happy daisy!

 Sew, I have this sweater...

neither one were my favorite sweater.

But this one could be now!!!  Wanna know how I did this?

Me too.... I'll be back...

Comin' to you LIVE from a single-wide (where sometimes when I wear this sweater it makes me sneeze up hairballs...) hee-hee

Gobble-Quack-A-Doo!

Now ya'll know I'm not a chef... a cook... a culinarian (although I could try to be just so I could wear a shirt that says, "culinarian" on it...) or anything in betwixt those three...

but I am SOOOOOO excited to report that at the ripe old age of 173 I now know what a Turducken is!  I am just SMITTEN with this new information!!!  I did NOT know about this 3-bird phenomenon prior to NOW! THIS MOMENT!  Could be 'cause I'm not allowed to play in the kitchen... dunno... but check THIS out:

Ingredients

Brine:

• 1 cup kosher salt
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 gallon water
• 18 to 21-pound turkey, skin intact and boned except for drumsticks
• House seasoning, recipe follows
• Cornbread Dressing, recipe follows
• 3 to 4-pound duck, boned
• 3 to 4-pound chicken, boned
• Paprika

Directions

To make the brine: Mix salt and sugar with the water. Brine is ready when the mixture is completely dissolved. If the water is heated to quicken the process, make sure it is cooled to room temperature before placing meat in. Let the 3 birds sit in brine in the refrigerator overnight.

Preheat roaster to 500 degrees F.

Lay turkey skin side down on a flat surface. Dust turkey with House Seasoning and add 1/4-inch layer of cornbread dressing. Lay duck skin side down on top of dressing. Dust duck with House Seasoning and add 1/4-inch layer of dressing. Repeat with the chicken.

Begin trussing up the turkey at the neck. Insert metal skewer about 1/2-inch from the edge and up through the other side. Run butcher's twine between skin and skewer and tighten to draw both sides together. Continue down to legs. With every other skewer, draw together the duck and chicken skin. Tie together turkey legs to resemble standard turkey. Dust turkey skin with paprika.

Roast turducken for 15 minutes. Then turn the roaster down to 225 degrees F to finish, approximately 3 hours. Remove turducken from roaster once the internal temperature in the chicken reaches 155 degrees F. Let rest for at least 20 minutes before carving.

Cut across the middle of the breast completely through. Plate thin slices containing turkey, duck and chicken.

Cook's Notes: If using a smoker to cook, smoke at 225 degrees F for 5 hours, rotating every 20 to 30 minutes until internal temperature reaches 155 degrees F and external temperature reaches 165 degrees F. Try to keep the flare-ups from the fire to a minimum. (I try.... I really REALLY do try...)

House Seasoning:

• 1 cup salt
• 1/4 cup black pepper
• 1/4 cup garlic powder

Mix ingredients together and store in an airtight container for up to 6 months.(That just doesn't sound right...)

Cornbread Dressing:

Cornbread:

• 1 cup self rising cornmeal
• 1/2 cup self-rising flour
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 2 eggs
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Dressing:

• 7 slices white bread, dried in warm oven
• Cornbread
• 1 sleeve saltine crackers
• 2 cups chopped celery
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 8 tablespoons butter
• 7 cups chicken stock
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried sage
• 1 tablespoon poultry seasoning
• 5 eggs, beaten (poor eggs... what did they ever do to anyone?!)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

To make the cornbread, combine all ingredients and pour into a greased shallow baking dish. Bake for approximately 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool.

To make the dressing, crumble dried white bread slices, cornbread and crackers. Mix together and set aside. Saute chopped celery and onion in butter until transparent, approximately 5 to 10 minutes. Pour over corn bread mixture. Add stock, mix well and add salt, pepper, sage, and poultry seasoning. Add beaten eggs and mix well. Follow instructions above to stuff birds.

Good GRAVY... I'm so confused... who's making one of these?  I will be there. I'll take clean-up duty, I can pre-heat, (I come armed with fire extinguishers..) I can be the seasoning duster (is that anything like a crop duster?), chop, dice, and what-ever else is called for... I'm just not allowed to play with flaming stoves and all...

Comin' to you LIVE from a single-wide (where I'm wondering how to keep the flare-ups to a minimum......... this could be considered useful information for me.......) hee-hee

falling for autumn

Nature's first green is gold,
Her hardest hue to hold,
Her early leaf's a flower;
But only so an hour.
Then leaf subsides to leaf.
So Eden sank to grief,
So dawn goes down to day.
Nothing gold can stay.

~ Robert Frost

One of my all time favorites is Robert Frost.  Read me any of his poems - I'm yours forever. And in the fall... each time I see a gold leaf, I recite "Nothing Gold Can Stay" in my head (and sometimes out loud... and I look kinda crazy... but that's okay (and somewhat normal for me...))!

I've been "nesting" along with the birds that have headed south since the on-set of Fall/Autumn.  Cleaning the single-wide, throwing things away, packing things away and re-decorating (that's always FUN!)!

After an extraordinarily relaxing week-end, I'm going to continue on my quest to "feather my nest" - winterize it just a little bit more.  Are you as enthralled with this time of the year as I am? *sigh*

Comin' to you LIVE from a single-wide (where sometimes I can be spotted IN a tree watching for the leaves to turn... wanna join me? I have an extra nest awaiting your arrival...) hee-hee

Know what time it is?

Time change. Out of time. Where'd the time go? It's time.

Time for what?

Time to make sure you know that you are invited to Christmas at The Primitique!

Saturday, November 13 is the day. 10:00am is the time. What time should "the Mindy" be expecting you?

Throw some vintage ornaments together with some rusty chains, with some bovine stockings, with some scrumptious soy candles, with a brown Christmas tree and well....you might get a vision of Holiday Happiness at The Primitique!

Time to go!!! Have a great week-end!!!

Comin' to you LIVE from a single-wide (where I TOTALLY walked off with "the Mindy's" blog post... when you see her tomorrow - don't tell her... m'kay?) hee-hee

Missing Man

Thank You for coming to visit today.  I would like to explain the meaning of the items on this special table.

The table is round - to show our everlasting concern for our men and women still missing.

The cloth is white - symbolizing the purity of their motives when answering the call to duty.

The single red rose, displayed in a vase, reminds us of the life of each of the missing, and their loved ones and friends who keep the faith, awaiting answers.

The vase is tied with a red ribbon, a symbol of our continued determination to account for our missing.

A slice of lemon on the bread plate is to remind us of the bitter fate of those captured and missing in a foreign land.

A pinch of salt symbolizes the tears endured by those missing and their families who seek answers.

The Bible represents the strength gained through faith to sustain those lost from our country, founded as one nation under God.

The glass is inverted - to symbolize their inability to share today's toast.

The chair is empty - the soldier is missing.

This is a "Missing Man Table" which is part of the "Honors Ceremony". The ceremony calls attention to the fact that "the missing are with us, here in spirit," and serves as a reminder to all Americans to never forget the brave men and women who answered our nation's call to serve.

Our freedom is a gift from our forefathers. The passing of that gift between generations has been left to the Veterans who have served, and the soldiers currently serving our nation when called to duty. You are responsible for carrying on the history, the stories, and the valor of those that are your neighbors, your teachers, your family and your friends. Today let us honor those who have defended our country and the principles under which we live. We say "Thank You" today to our Veterans.

Comin' to you LIVE from a single-wide... hee-hee


p.s. Most of everything on the table has a story behind it...

My Grandfather was in the U.S. Navy - and this is his hat.  "He was based out of San Diego, CA for two tours in the South Pacific on PBY 5A Catalina's (amphibious airplane) - assistant mechanic on first trip, head mechanic on second. He spent some time in Kanoe Bay, HI for training on both trips, followed by assignment to Banana River NAS (Cape Kennedy, FL). He was assigned to be head mechanic on PBM's (large flying boat) but refused to fly on them. I never got a straight answer as to why, but all consideration involved adjectives. The hellcats and PBM recon had disappeared in the Bermuda Triangle about then. May have had more to do with it than the #@$*^ PBM. He had enough friends to get an assignment to DC as crew chief on JRB's (Small two engine personnel type plane) and flew with Admiral Hoover on many occasions, along with other suits. Apparently his airplane had a very good record for minimal breakdowns. My Grandfather said all the other crew chiefs spent all their time doing tear downs for inspections... he kinda figured that if it cranked, it would probably stay running! He needed all that extra time to go fishing or something!" ~ as told by my Uncle (the senior red.neck...)

The silver, crystal and "napkin" on the table were my Grandmother's. The silver is "Fairfax" by Gorham (a gift from her Aunt), and the Crystal is "Canterbury" by Duncan Miller that she got as a wedding gift in 1944. The "napkin" is actually a tea towel from my Great-Grandmother with an "A" monogrammed on it... from about 1906.

The white plates belong to the "the Mama" and they are "Heritage" by Johnson Brothers. "the Mama" is solely responsible for pulling all of the table setting together for me... as well as handing a print out over with directions for where everything goes...  she's just cool like that...

Enjoy your day today - and thank a soldier... be it Veteran or one currently serving... they have all paid a price for our freedom...

gobbles

 I'm dressing the nest for Thanksgiving...

and since there's a burn ban on my oven, my Turkey Platter doesn't see much action... 'til now!

Comin' to you LIVE from a single-wide (Know why the police arrested the turkey?  They suspected it of fowl play... gobble gobble) hee-hee


I found the wording idea here and laughed so hard I think I coughed up a turkey feather...