How to Cook a Turkey

Whether you're a turkey beginner or an old pro, How to Cook a Turkey has something to serve. Foolproof techniques and time-tested tips will make your bird go more smoothly and spare you time. Plus the turkey 911 section will put almost any fowl issue to right.

In addition to the main course, recipes for sensational stuffings, sides, soups, salads, desserts and appetizers are ready to round out the meal. Most whip together with incredibly little fuss - freeing you for the festivities!

Let's talk turkey, including 100 recipes...

• All the basics - Which bird to buy (Fresh? Natural? Premium?)...how big a bird...how big the pan...to brine or not to...why buy an extra breast... trussing... basting...making sure the turkey is done...more
• Traditional roast turkey and turkeys with a twist, like Maple-Bacon Glazed with Bourbon Gravy
• Stuffings that nearly steal the limelight...Cornbread Pecan, Apples, Bacon & Caramelized Onion, Sauerkraut & Rye Bread, more
• Sides certain to start new traditions - pass the Purée of Yukon Gold Potatoes with Parmesan and Cranberry-Pear Salsa, please!
• Festive starters (Herb-Marinated Olives with Fennel & Orange Zest, Wild Rice & Mushroom Soup with Almonds, much more) and fitting finishes (new takes on perennially favorite pies plus cakes, crisps, more)
• Step-by-step techniques...follow the pictures to carve gracefully, make sublime gravies, roll out pie crust like a pro, more
• Turkey riddles solved at last! What exactly are giblets anyway? And when is stuffing dressing?

"We promise you not only your most successful but your sanest Thanksgiving ever. Each of us has contributed tips, techniques and secrets gleaned from first-hand experience not only in our test kitchens but in the real proving ground for our skills and nerves...our home kitchens! Happy cooking and eating," - The Editors of Fine Cooking

How to Survive Thanksgiving (or Any Other Holiday) 2
Appetizers 10
Soups, Salads & Cranberry Sauce 26
Turkey, Stuffing & Gravy 45
Vegetables 96
Potatoes & Grains 122
Pies & Tarts 144
Desserts 176
Continuing the Feast 210
Contributors 228
Index 230

How to survive Thanksgiving (or any other holiday)
Thanksgiving can be such a paradox: Our goal is to create a warm family gathering, full of relaxed conversation around a beautifully laid table of delectable dishes. The reality is sometimes slightly less than ideal- a stressed-out cook, a messy kitchen, and food that's perhaps not always prepared to its best advantage. Our attempts to make the holiday live up to its reputation often mean we try to do too much (and for a new cook, simply roasting a turkey may seem like too much).

But we all know cooks for whom the kitchen at Thanksgiving is like a playground: They turn out a stunning spread with a smile on their faces and not a hair--or a sweet potato--out of place. Their secret to success is a combination of smart choices and good planning. That same confidence and competence will be yours, too, with help from this book. Over the years at Fine Cooking we've worked with the best chefs, cookbook writers, and cooking teachers in the country, and they've generously shared their methods and advice. Our test kitchen has rigorously tested the recipes and evaluated the techniques, and the best of all that expertise is gathered into the following chapters.