Well, it’s about that time of year where I have to scrounge around and hunt for my can opener. I sometimes wonder why I had a kitchen included when the house was built. I suppose for resell value on the house for the kids after I have gone on to my great reward. Since my name’s not Rachel or Martha, it’s a dissertation to cook for Thanksgiving and Christmas. A few years ago, I got wise and decided to go out for Thanksgiving dinner. While it was great to walk away and leave the clean up to others, it made for skinny helpings on the left overs during football games. But, anyway, I try to make up for it at Christmas dinner. If my kids knew about a Thanksgiving dinner episode in my younger years, they might decide that eating out isn’t so bad. When I was 19 years old and a new bride, I thought it would be great to cook Thanksgiving dinner with ALL the “fixins.” I mean, really, mom…what’s so hard about cooking 24 hours straight, eating for 30 minutes and cleaning up for 3 hours. Really! Anyway, my sister and her family came to visit me and I was all excited about displaying my new found culinary skills. I was so proud that I remembered to take the turkey out of the freezer and let it thaw in the refrigerator for a few days…still had to soak it in hot water to thaw. But things were rolling along pretty well for the seasoned cook. I can’t remember all the details of that long ago feast but I’m sure my cornbread dressing was probably just above the level of crumbled up cornbread stuffed inside the turkey. That was BEFORE Stove Top Stuffing was available at the local Wal-Mart and BEFORE my mother and sister revealed their delicious cornbread stuffing recipe. Well, company arrived and we were having a high ole time and then…oh, yeah, aren’t I supposed to cook this bird for a few days? I believe I put it in the oven the night before and cooked it for 12 hours or so but who’s counting. We managed to pull it all together and I was sooo proud to set it all on my new dining room table. Surprising to me, the turkey didn’t look half bad and with great anticipation, I craved the pumpkin…I mean the turkey. This can’t be that hard, just slice and serve, right? Wrong! I need to tell you about one, small, minor detail. At that point in my life I hated giblet gravy and it never occurred to me that the packed-in-paper giblets were inside the turkey. Never gave it a thought…until, I carved into the paper and pulled out the giblets for all to see. Well, husband number one fell on the floor laughing and my sister has never let me live it down. Great entertainment but you can rest assured, NOW I ALWAYS CHECK THE INSIDE OF A TURKEY .
Be safe and serve bone in ham!
Have A Blessed Day












