13 November 2010

Our Thanksgiving Menu and Making Compound Butter

Wow, a compound title...

Okay, here's our Thanksgiving menu:

  • Dinner Rolls...I'm tweaking the recipe as I write this, so we will see how it turns out. Hey, I actually kept track of the measurements this time

  • Whipped Potatoes...there's a shock

  • Manicotti...Yes, something different and just because I won't have enough to do, I'll be making my own Ricotta cheese to use in it. I am currently trying to find a recipe for this, so if you have one, please let me know. As soon as I have made and tried a successful recipe, I will share it with you


  • Turkey

  • Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake...Again, something different, but it's really good

  • Apple Pie with Crème Fraîche and Black Pepper...This has become a family tradition


Over the next week, I'll be sharing each of these recipes and I'll also sneak in a few others that I have done at previous Thanksgivings. Because some of these dishes require advance preparation, I'm going to start by sharing those with you. To start things off, here is a guide to making Compound Butter. This is what I use to give additional flavor to the turkey (although, you could also use it in the potatoes).


Compound Butter:

Things you'll need:

Butter...1 lb. (4 sticks) unsalted, please
Fresh Sage...1 Tbsp
Fresh Rosemary...1 Tbsp
Fresh Thyme...1 Tbsp
Olive Oil...1Tbsp

These three (sage, rosemary, and thyme) are also referred to as a Poultry Mix. All measurements are considered a baseline; if you prefer a stronger flavor, you can increase the amount of herbs or reduce the amount for a milder flavor. If you cannot find fresh herbs and need to use dried herbs, you will need to reduce the baseline measurements by 1/2, as the dried herbs have a more concentrated flavor.

  • Place butter on counter to soften

  • Take the herbs (try to avoid including the stems) and chop them very fine or, if you have a food processor, place them in there and pulse until finely chopped.

  • Next take your softened butter and place in your food processor

  • Add olive oil...(this allows you to work with the butter more easily)


    • If you do not have a food processor (like me), place butter and herbs in a bowl and mix with a mixer until well combined.

  • Pulse until well combined

  • Take plastic wrap and place on the counter

  • empty butter onto the plastic wrap

  • fold the wrap over the butter

  • Using the edge of a cookie tray or other straight object, press it against the butter and tightly form into a log about 1-inch in diameter (the plastic wrap acts as a mold)

  • careful not to get the plastic wrap under the butter, roll-up and twist both ends

  • place butter in refrigerator

7 comments:

  1. I make my butter much the same way, only without the olive oil. It's so good!

    And I want to come to your home for Thanksgiving! LOL

    ReplyDelete
  2. Storm, The Psychotic Housewife: It's a little more work, but very worth the effort.
    There's always room for a few more :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. YAY! I can't wait to sink my teeth into that! I'm so glad we are able to get up there this year!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Your menu sounds delicious. I like the idea of pumpkin pie cheesecake. Thanks for the recipe for the compound butter.

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  5. oh Tim...Walter will be here in just a few minutes and I am rushing around like mad.

    I will definitely get this copied down tomorrow. Your entire menu sounds fantastic.

    I can't wait to get the recipe for the pumpkin cheesecake!!
    Jackie:-)

    Wow...blogging and cooking is difficult...at least for me...I'm not use to Walter being here for Sunday dinner..gotta' run!

    ReplyDelete
  6. The manicotti threw me off but it sounds really good! I bet that butter is delicious on nice warm dinner rolls. Yum!

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  7. Rebekah: Hi, We're looking forward to seeing you!

    Ann: You're welcome. The cheesecake is something new this year. I made it once for my wife's work and it turned out really well.

    Shinade: Thank you. I hope you and Walter had a great day!

    BeadedTail: The manicotti is something new and very different, so we'll see how it is accepted. Yes, the butter is fantastic on rolls; I even slip some into the potatoes :)

    ReplyDelete

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