bethk wrote:What are your plans for the holiday this year? We're going to go to Dane's sister's to try our hand at deep frying a 10 lb. turkey.....If we fail miserably it'll be OK because everyone knows the SIDES are the star of the meal!
Though we've never done it, we've watched it being done several times, Beth, and there's hardly a chance to fail. Personally, both Brian and I adore fried turkey; however, we decided a long time ago that we'd rather watch someone do it than do it ourselves. All that hot oil and an open flame scares the daylights out of me and I think I transferred my hesitation to Brian as well. Or perhaps it was the Allstate Insurance ads they run around this time of year, showing where people caught their decks on fire, their garages on fire and then the end of the commercial says, "...And 4 people even managed to burn their entire house down."
Several people who fry turkeys around here spread the word they're doing so and just ask that others show up with their 12 lb. or so turkeys. Some people pitch in to pay for the copious amount of peanut oil needed.
When we used to have a crowd on Thanksgiving, we'd smoke a turkey and cook one in the oven. But it's just not Thanksgiving to me unless I have that roast turkey smell going in the house, so I'd have to cook one inside even if we had a fried one, too. And regardless of whether it's necessary or not, I do enjoy basting my turkey.
Bethk wrote:She mentioned a sweet potato casserole with a praline topping, a Southern 'thang' to be sure!
Funny you mentioned this, Beth. I've had a recipe for a while that I actually tried yesterday, as I've been thinking of making it for Thanksgiving but wanted a dry run first. I'd asked Brian to pick up some sweet potatoes at the store and he bought a 3-lb. bag of them that held the smallest sweet potatoes I'd ever seen! He scrubbed them for me and I ended up using the entire bag of them. The dish came out really good. I made it in my Le Creuset 14" oval au gratin dish, as I wanted something shallow, and it turned out to be the perfect size for it. Brian loved it and said he liked it better than regular candied yams. I baked it for about 35 minutes in the oven. Here it is in case anyone wants it:
Sweet Potato Praline CasseroleMakes 6 to 8 servings/Recipe from Chef Alex Patout's "Cajun Home Cooking." You can make the sweet potato puree ahead of time, then warm it and add the topping.
5 large sweet potatoes
1/2 cup (1 stick) softened butter
1 /2 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 cup milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 cup light brown sugar
1/3 cup melted butter
1 cup chopped pecans
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Scrub sweet potatoes and place in the oven. Bake until tender, about 40 minutes, and remove. When they are cool enough to handle, halve them and scoop out the insides into a large mixing bowl. Mash well. You should have about 3 cups.
2. Mix in softened butter, 1/2 cup granulated sugar, eggs, vanilla, and milk. Pour the mixture into a baking pan or casserole dish.
3. Bring the cream to a simmer in a small saucepan. Add the brown sugar and stir until it dissolves. Cook the mixture over medium heat until it reaches the soft-ball stage (235°F) on a candy thermometer. Remove from heat and beat in the melted butter and pecans. Pour mixture over the sweet potatoes. Bake until very hot and beginning to brown.
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