“ THE LOCAL EAT ”
Written by: Kelly Rogers
Holidays are
about memories,
especially food
memories.
Everyone has
there “little thing
that they do”
around holiday
meals. You’re
expectedtocome
through with
your special
addition to the
Holiday meals.
Memories are
associated with
the food served
around it.
turkey add 2 or 3 cups of water or stock to your
turkey pan this will give you something to baste with
while the ‘natural juices’ flow out of the bird in to the
roasting pan. After taking the turkey out of the pan
strain the pan juice into a saucepan and add juice
of 2 oranges and a ½ cup white wine ( optional),
a little salt / pepper and heat to a simmer. Make a
slurry with equal parts cornstarch and water about 2
tablespoons, and stir into the sauce to thicken. When
it does, keep it on low heat. This sauce should have
clarity and lightness with a hint of orange.
The traditonal cream gravy is made from the stock
produced by simmering the giblets, neck bone and
any trimmings from the turkey. Do not put fat
trimmings in your stock, it does it no good. To
enhance your stock, as you are preparing and
cooking other dishes remember to save trimmings,
that you would otherwise throw away, for your stock.
I use the following rule; onion products, celery,
With my grandmother it was “Corn Flake Kisses”,
carrots and garlic, soft herbs (like parsley, thyme,
my mom “Spicy Sausage Pin Wheels” and my wife,
chervil) can go into stock. Do not use peppers,
her “Potato Latkes with sour cream”.
squash, fruit, strong herbs (like rosemary, mint,
basil), or tomatoes. This gravy is thickened by a roux
Years ago my wife started a tradition of making
(equal parts flour and oil) that is heated at a slow and
Potato Latkes on Christmas morning for after our
boys had opened one special gift. We thought it silly low temperature. Heat equal parts milk and strained
at first, but as the years went on we came expect the stock to a slow simmer adding roux slowly until the
Latkes on Christmas morning. Food traditions garner gravy thickens. A touch of heavy cream, salt and
pepper round out this gravy. Now you have 2 gravies
the memories of holiday past and present.
to ladel, slather and dip with during a most
memorable meal. And thats what I do.
My ‘little thing’ is something I’ve been doing for the
last 24 years at Thanksgiving, and that is make “two
gravies” for the big meal. Nothing spectacular, but
you can count on me to do it. One is a natural
What are you famous for around the
orange gravy made from the pan drippings and the holidays? What can we count on when
other a traditional cream gravy made from giblet
you get in the kitchen this year?
and neck stock.
The natural gravy is simple; when cooking your
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Happy Holidays !!!
Woman
TEXAS
FREDERICKSBURG