the big thanksgiving planner 🍂 🦃
plus: apple cider old-fashioned from smitten kitchen keepers
Monday, November 7, 2022
These pre-k recipes are wonderful. (Twitter)
Good morning! Smitten Kitchen Keepers, my new cookbook, will be out in just eight days and I’ve been so busy signing bookplates and special orders and doing some last-minute filming and demos that last week’s newsletter escaped my to-do list. Please accept this IOU — good for early January — for the freezer meals newsletter I had intended for us. Should that be too long to wait, take a gaze at the summer-themed one; so much of this produce is still great now.
Without further ado, I want to talk about the other very cool and amazing thing happening this month: Thanksgiving! This is the newsletter, the one I hope you save and share, the one that rounds up all of the SK Thanksgiving Menu classics we revisit year after year. I hope it inspires you in the kitchen and makes planning easier. Plus, a new Thanksgiving-perfect cocktail recipe below, a sneak peak from the new book.
Cheers,
Deb
Smitten Kitchen Keepers will be out one week from tomorrow and I cannot handle the wait any longer so I’ve shared one of the most blissful fall recipes in it in a new video: Apple Cider Old-Fashioned [Reel, Tiktok].
Makes 6 cocktails
1 quart (4c) regular or spiced fresh apple cider
.5 teaspoon pumpkin or apple pie spice blend (if the cider isn’t spiced)
12 shakes orange or Angostura bitters 2 cups (475 grams) rye or bourbon whiskey, plus up to 1⁄2 cup more
Ice
Fresh apple slices, for garnish, if you wish
Boil the apple cider and spice, if using, in a 3-to-4-quart saucepan over high heat until it is a shade darker and syrupy, reduced to about 2⁄3 cup in volume. This takes about 25 to 30 minutes on my stove. Stir occasionally, especially near the end, when you want to make sure it doesn’t cook off too far. (if it does, it won’t ruin the drink, but the texture can be thicker and harder to keep mixed.) Let it cool to room temperature; then whisk in the bitters. In a thin stream, slowly whisk in the whiskey until it’s evenly combined. Taste, and add more whiskey, up to 1⁄2 cup, if desired for a less sweet drink. Transfer the mixture to a lidded carafe, and chill thoroughly until you’re ready to serve. To serve, pour over ice and sip slowly — this drink is quite strong.
Let’s hang out! All of the details and links to tickets, where necessary, for the late 2022 and early 2023 book tours are on the Events page. Just added: Atlanta one week from Thursday! Coming soon: Details for a Vancouver event on January 27. Don’t fret if I am not coming to your town as we are adding more cities and dates as we can. I’ll keep everything updated on the Events page.
Let’s plan Thanksgiving!
dry-brined turkey with roasted onions
This is Smitten Kitchen's first and only turkey recipe, because you'll never need another: deeply burnished, perfectly cooked, delightfully-seasoned, and crisp-skinned on a bed of onions that have been cooked in salty, buttery drippings for so long, they're otherworldly. Oh, and there are five ingredients. And a schedule. And gravy. You've got this! [P.S. Three types of cranberry sauce, right here!]
Stuffing and stuffing-adjacent
challah stuffing: A very simple, buttery, and flexible challah stuffing you make when you realize that the perfect menu is the one you can pull off without sweating or stressing, leaving you the maximum amount of time to enjoy the feast.
kale and caramelized onion stuffing: The onions are sweet-tart a little jammy, the kale is kicky, the sourdough bread is a crouton dream and they tangle together into a stuffing so phenomenal, it would be an undeserved cruelty to keep it from yourself for another 17 days
apple and herb stuffing for all seasons: An insistence that stuffing deserves a place at our table throughout the year, and throughout our day.
corn pudding: Corn pudding, exactly the way I like it: cozy with brown butter (and don't miss the optional hot honey brown butter drizzle), sour cream, and exactly one bag of frozen corn.
Beloved vegetable sides
slow-roasted sweet potatoes: I started making my Thanksgiving sweet potatoes like this a few years ago and haven't looked back. When slow-roasted, sweet potatoes get sweeter, louder, and more nuanced than seems possible.
green bean casserole with crispy onions: A fresh, crazy delicious sauce, crisp-tender green beans and heaps of crispy fried onions that you can make all in one skillet changed my feelings about this once-maligned Thanksgiving staple forever.
balsamic-braised brussels with pancetta: Brussels with layers upon layers of flavor and complexity— crunchy breadcrumbs, buttery shallots and balsamic-caramelized pancetta — all nestled together in one cozy, harmonious dish.
broccoli, cheddar and wild rice casserole: Bad memories of broccoli casseroles? Banish them forever with this crisp-broiled skillet of wild rice, broccoli and sharp cheddar cheese that I want to eat every night this week, and maybe forever.
Potatoes and gratins
crispy sweet potato roast: Sweet potatoes, potato chip-style. Or, at least as close as you can get them in a casserole dish. Finish it with the contrast of a Thanksgiving Salsa Verde (parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme, of course) or keep it simple and classic with creme fraiche, chives, and parsley.
simplest potato gratin: Potato gratin, as simple and effectively to the point as possible.
potato and leek gratin: Potatoes and leeks slow-baked in cream with a burnish of cheese and fine buttery crunch on top are the perfect welcome to gratin season, which is not a thing, I absolutely just made that up, but really should be for colder weather and short days ahead.
root vegetable gratin: A Friendsgiving/Thanksgiving-perfect dish adapted from Ina Garten that feeds a crowd, keeps well, and has the kind of aroma that envelops you when you open the door.
Unboring salads
fall bliss salad: A centerpiece salad that feels like the epitome of late fall with roasted squash, toasted pepitas, pomegranate, and a showstopping roasted sherry-shallot vinaigrette.
green bean salad with fried almonds: Green beans, fresh and crunchy in a salad almonds, pickled red onions, so little fennel and celery, even the skeptics won't mind.
brussels sprouts, apple, and pomegranate salad: A bright, crunchy and abundantly welcome contrast to the richness of the usual Thanksgiving fare, this is a forever winter staple.
fall-toush salad: The bright flavors and textures — lemon, scallions, parsley, mint, garlic and pita chips — of a summery fattoush but with roasted fall vegetables.
Dinner rolls and one charming biscuit recipe
sour cream and chive fantails: A dinner roll that springs open in the oven like a fan with buttery pull-apart segments looks fancy but is so simple to make.
pretzel parker house rolls: Classic buttery, tender and stretchy dinner rolls finished with a pretzel wash are dark, shiny and unmistakably special.
old-school dinner rolls: I cannot imagine anything more cozy and delicious than a freshly-baked pan of buttery dinner rolls coming out of the oven.
parsley pecorino biscuits: A ridiculously simple last-minute recipe, all dressed up for the big day.
Pies and desserts: Get their very own newsletter soon!
shop my favorites
Ever wonder where I get my cutting boards, paring knives, offset spatulas and more than you see when I cook? I've created a page on Smitten Kitchen with links to some of my favorite kitchen items, the ones I'm asked about the most. For each item, I've attempted to provide a range of shopping links so we're not just focusing on one giant retailer.
See you next week!
