Ali's Kitchen: Anytime Thanksgiving

"Thanksgiving" dinner can actually be had whenever. Our household is firmly convinced of this, and that's why we cook "Thanksgiving" in Summer, Spring or Winter, too. Here's how to cook OUR brand of Thanksgiving (for 2-3 people), in case you're interested.

Roast Turkey

And people thought Clinton was pervy?
1 3 lb. turkey breast (you can halve this, freeze the other half, and cut cooking time in half if you wish, or you can have leftovers!)
2 Tb butter or butter substitute, divided;
Salt & pepper to taste;
Mixture of your favorite herbs, such as thyme, rosemary, sage, etc. Use slightly more herbs than usual if you wish to cut down the amount of salt you use.

Preheat the oven to 425°. Make sure your turkey is around room temp. Rub the butter, salt & pepper, and herbal mixture all over turkey breast. Place in small roaster, and (if you have one) insert an oven-safe meat thermometer into the thick end of the meat.

Place the turkey in the oven and reduce the temp to 400°. After about 20 minutes, baste turkey with the second Tb of butter. Roast (and continue to occasionally baste) for at least another 20 minutes, depending on the size of the turkey breast. The turkey will reach 170° when it is done. Given the different sizes of turkey breasts, this is why meat thermometers are particularly helpful, even if it's the kind you can't keep in there the entire cooking time.

Remove to a platter, cover with aluminum foil, and set aside for 10 minutes.

Turkey Gravy

Put the roasting pan (sans rack, obviously) on a lit burner. Sprinkle just a little flour (2 Tb approx.) into the pan juices, and cook while stirring for a few minutes, scraping up any brown bits. If you like to add wine, etc. to your gravy, do so now and cook the liquid down until it's more... um... gravy-like. Or don't add the flour, and just serve the turkey "a jus."

Chive Mashed Potatoes

Darth Tater will bring you over to the dark side of extra-buttery potatoes.
I think we've been over this. Potatoes. Chives. Butter. Milk. The. End. Fun add-ins are also cream cheese instead of milk, and garlic. Salt & pepper if you wish, but remember to just say "no" if you're using salted butter, or butter substitute.

Green Bean Casserole

le classique
No one rocks this one like my mom, but dammit, I try. It's basically ripped off from the French's recipe, with a few important differences. Theirs says:

Ingredients:
1 (10 3/4 oz.) can CAMPBELL'S® Cream of Mushroom Soup
3/4 cup milk;
1/8 tsp. black pepper
2 (9 oz. each) pkgs. frozen cut green beans, thawed*
1 1/3 cups FRENCH'S® Original or Cheddar French Fried Onions;
Directions:
1. MIX soup, milk and pepper in a 1 1/2 -qt. baking dish. Stir in beans and 2/3 cup French Fried Onions.
2. BAKE at 350°F for 30 min. or until hot.3. STIR. Top with remaining 2/3 cup onions. Bake 5 min. until onions are golden.
*Tip: You may substitute 2 cans (14 1/2 oz. each) cut green beans, drained or 4 cups fresh, cooked cut green beans.

Here's the deal: You can add MORE green beans for what I find to be a more enjoyable bean-to-other-stuff ratio, AND you don't have to pre-cook the beans. You may find that extra crunch (they still cook just fine) to be quite pleasant!

Finally...

Don't forget some canned cranberry sauce (I hate to break it to you fresh cranberry sauce people, but it's just. not. as good. if it's not infused with ten different preservatives) and a dessert (optional) you bought somewhere else, because, come on, your kitchen is tiny and you don't have room to store baking goods that you'll only use twice a year. Extra points if you serve on your "nice" dishes with real serving utensils, and use as an excuse to force your husband to eat dinner at the dinner table.

There you have it: Thanksgiving in August! Full of win, and of course, yum yum.