Thanksgiving dinner 2018
This year's Thanksgiving feast, for the record:
Small scallops in Galician sauce
Lincet Délice de Bourgogne (soft cheese)
Sautéed duck liver
Roast duck with hazelnut-cranberry stuffing
Yam and apple casserole
Sautéed cauliflower with cumin
Stone and Skillet whole wheat rolls
Tomato and mushroom salad with balsamic vinaigrette
Francis Coppola Syrah 2016
Chocolate truffle cake
Expecting the duck to take at least an hour and a half, I checked its temperature at about an hour and a quarter to see how close it was, and was somewhat surprised to find that it was done, and actually past the target temperature. Perfectly OK for it to sit out of the oven while I cooked the cauliflower and made the gravy. The duck showed no signs of being overcooked; it was moist and flavorful, and the skin was properly crisped (I had followed the previous practice of pouring hot water over the breast an hour or so before putting it in the oven).
We had a bit of an adventure with the gravy. I had put the neck and giblets in a moderate (apparently too moderate) quantity of water in order to produce stock to use as a base, but despite my turning the flame way down once it had come to a boil and keeping it (as I supposed) tightly lidded, the liquid had all boiled away by the time I was ready to use it. So I had to fake the stock by dissolving some vegetable bouillon in a fresh set of water, but once I'd added the pan drippings and some flour it was perfectly good, if not particularly memorable, gravy.
We were expecting to have a mixed green salad (which would have included tomatoes and possibly mushrooms), but we had bought a lettuce mix that included romaine, and despite the fact that we'd already eaten a couple of salads from the same mix without ill effects, we decided to follow the CDC's advice and discard the remainder.
The Syrah was a good choice, my having taken warning from my own notes from two years ago suggesting that a Pinot Noir was a little too light.
The dessert was store-bought (Whole Foods) and quite good, and avoided the problem of having way too much leftover dessert.
A very nice meal. And we have leftovers.
Small scallops in Galician sauce
Lincet Délice de Bourgogne (soft cheese)
Sautéed duck liver
Roast duck with hazelnut-cranberry stuffing
Yam and apple casserole
Sautéed cauliflower with cumin
Stone and Skillet whole wheat rolls
Tomato and mushroom salad with balsamic vinaigrette
Francis Coppola Syrah 2016
Chocolate truffle cake
Expecting the duck to take at least an hour and a half, I checked its temperature at about an hour and a quarter to see how close it was, and was somewhat surprised to find that it was done, and actually past the target temperature. Perfectly OK for it to sit out of the oven while I cooked the cauliflower and made the gravy. The duck showed no signs of being overcooked; it was moist and flavorful, and the skin was properly crisped (I had followed the previous practice of pouring hot water over the breast an hour or so before putting it in the oven).
We had a bit of an adventure with the gravy. I had put the neck and giblets in a moderate (apparently too moderate) quantity of water in order to produce stock to use as a base, but despite my turning the flame way down once it had come to a boil and keeping it (as I supposed) tightly lidded, the liquid had all boiled away by the time I was ready to use it. So I had to fake the stock by dissolving some vegetable bouillon in a fresh set of water, but once I'd added the pan drippings and some flour it was perfectly good, if not particularly memorable, gravy.
We were expecting to have a mixed green salad (which would have included tomatoes and possibly mushrooms), but we had bought a lettuce mix that included romaine, and despite the fact that we'd already eaten a couple of salads from the same mix without ill effects, we decided to follow the CDC's advice and discard the remainder.
The Syrah was a good choice, my having taken warning from my own notes from two years ago suggesting that a Pinot Noir was a little too light.
The dessert was store-bought (Whole Foods) and quite good, and avoided the problem of having way too much leftover dessert.
A very nice meal. And we have leftovers.