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Subject: Queen Caffeine's Castle Dispatch - November23, 2006

QUEEN CAFFEINE’S CASTLE DISPATCH

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!! We hope you are all having a great holiday this weekend. Whether you’re celebrating with just your immediate family or have a huge extended family gathering for a feast, it’s a time to remember all we have and give thanks for it. And I’m stopping right there before I get all mushy!

Sorry for the lack of pictures this week but today is madly busy and this was supposed to go out hours ago, so it’s a rush job. Pictures will be back next week!

Very short but extremely good Thanksgiving prayer to close today.

Turkey Trivia

A male turkey is called a tom, a female is a hen, and a youngster is a poult.

A group of turkeys is called a rafter.

The loose skin below a turkey's chin is called a wattle. The warts on the wattle are called the caruncles.

Because the wild turkey is quick to defend itself and fight against all predators, Ben Franklin wanted it, rather than the bald eagle, to be the symbol of the United States.

The domestic tom can weigh up to 50 pounds, the domestic hen up to 16 pounds. The wild tom can weigh up to 20 pounds, the wild hen up to 12 pounds.

The average person in the United States will eat 17 pounds of turkey this year, compared with 9 pounds for the average Canadian.

The top turkey-producing state in the United States is Minnesota, with 47 million turkeys a year.

Turkeys perched on trees and refusing to descend indicate snow. --Old weather proverb

Thanks to http://www.almanac.com/ (The Old Farmer’s Almanac online) for the trivia!

TURKEY LEFTOVERS

Turkey Curry

Microwave recipe

Ingredients:Sauce:1 tbsp. butter
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 tbsp. flour
2 tbsp. curry powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ginger
paprika to taste
1 cup canned evaporated milk

The rest:
4 cups cooked chicken or turkey
1 egg well beaten
1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
cooked hot rice

Optional: chutney and "side boys": raisins, chapatis and other traditional Indian side dishes

Preparation Instructions:
1. Melt butter in casserole dish in your microwave. Add onion, flour, curry, salt, ginger, and paprika. Cook for 4 minutes on high, stirring occasionally.

2. Gradually blend in milk, cook 3 minutes to thicken, stirring occasionally.

3. Add chicken or turkey, blend a little sauce into the egg (so it does not cook) and add the egg into the curry sauce. Mix well. Heat but do not boil or the sauce will curdle. Stir in Worcestershire sauce.

4. Serve over rice with "side boys"/side dishes.

Note: This should freeze fine. If sauce separates after reheating, just stir and make sure it is heated all the way through. If you do not want to use the egg since it is not fully cooked, you can use egg white or egg substitute to avoid any salmonella problems.

Turkey Enchiladas with Homemade Red Chili Sauce

Freezes very well (keep the sauce in separate container)

2 cups of chopped turkey
1 package of flour tortillas
2 cups of homemade red chili sauce (recipe follows)
cheddar cheese

optional toppings:
diced fresh tomatoes
shredded lettuce
sliced olives

1. I do not use a traditional method for making enchiladas, but the effect is the same.

2. Put two cups of chopped turkey, shredded beef or pork in a mixing bowl and add 1/2 cup red chili sauce and 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese. (You can freeze the filling and tortillas separately and assemble later or you can assemble and freeze.)

3. Place 1/4 cup of this mixture on a tortilla and roll up, placing seam side down in a Pyrex dish. Do this until all of the mixture is used, this should yield 8 enchiladas. Freeze enchiladas and sauce separately so that the enchiladas do not get soggy. Freeze extra cheese (about 1/2-1 cup) in a small zipper freezer bag (you can tape this to the Pyrex dish).

4. To serve: Heat oven to 350. Defrost red chili sauce. Using a pasty brush, "paint" the enchiladas, completely covering them with all of the sauce. Top with cheese and bake until thoroughly heated, about 30 minutes. When done, top with tomatoes, lettuce and olives, as desired.

Note: Serve with refried beans, Mexican rice.

Homemade Red Chili Sauce

2/3 cup flour
2/3 cup oil
4 tsp. cumin
1/2-2/3 cup mild chili powder

8 cups of water or beef broth
4 tsp. garlic powder
2 tsp. or less of sea salt or regular salt
2 tsp. oregano

1. Mix flour and oil in sauce pan over medium heat. Stir until smooth.

2. Add cumin and chili powder, stir, add water or beef broth.

3. Add remaining ingredients.

4. Simmer, uncovered, stirring frequently, until sauce is thick enough to coat the back of your mixing spoon.

Makes about 8 cups, freeze in 2 cup portions. An extremely versatile sauce, change spices and spiciness to your taste. It can be used in many recipes. Make enchiladas, Mexican lasagna and a Mexican "spaghetti sauce" by mixing it half and half with spaghetti sauce.

Mexican Turkey Lasagna

1 (16-ounce) jar mild salsa
1 (16-ounce) jar medium salsa
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 (10-ounce) package dry lasagna (6 noodles)
2 cups nonfat cottage cheese
2 eggs
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 (4-ounce) can diced green chilies
4 cups diced cooked chicken or turkey
1 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

1. Pour both jars of salsa into a large non-aluminum saucepan. Add pepper, chili powder, cumin, and garlic. Bring to a boil; reduce the heat and simmer uncovered, stirring often, until the sauce is reduced to 4 cups, about 10 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, cook the lasagna noodles according to package directions and drain well. Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Lightly coat a 13 x 9-inch baking dish with vegetable oil cooking spray. Combine noodles, cottage cheese, eggs, parsley, and chilies; mix well and set aside.

3. Arrange half the cooled lasagna noodles in the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Spread half the cottage cheese mixture over the pasta then half the cooked chicken or turkey, then half the salsa mixture

4. Sprinkle half the shredded cheeses on top. Repeat the layering steps, ending with the shredded cheeses. Bake, covered, until bubbly and heated through, about 45-50 minutes. Let stand uncovered for 10 minutes before cutting.

You can freeze this fully assembled and reheat by cooking for 1 hour at 350 (thaw it in the microwave or overnight first).

Serves 8-12

NOTE: Besides the recipes, remember you can always cut leftover turkey into bite-sized pieces and measure them into individual freezer bags. Divide the turkey into the amounts you normally use in recipes. Next time you want to make a casserole or something, your turkey is all cooked, cubed, and measured for you. You just toss it in with the other ingredients for a quick meal.

Many more ideas at:

http://www.lhj.com/lhj/slideshow/slideShow.jhtml?sssdmh=dm1.225923&slideid=/templatedata/lhj/slideshow/data/1130968761889.xml&esrc=nwlr21&email=1060250392

http://www.cooking.com/recipes/browse_ctg_det.asp?Ingred=24&orderkey=Ingred&MainIngred=Turkey&rr=rr&SEO=Turkey

http://frenchfood.about.com/cs/maincourses/a/turkleft.htm?nl=1

http://allrecipes.com/Search/Ingredients.aspx?WithTerm=&SiteId=0&Wanted1=CUBED+TURKEY

http://magazines.ivillage.com/countryliving/cookbook/articles/0,,284670_650447,00.html

http://magazines.ivillage.com/townandcountry/style/graces/articles/0,,284698_602483,00.html

http://home.ivillage.com/cooking/food/0,,c04b,00.html

The New-England Boy's Song
about Thanksgiving Day

Lydia Maria Child,
1845

Over the river and through the wood,
To grandfather's house we go;
The horse knows the way to carry the sleigh
Through the white and drifted snow.

Over the river and through the wood,
To grandfather's house away!
We would not stop for doll or top,
For 'tis Thanksgiving Day.

Over the river and through the wood --
Oh, how the wind does blow!
It stings the toes, and bites the nose
As over the ground we go.

Over the river and through the wood,
With a clear blue winter sky,
The dogs do bark, and children hark,
As we go jingling by.

Over the river and through the wood,
To have a first-rate play.
Hear the bells ring, "Ting-a-ling-ding!"
Hurray for Thanksgiving Day!

Over the river and through the wood,
No matter for winds that blow;
Or if we get the sleigh upset,
Into a bank of snow.

Over the river and through the wood,
To see little John and Ann;
We will kiss them all, and play snowball,
And stay as long as we can.

Over the river and through the wood,
Trot fast, my dapple gray!
Spring over the ground like a hunting hound!
For this is Thanksgiving Day!

Over the river and through the wood,
And straight through the barnyard gate.
We seem to go extremely slow --
It is so hard to wait!

Over the river and through the wood,
Old Jowler hears our bells;
He shakes his pow with a loud bow-wow,
And thus the news he tells.

Over the river and through the wood,
When grandmother sees us come,
She will say, "Oh, dear, the children are here,
Bring a pie for every one."

Over the river and through the wood -
Now grandmother's cap I spy!
Hurray for the fun! Is the pudding done?
Hurrah for the pumpkin pie!

The above poem appeared in:

Child, L. Maria. Flowers for Children. II. For children from four to six years old. New York: C.S. Francis & Co., 252 Browday. Boston: J.H. Francis, 128 Washington Street. (Printed by Dunroe & Francis in Boston), 1845.

It is also widely found under such other titles as Thanksgiving Day, A Boy's Thanksgiving Day, or its first line. Many sources omit several of the verses as well.