Thanksgiving prep weekend!

Today my mom and I did a little bit of baking, cooking, and planning for Thanksgiving.  We planned out our menu and I'm very excited for the new additions to our Thanksgiving table this year.  For our turkey, we're using Anne Burrell's recipe:  http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/anne-burrell/brined-herb-crusted-turkey-with-apple-cider-gravy-recipe/index.html    for the brine (which we'll prepare on Monday), the herb crust, and the gravy.  We are also making Anne Burrell's stuffing, along with my mom's usual stuffing recipe that we're stuffing inside the bird.  Also on the menu is mashed potatoes with parsnips and rutabega, sweet potatoes, roasted vegetables, corn, and noodles.. yuum.  We have our shopping list all set for tomorrow!

I made a delicious lunch for my mom and I before we started baking.  I wanted to practice scrambling eggs like I did in class on Tuesday, so I made scrambled eggs over asparagus.  I cut the stems off the asparagus and seasoned them with Wegman's basting oil, salt, and pepper.  I roasted them in a 400 degree oven until tender and crispy.

I made scrambled eggs for my dad too and gave him some potatoes (so I could practice medium dicing, par boiling, and sauteeing!) with chicken sausages:

 Then it was on to baking!  First we made cranberry bread.  My mom got this recipe years ago from her librarian and it's a huge hit when she makes it every fall!  Here's the recipe: (We doubled it to make 2 loaves)

2 cups flour

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/4 cup butter

1 egg, beaten

1 tsp. orange peel

3/4 cup orange juice

1 1/2 cups golden raisons

1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries, chopped

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350.

Mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in a large bowl.  Cut the butter into the mixture until crumbly.  Add the egg, orange peel, and orange juice.  Stir until the mixture is moist.  Fold in the raisons, cranberries, and walnuts.  Spoon into a greased loaf pan and bake for about 1 hour 10 minutes.  

I love having a slice of this bread for breakfast with cream cheese spread on top!

Next, we baked my mom's famous chocolate chip cookies!  This is a secret recipe, so I can't post it!  But here's a picture: