Ace's Favorite Thanksgiving Recipes

Need inspiration for what to cook this year?  Here are some of our favorite Turkey Day Recipes:

Moscow Mule

Ingredients:

• Ice cubes
• 1/4 cup vodka
• 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
• 1/2 cup chilled ginger beer
• 1 lime wedge
• 1 bundle of mint leaves 

Directions:

Fill a copper mug or glass with ice. Add vodka & fresh lime juice, then ginger beer; stir to mix. Garnish with lime wedge & bundle of mint leaves.

Get your swerve on.

Thanksgiving Turkey & Gravy  

Turkey:
Total Time: 2 ½ hours 
Serves: 8

Ingredients

• 12-pound turkey
• ½ stick softened butter
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• ½ lemon
• 1 sprig sage

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. 
Remove bag of giblets and neck from inside a fresh 12-pound turkey and reserve for gravy. 
Lightly butter a heavy roasting pan. 
Rinse and dry turkey. 
Rub outside with ½ stick softened butter, 
Maldon sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. 
Rub ½ lemon inside cavity. 
Leave lemon, along with 1 sprig sage and a big knob of butter, inside cavity.
Place turkey in greased roasting pan and cook, basting turkey with drippings every 10 minutes and rotating pan 90 degrees every half hour, until a meat thermometer inserted into the fattest part of the thigh (avoiding bone) registers 165 degrees, about 1¼ hours. (Begin checking temperature after 45 minutes of cooking.) 
Remove turkey from oven and let rest in a warm area 1 hour. 
Remove turkey from pan and set on a serving platter, reserving juices in pan for gravy. 
Carve and serve.

Gravy:

Start the stock for this recipe Thanksgiving morning and let it simmer away while you prepare the other dishes.

Total Time: 4½ hours (includes making stock) 

Ingredients:

• Turkey giblets and neck
• 2 peeled onions
• 4 peeled carrots
• 1 head garlic
• 6 quarts water
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 cups red wine
• 2 cups turkey stock

Directions:
Roast turkey giblets and neck in a 400 degree oven for 30 minutes. 
Combine roasted giblets and neck, 2 peeled onions, 4 peeled carrots and 1 head garlic, halved crosswise, in an 8-quart stockpot. 
Fill with 6 quarts water and bring to a boil. Add 2 bay leaves. 
Skim any foam from surface, then reduce heat to low so liquid is slowly simmering. 
Cook until flavorful, at least 2 hours.
Strain stock, discarding solids. 
Transfer liquid to a medium pot over medium heat. 
Simmer until reduced to 2 cups, about 1 hour.
Once turkey is cooked and removed from pan, bring 2 cups red wine along with reserved pan juices to a simmer in turkey roasting pan over medium heat. 
Let wine simmer, scraping up browned bits from bottom of pan, until liquid is syrupy, 10 minutes. 
Stir in 2 cups turkey stock, then strain liquid into a saucepan over medium heat. Cook gravy until slightly thickened, 10-15 minutes. 
Whisk in ½ stick butter and serve.

Source:  Thanksgiving Turkey & Gravy 

Thanksgiving Stuffing

Makes 8 to 10 servings

TOTAL TIME 3 3/4 hr 

Ingredients:

• 8 cups coarse fresh bread crumbs (from a 1-lb white loaf with crust removed)
• 4 cups coarsely crumbled buttermilk corn bread
• 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh sage
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter
• 2 medium onions, finely chopped (1 1/2 cups)
• 1 turkey liver or 3 chicken livers (2 to 3 oz total), trimmed and finely chopped
• 1 cup finely chopped celery
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 cup turkey giblet stock or low-sodium chicken broth
• 1/2 cup heavy cream

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325°F.

Spread all bread crumbs in 2 shallow baking pans and bake in upper and lower thirds of oven until dry, about 15 minutes total.

Cool crumbs in pans on racks, then transfer to a large bowl and stir in parsley, sage, salt, and pepper.

Melt butter in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat, then add onions and liver and cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are softened, 8 to 10 minutes. Add celery and cook, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes.

Transfer to bowl with crumbs and toss well. Add eggs, stock, and cream and toss well.

Transfer stuffing to a buttered 2 1/2- to 3-quart shallow baking dish.

Bake, covered, in middle of oven 30 minutes, then uncover and bake until browned, about 30 minutes more.

Source:  Thanksgiving Stuffing

Pecan pie

Ingredients:

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. In a large mixing bowl, mix the brown sugar, granulated sugar and eggs until creamy. Add the chopped pecans, melted butter, milk, flour and vanilla extract and stir to combine. Pour the mixture into the pie shell. Arrange the pecan halves on top of the pie in a circular pattern. Bake the pie for 55 minutes. Check for doneness by shaking the pan slightly. The pie should be firm with only a slight jiggle in the center. It will set more as it cools. Serve topped with vanilla ice cream or with a dollop of whipped cream.

Source: Pecan Pie

Hope you have Happy Thanksgiving!