i wanted to make this year's Thanksgiving a special one so my husband and i decided to cook our own turkey but quite apprehensive at first because i haven't done it before. i heard a lot of failures when they tried cooking their own but Alton Brown made me confident to try it. i watched his how-to video through foodnetwork site and absorbed his step by step method to make sure i wont fail this. the Nicolaisens joined us to celebrate the thanksgiving by the way. i started the preparation a day before the thanksgiving by brining the 10 lb turkey. i followed the measurement for the brine ingredients and transferred the whole thing in the bucket to totally soak the bird. i let it stand overnight and the day of thanksgiving i started baking around 10am after i finished cooking my beef stew (i so love!)... baked the bird for almost three hours until the bird reached 161'F. after the bird is done, i baked the green bean casserole and the whole wheat pecan bread.
i waited and yes a bit terrified for the outcome of turkey so i made sure there are beef stew and green bean casserole so there will main course to serve in case the turkey will fail. so three hours have passed, checked the bird's temperature and took it out from the oven. visually it passed meaning it has a golden but not burned color... i sliced some from leg portion and ... my! it's perfect!...perfectly cooked, savory, moist and tasty... the brine did the wonder.
my husband carved the turkey and everyone has some in our plate topped with gravy that Henrik made himself in the last minute. everyone enjoyed the bird!
and me... of course was feeling good, i call it the first-timer's luck. i'd like to share some tips to store the left-over food because definitely there will be a lot, which i love for my turkey panini. what i did is took out the bones of turkey so it will fit with pyrex container. i baked the green bean casserole with pyrex pan then serve with it too and stored also with it. investing on pyrex is really a helpful and convenient way since you can warm those in the oven and directly serve in the table since it's presentable as well. after the gathering, just place its cover and store in the fridge, easy!... we got a set from costco for $29 and has variety of sizes with corresponding lids, it has something for pie & bread pan too!. the set is called bake and store since all are oven and microwave safe.
i hope everyone had a nice thanksgiving... personally, this is a very good year for me. the very reason for me to be grateful!
it was Twilight the movie that started it all... my going gaga to the four series of Stephenie Meyer's book. i was able to watch Twilight "by accident", it was last December of 2008 when i had those nothing-to-do moments and that was when my husband was in east coast for a short project in New Jersey. so, i decided to watch a movie and i believe that was the second week of showing in theaters so there's no queue at all, just a normal flow but low and behold the room is still full!... i fell in love with the story, maybe because it was a stress-free movie and the kind of love story that i know is impossible... it made me get away from real world even for awhile. if others can get this feeling out of meditation and yoga; however, this was my way.
as soon as i got out of the theater, i went straight to Borders which is strategically located below the theater level! since i was looking forward for the sequel i bought the second book- New Moon. After reading New Moon, i just develop a thirst to finish the rest of the series which i didn't have yet until my husband gifted me a complete series in hard-bound copy!... it was such a delight and something i consider collectible and maybe my future daughter will gladly read.
i read all four books in a matter of seven days i believe, got engrossed every night that my hubby have to scold me to sleep. yesterday, was the first day of New Moon, i watched for 2:45 show, luckily no queue yet but as expected it's full!. i was happy with the movie but i must say that Taylor acts well that Robert but anyways this is not an Indie movie that you need to be objective about the quality or about the actors/actresses. this is meant to be a fun movie, an entertaining movie. when i got out of the theater, there!.... 4 different queues for various time schedule!. it was crazy! i just am glad i was not able to fall in line!. getting an early time is the wise decision. there's only one thing that i can't understand in theaters, the pricey popcorn and soda!... hell! it's too much!.. so i brought my own chips.
looking forward for Eclipse, this is actually my favorite book amongst the four series. since Edward proposed already in New Moon... yes! there will be a honey moon!
i got a chance to see the live show of Jay Leno yesterday, 11-05. it was in studio 11 of NBC vicinity in Burbank. oh boy!... i sure did enjoy every bit of experience and hey!... me and my hubby were seated in center isle, very close to the stage where we got a privilege to high five Jay at the beginning of the show. shallow?... not for me!
my hubby and i are avid fan of Jay, it's usually the last show we watch before hitting the sack. i admire him as a comedian, his marriage for 29 years, his unsullied reputation (hopefully he won't follow the footstep of David Letterman's scandal). so we patiently waited for us to get in the studio, it was organized i must say. 'til we passed the security check and as we were walking to the seats, one of the crews directed us to the front center area, lovely!.
while waiting to start the show, Jay just popped out from back stage wearing a casual dress and he came without the air of arrogance nor star attitude at all. he welcomed everyone and those who want to ask something or take a picture with him were given a chance. i was not that bold to do it but will definitely be next time.
i got disappointed with Chelsea Handler although she's really funny, her off camera persona is not at all admirable, exactly opposite of what i saw with Jay. He is a good man on and off camera. no wonder this man was able to stay in his stature of success and very much love by many. he deserve every bit of his success and i'm glad he still got a show, he's a gem amongst the NBC talent.
the comic part really caught my attention, the stand-up comedian's name is Sebastian Maniscalco... he is effectively a very good comic, his facial expression, his actuation and script are indeed funny. i can't stop laughing all throughout his skit. i am interested to watch his future shows because somehow i find other comedians quite corny.
being an audience with Jay Leno's show is worth an experience. he ought to be called a Star. i hope his show will last!
