{thanksgiving favorites} - turkey brine and baste!

The bird, the big bird, the center of the meal. I love cooking a turkey. Taking care of it, nurturing it until done to golden perfection! Ok but a little story first. The first Thanksgiving I ever made I was in Pennsylvania and we lived close to some turkey farms. I thought great I will get a fresh bird. Not knowing how big of a bird to get (and I love Thanksgiving left overs) I think I bought a bird that was close to 28 pounds. Really. It was so big it barely fit into my oven. Well I dressed it rinsed it, prepared it. I basted it and had a large yet beautiful bird. After all of that fiddling with that large bird ... I couldn't eat it. Nope no way. It was bizzare. Everyone else thought it was the moistest bird they had ever had. I guess I let my emotion get away with me and got too attached to that bird.

turkey brine adapted from Martha Stewart

I have never actually brined my turkey but my mother has and it was fabulous. SO that is my plan this year. A brine is a salt solution that will keep your bird moist through the lost roasting process. I went to Martha because she helped me cook that first bird I mentioned above.

7 qts water

1 1/2 cups corse salt

6 bay leaves

2 tbls black peppercorns

1 tsp dried mustard seed

1 bottle dry white wine

2 onions quartered

6 cloves garlic

bunch of fresh thyme

Remove the giblets and wash and pat dry the bird. Bring the water with the herbs to a boil and let cool. add the wine . Soak the bird in a large stock pot or lined trash can for 24 hours and then roast your bird your favorite way. enjoy!

turkey baste by ann west

2 sticks butter melted

1 cup wine

pepper & salt

Baste the turkey with its own juices and this mixture! Have a great bird!