chopped carrots and celery. You don't even need to season it. All the flavor is in the broth. Sorry I don't have exact measurements, but I just eyeball it.

Enjoy your dinner...and lunch...and turkey soup. Oh and you can freeze the soup too.



Monday, May 10, 2010

Need Pictures

First of all, sorry for the bad picture...I took it with my phone while standing on the back of the couch. I have been looking for something to go on this shelf in my living room. I found these frames at Target, but they sat with nothing in them for a month until I had enough. I came across some ferns growing in the garden so I framed them. Brown construction paper is the background. A lot cheaper than pictures!
Next I came across some old colored letter blocks that my son was not using. I also got those from the dollar section at Target.  I used a black marker and colored over the letters. My last name is not Ritzo, but these days you have to stay private. :)
It's a simple look, but I like it.

crafting during nap time

It was one of those days I just felt like being crafty. I keep seeing others blog about these cute rope decorative balls they are making. So I made a few of those. Then I looked over at an empty milk jug on the counter...hmmm...that would make a cute vase.
one guess where that's from!
I just started to wind the rope around the jug adding hot glue every so often. I think I used a little too much hot glue at the top. It started to seep out of the edges. oops!
I think it looks cute. I bet it would look really cute with several of them in different sizes.
Look what else I did...
I picked up simple glass candle holders in two different sizes and glass cups at the Dollar Store. Then I glued them together. I have also seen this done on several other blogs, but I had not done it yet. I flipped over the candle stick because I think it looks better that way.
I got this all done during my boys nap time!