Dry-Brined Turkey: Day 2

Since its salt rub, the turkey has been hanging out in the fridge and it’s time for the next step. It’s an easy one.

Dry-Brined Turkey: Day 1

The first time I brined a turkey was after watching Alton Brown’s Good Eats: Romancing the Bird episode. It was good. Amazing, in fact. Brining improves turkey in ways that you can’t imagine, unless you’ve tried it yourself. The only problem is, for a turkey, you need a lot of brine. Plus, a container to submerge the turkey and a lot of fridge space. Although it gives you delicious results, it’s a bit of a pain. Sorry, Alton.

Enter Judy Rodger, the chef at Zuni cafe in San Fransisco. She is known for her dry-brined roast chicken recipe, which inspired the original recipe for dry-brined turkey. I’m not sure who took their inspiration from Chef Rodgers, but I first came across this method in an LA Times article a few years ago.

Grapefruit Olive Oil Bundt Cake

One of the great things about moving to Texas is the grapefruit. Seriously. Texas pink grapefruit are so delicious. They are fragrant and surprisingly sweet, as grapefruits go. Plus, they are inexpensive here. So, I end up buying them in 5 lb bags. I, um, I mean we, have been going through them so fast I may start buying the 20 lb bags. I think it's safe to say, I won't end up with scurvy in the near future.

Why I've Been MIA

I realize I haven’t posted in almost three months. I apologize for that.

Life has been pretty hectic. First of all, we moved to another state. Then once we arrived, we didn’t have a working range for three weeks. As you can imagine, that part was difficult for me. However, the real reason I haven’t had time to post is because I’ve been in full party planning mode.

Multigrain Sourdough Pancakes

When my Mother passed, I inherited one of her recipe boxes. My sister inherited the other. I’m not sure what’s in the box my sister has, but mine is a treasure chest of recipes. Every time I open it, I discover something new and exciting.

Some of the recipes I remember from my childhood. Several I don’t. Some of the recipes I would never make--Minute Rice 7 Seas Casserole, anyone? Others just beg to be made and many of these are actually my Grandmother’s recipes, including this one.

It's Alive! A Cheater's Guide to Sourdough

Hello, my name is Charise and I’m a cheat. When it comes to sourdough, at least.

Traditional sourdough starters use wild yeasts, captured from the air or from fruit, to leaven breads and baked goods. Making these traditional starters can be tricky. Depending on cleanliness, weather and location a traditional starter may--or may not--take off. It can be a frustrating process. You can buy true sourdough starters, but that’s just not my style (feel free to purchase one, if it’s yours.) If you know someone with a healthy starter, you could just ask for some and feed it. I don’t know any such creature. So, I cheat.

No-Knead Bread

I came late to the no-knead bread party. Several years late. It’s not that I didn’t believe that the method was worth trying; I just didn’t see the need for a shortcut in bread making. Kneading bread was a kind of meditation for me and I liked it.

Then the cutest baby boy on the planet--In my opinion, at least--entered into my life. Needless to say, becoming a Mom has left me with much less time in the kitchen. I still like to knead bread, but this recipe is a great way to have homemade bread when you have very little time on your hands.