Now our students are ready for Thanksgiving

Conditions at 6:30 - the lights are back on, the skies are clear and the temperature is7*
Expected later - 16* and sunny with cloudy periods

It’s a short blog today as there was no power when I woke up this morning. I turned over to see what time it was and like everything else, the clock was also in blackness.  That’s one thing about being in the country, it’s very dark. 

I came downstairs and the battery operated clock on the wall told me it was 5:05 so my internal alarm was right on target.  So, I came downstairs, lit some candles and let the dog out, made my sandwich for lunch and cooked some oatmeal for my breakfast.  My gas stove has electronic ignition but it can still be started with a match. So, to quote a very wise man I know, it’s all good. Then I sat down to write the blog in Word, so all I have to do later is cut and paste!

Last night we had our very successful third class.  We did the chicken and it turned out perfect.  A little longer in the oven would have given us a little browner, crisper skin but the meat was perfectly cooked, and very juicy. The stuffing was also a huge hit.  I was a little apprehensive about it as the recipe indicates to cook it for four to eight hours but I cooked it almost twelve and it was fine. We added a bit of drippings from the chicken when it came out of the oven to boost the flavour but really, it didn’t need it, it was just fine. Along with that we cooked carrots and we cubed some potatoes, with the skin on and boiled them. Then when we were almost ready to eat, we melted some butter, added a little oil, and some fresh garlic and sautéed that a little bit then added the potatoes and tossed them around. The garlic could have done with a little bit longer cooking time but they were still tasty, especially if you really like garlic.

Some of the girls are planning to try the stuffing for Thanksgiving, and if they do, that’s what this class is all about – learning new things that you will actually do again at home.

For our readers, here is the recipe for the stuffing and a recipe for a dry rub for the chicken (although this isn’t the one I used last night, I cheated and used one out of a jar)

Aromatic Poultry Rub

¼ cup fine kosher or sea salt

3 tbsp packed brown sugar (light or dark)

2 tbsp dried orange zest

1 tbsp onion salt

1 tbsp freshly ground black pepper

1 tbsp freshly ground white pepper

1 tbsp chili powder

1 tbsp dried marjoram

1 tbsp poultry seasoning

1 tbsp ground lemon pepper

Combine in a small bowl or shake in a jar

Crock Pot Dressing

12 cups bread cubes

2 cups chopped celery

1 large onion, chopped

¼ cup fresh parsley, minced

1 ½ tsp sage

1 tsp poultry seasoning

1 tsp thyme

½ tsp marjoram

½ tsp salt

½ tsp pepper

½ cup butter

1 cup chicken broth

Combine bread cubes, celery, onion and parsley. Sprinkle seasonings over top.

Melt butter and drizzle over cubes.

Add chicken broth and mix well.

Place in crock pot. Cover.

Cook on high for 45 minutes, then reduce to low for four to eight hours. Stir occasionally while cooking.

Makes about 15 cups stuffing

Note: If dressing is too moist, add up to one more cup bread cubes. If you prefer a more moist stuffing, add up to ½ cup more chicken broth.

Note: I didn’t cook it on high, I just put it on low and left it for the entire day, and I used a little more bread than called form basically one whole loaf. I cubed the bread which was slightly dry but not totally. However, I made this on Labour Day with very dry bread and just increased the liquid slightly and it turned out fine.

My apologies, as I once again forgot my camera. I will try to remember it next week when we do crepes.

Anyone who knows Lloyd and I well knows that we love to try great restaurants and we’ve been known to plan vacations around restaurant reservations  Some of the top ones require reservations to be made up to six months in advance (still haven’t made it to the French Laundry, but we WILL).

Well, yesterday morning, I was driving a gentleman downtown and we were chatting about kids, and grandkids and he mentioned that his daughter and her husband live in England. We chatted about that and it turns out his son in law is one of the top chefs at The Fat Duck, a restaurant in England that is totally on our list of place we truly want to experience. When he said The Fat Duck, I just looked at him and said, Heston Blumenthal’s Fat Duck? And he seemed quite surprised that I would know that. Needless to day I was disappointed to have to let him out of the car as I was really enjoying our chat. I had to call Lloyd right away and tell him because no one else I know would have any idea what the name Heston Blumenthal meant.  How pathetic are WE? 

Well, it’s now six o’clock, my lunch is made, by breakfast is eaten and I still have no power, so I may as well get dressed and head into town for coffee and see if I can find out how far spread this power outage is.  I remember when we came down to look at property the first time, which seem eons ago, and we were only in town about half an hour and the power went out, but it was island wide.  Hopefully it’s not like that again, but I think that’s highly unlikely.