Thanksgiving 101 (21 page)

In a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat, bring all of the ingredients to a simmer, stirring often to dissolve the brown sugar. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until thickened, about 10 minutes. Cool completely. Remove the cinnamon stick. (The chutney can be made up to 2 weeks ahead, covered, and refrigerated.) Serve at room temperature.

Spiked Cranberry–Orange Sauce

Oranges and cranberries are old friends, and but it is the orange liqueur that makes this sauce extraordinary. Use a dark-hued orange liqueur, which indicates that it is made with brandy and has more flavor than the clear varieties.

1.
Grate 2 teaspoons zest from the oranges and set aside. Using a sharp knife, cut off and discard the thick white pith. Carefully cut between the membranes to release the orange sections. Set the orange sections aside.

2.
In a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the cranberries, sugar, 1 cup water, and the zest. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring often to help dissolve the sugar. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the sauce is thick and the cranberries have burst, 10 to 15 minutes. During the last few minutes, stir in the orange sections. Remove from the heat and stir in the Grand Marnier. Cool completely. (The cranberry sauce can be made up to 1 week ahead, covered, and refrigerated.) Serve at room temperature.

CLASSIC RECIPES

Homemade Cranberry Sauce

There are really three “classic” cranberry sauce recipes. The first two, whole berry and jellied, are cooked. Cranberry-orange relish is prepared from raw berries. Which of these three is your idea of classic just depends on which one you grew up on. Thanks to Ocean Spray Cranberries for providing the following archetypal versions of these timeless classics.

Fresh Cranberry Sauce

In a medium saucepan, bring 1 cup water and the sugar to a boil over high heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Stir in the cranberries and return to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and boil gently, stirring occasionally, until the cranberries have all popped and the sauce is thick, about 10 minutes. The sauce will thicken upon standing. Transfer to a small bowl and cool completely. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve. (The sauce can be made up to 1 week ahead.) Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Homemade Jellied Cranberry Sauce

1.
In a medium saucepan, bring 1 cup water and the sugar to a boil over high heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Stir in the cranberries and return to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and boil gently, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.

2.
Place a wire sieve over a medium mixing bowl. Pour the sauce into the sieve. Mash the sauce with the back of a large spoon, frequently scraping the outside of the strainer, until there is no pulp left in the sieve. Stir well and transfer to a small bowl. Cool completely. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve. (The sauce can be made up to 1 week ahead.) Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Fresh Cranberry–Orange Relish

Cut the unpeeled orange into eighths, and pick out any seeds. Place half of the orange pieces and half of the cranberries in the work bowl of a food processor. Process until the mixture is evenly chopped. Transfer to a bowl.
Repeat with the remaining orange and cranberries. Stir in sugar to taste. (The relish can be made up to 1 day ahead, covered tightly with plastic wrap, and refrigerated.) Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Rick’s Cranberry–Double Orange Relish:
Substitute 1 cup orange marmalade for the sugar, adding ½ cup to each batch in the food processor.

Rick’s Cranberry-Kumquat Relish:
Substitute 1½ cups (about 5 ounces) sliced fresh kumquats for the orange.

Cranberry-Pineapple Salsa

The fresh, crisp texture of this sweet-and-tangy salsa is very refreshing, and just the foil for Southwestern flavors like smoked turkey. The ingredients are all mixed together in a food processor, but it is best to coarsely chop some of the ingredients before they go into the bowl or they won’t attain the proper consistency. Don’t make this salsa too far ahead of time, as the scallions and garlic will overwhelm the fruit.

Place all of the ingredients in a food processor fitted with the metal chopping blade. Pulse until the cranberries are coarsely chopped. Transfer to a serving dish and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes but no longer than 2 hours. Serve chilled.

Cranberry and Fig Sauce

I developed this recipe to go with my Italian-style Thanksgiving menu. It is inspired by
mostarda di Cremona
(candied fruits in a mustard syrup), a wonderful Italian condiment for turkey and ham. Make it at least 1 day ahead to allow the mustard flavor to blossom.

1.
In a medium saucepan, combine all of the ingredients except the dry mustard. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring often to help dissolve the sugar. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the sauce is thick and the cranberries have burst, 10 to 15 minutes.

2.
Dissolve the dry mustard in 1 tablespoon cold water. Stir into the cranberry sauce. Cool completely. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. (The cranberry sauce can be made up to 1 week ahead.) Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Mulled Wine Cranberry Sauce

The vibrant flavor of this homemade condiment will banish memories of mundane cranberry sauce. The spices are mild enough not to be overwhelming, but sufficiently assertive to make their presence known.

1.
Grate the zest from 1 orange and set aside. Peel both of the oranges. Working over bowl to catch the juices, cut between the membranes to release the segments. Set the orange segments and juices aside.

2.
Mix the cranberries, orange zest, red wine, brown sugar, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg in a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Strain the orange juice into the saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring often. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer uncovered, stirring often, until the berries are completely popped and the juices thicken, about 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the orange segments. Cool to room temperature. (The cranberry sauce can be prepared up to 1 week ahead, cooled, covered, and refrigerated.)

Pan Gravy 101

You’ll find details for making an appropriate gravy or sauce for each of the turkey recipes, but here are separate instructions to use as an overview. There are a lot of ways to make gravy—thickening with a flour-water paste or cornstarch, using a saucepan or a roasting pan. But here’s how to make the most delicious, greasefree, lumpless, dark mahogany brown gravy in the world.

• Treat gravy as a classic French roux-based sauce, which has exact proportions of fat, flour, and liquid. Many cooks just stir enough flour into the pan drippings to make a paste and add water to make gravy. The problem here is that one never knows how much fat will be released during roasting, and if the proportions are off, the paste gets lumpy or greasy. And in the flour-water paste method, where the paste is whisked into the simmering drippings, the flour does not combine properly with the fat, so the gravy still turns out greasy. My recipe uses a measured amount of the fat skimmed from the drippings and turkey stock to give a rich turkey flavor. I prefer a flour-based gravy to a cornstarch-thickened one, as the latter turns out glossy rather than opaque and is more a sauce than a gravy.
  
• Homemade turkey stock makes the best gravy. You want brown, not pale beige, gravy that tastes like turkey, and stock’s color and depth of flavor help achieve this. If you don’t want to make the full large-batch recipe, at least make the small-batch version with the neck and giblets (without the liver). Some upscale butchers make turkey stock during the holiday season, and that is another alternative. Canned or aseptically packaged turkey broth is becoming easier to find, but I prefer to simmer the browned neck and giblets in the canned broth for an hour or so to freshen the flavor. Canned chicken broth will only do if you are under the most dire time restrictions. I know that may sound a bit heavy-handed, but after making countless batches of gravy, I am not talking through my hat.
  
• The proportions for gravy are 1½ tablespoons each fat and all-purpose flour to each cup of liquid, part of which should be the pan drippings. Use these proportions for any size turkey and any amount of gravy. For example, to yield slightly less than 4 cups of gravy (some of the liquid will evaporate during simmering), use 6 tablespoons each fat and flour, and 4 cups liquid. If your family likes thicker gravy, increase the fat and flour to 2 tablespoons—you can always thin it down with more stock. Because you want to measure the ingredients accurately, you will need both a small (1-or 2-cup) and large (1-quart) glass measuring cup, as well as a set of measuring spoons.
  
• The secret to dark, rich gravy? Dark, rich pan drippings. Let the drippings evaporate into a dark brown glaze during roasting, but don’t let them burn. Whenever the pan looks dry, moisten the drippings with more turkey stock or water so they don’t scorch. The darker and heavier your roasting pan, the darker and richer the drippings. Disposable aluminum roasters make wimpy drippings.
  
• Always degrease the drippings and stock before making gravy, reserving the skimmed fat. Pour the pan drippings into a large glass bowl or gravy separator. Gravy separators are great, but they are not all created equal. Be sure to use a large 4-cup model, as the smaller 2-cup ones are really for chicken and cannot accommodate the copious amounts of
  drippings that a huge turkey can produce. The separator should have a wide spout—some of them have narrow spouts that clog so easily they are more of a nuisance than a help. Models with perforated tops to strain the drippings as they enter the cup are well worth having.
  
• Let the drippings stand for 5 minutes so the clear yellow fat can rise to the top of the drippings. If the fat is in a bowl, use a large spoon to skim off the fat and transfer to a 1-to 2-cup glass measuring cup. If using a gravy separator, pour off the fat into the cup. If you don’t have enough fat to make the amount of gravy needed, add melted butter.
  
• The degreased drippings add color and flavor to the gravy. Combine them with the turkey stock or chicken broth to get the desired amount of liquid. You’ll never resort to commercial gravy coloring again.
  
• Use a whisk to avoid lumpy gravy. A flat, paddle-shaped whisk works better than a balloon whisk to reach into the corners of the pan. If you have a nonstick roasting pan, use a heatproof plastic whisk, available at kitchenware stores. My flat, plastic whisk has become an indispensable tool.
  
• Allow
  ¹
  /3 cup gravy per person, more if you want leftovers for sandwiches.