Rick Rodgers - Thanksgiving 101: Celebrate Americas Favorite Holiday With Americas Thanksgiving Expert

Introduction
Talking Turkey

Appetizers and Beverages
Just a Little Something to Keep the Edge Off

Soups and Salads
Whos on First?

Turkey and Friends
The Main Event

Stuffings and Dressings
The Stuff That Dressings Are Made Of

Side Dishes
And the Award for the Best Supporting Side Dish Goes to

Yeast and Quick Breads
Rising to the Occasion

Desserts
How Many Ways Can You Say Pumpkin?

Leftovers
Theres Got to Be a Morning After

This book was born from my Thanksgiving cooking class, which I have taught from Washington to Florida every autumn for over fifteen years. When the book was first published, new methods of roasting turkeys, such as brining, high-temperature roasting, and deep-frying, were being introduced. A lot can change in ten years, both in the publics taste and the way that an author might approach a recipe. Organic turkeys were not commonly available, and heritage turkeys were hardly sold at all. This new edition reflects these changes, and the reader will find some tweaks, adjustments, and new approaches along the way, all developed from continued testing, tasting, and observation. Youll also see some recipes that have become new favorites. On the other hand, other well-established Thanksgiving recipes and traditions have been left alone, and I hope that they serve to bring back happy memories of great holiday meals.

In order to keep up with creating new recipes for my cooking classes, I have to work well ahead of my annual tour. I have prepared many a Thanksgiving meal in Julyoften in other peoples kitchens. Harriet Bell tops this list of people who have happily lent me their kitchens and taste buds. She was the editor of many of my books, and shes been a great friend over many years, too. And we shared the fun of deep-frying a turkey togethera bonding experience if ever there was one. Steven and Cynthia Stahl and Ron Dier were always generous with their kitchens, friendships, and dishwashing talents during the many years of wonderful Thanksgivings weve shared. And, of course, my parents, Dick and Eleanor Rodgers, who produce a flawless Thanksgiving year after year, and showed me how fun and easy it can be.

Many cooking schools throughout the country allowed me to hone my Thanksgiving dinner-making skills. Thanks to Adventures in Cooking (Wayne, New Jersey, with a special hug to owner Arlene Ward and my longstanding assistants, Maria and Paul Lee), The Silo (New Milford, Connecticut, and The Rickettes, Barbara, Caryl, Cynthia, Lauren, and Ann), Draegers Markets (San Mateo and Menlo Park, California), Lets Get Cookin (Westlake Village, California, with extra appreciation to owner Phyllis Vacarelli and my sous-chef there, JoAnn Hecht), Sur La Table (many locations nationwide), Dierbergs School of Cooking (St. Louis, Missouri), Krogers Markets (various locations in Georgia and Florida), Cook n Tell (Colts Neck, New Jersey), Classic Recipes (Westfield, New Jersey), Kings Markets (Short Hills, New Jersey), A Southern Season (Chapel Hill, North Carolina), Cooks of Crocus Hill (Edina, Minneapolis), In Good Taste (Portland, Oregon, owned by the ever-loyal Barb Dawson), Ramekins (Sonoma, California, with an extra helping of thanks to Bob Nemerovski and Lisa Lavagetto, and Central Market (various locations in Texas). And while I certainly cant list all of my students by name, there are special ones who always show up, year after year, to taste and collect the current recipes, and I am especially thankful for their loyalty and appetite.

Susan Wyler, cookbook editor and friend, encouraged my affection for turkey and stuffing by providing projects on those subjects that helped establish me as the expert on Things Thanksgiving. The first edition of this book was vastly improved by the input of my friend and colleague Judith Sutton.

For researching assistance and permission to use their companies products and recipes, I am grateful to: Linda Compton (Ocean Spray Cranberries), Ann Marie Murray (Campbell Soup Company), Roz OHearn (Nestl USA/Libbys Pumpkin), and Cynthia Giorgio (General Foods/Jell-O and Kraft Philadelphia cream cheese). Thanks to Valerie Tully of the National Turkey Federation for the turkey industry statistics and information. For the history of American food companies and eating habits, two books proved invaluable: James Tragers The Food Chronology (Henry Holt, 1995) and Jean Andersons The American Century Cookbook (Clarkson Potter, 1997).

Thanks to Sonia Greenbaum, copy editor, and Ann Cahn, production editor. At HarperCollins, my longtime publishing home, thanks for the continued support of Michael Morrison, David Sweeney, Gail Winston, and Sarah Whitman-Salkin.

In my life, very little would get done if it werent for Diane Kniss. Her helpfulness and diligence are combined with a sense of humor that makes her the kind of co-worker that makes you want to get to work so you can try to top yesterdays laughs. As you know, Thanksgiving makes for a lot of dishwashing, but Diane never complains. Thanks, as always, to my agent and dear friend of many years, Susan Ginsburg, and her lovely and diligent assistant, Emily Scardino. Finally, Thanksgiving dinner is never better than when I share the table with my partner, Patrick Fisher, who has eaten almost as many turkeys as I have.

O ver the last fifteen years, I have prepared scores of Thanksgiving dinners for thousands of people. Turkey addict? Pumpkin pie groupie? A victim of gravy obsession syndrome? Yes, but there is a better reason. I travel all over the country teaching a cooking class called Thanksgiving 101. Now everything I teach in my classes is in this book, with my favorite recipes, Make ahead tips, anecdotes, organization secrets, and insights into what makes this holiday so special.

How did I become a Thanksgiving guru? In 1985, I created a catering company, Cuisine Amricaine, and specialized in cooking regional American foods. And what is more American than Thanksgiving dinner? My customers loved my holiday spreads. In 1990, when one of the East Coasts largest poultry producers was looking for a media spokesperson to represent their turkey products, they came to me. I learned everything there was to know about turkey, spending lots of time on turkey farms and in the kitchen, and wrote my first cookbook on the subject.

Since then, I have traveled all over the country teaching Thanksgiving cooking classes and making television and radio appearances on how to have the perfect Thanksgiving meal. Everyone, from friends to television producers, now calls me Mr. Thanksgiving or The Turkey Meister.

One of the best things about my work as a cooking teacher is that I get personal contact with our countrys home cooksI am not a restaurant chef who is out of touch with how people actually cook. No matter where I go, from Seattle to Miami, I ask my students about their personal Thanksgiving dishes and customs. First, Thanksgiving 101 is a collection of these favorite recipeseven if some of them start with a can of soup or a box of Jell-O. Some of Thanksgivings most cherished recipes are brand-name specific. I call these Classic Recipes, and they include some background on how they rose to the top to become holiday icons.

We all know the generic recipes that form the backbone of the quintessential Thanksgiving dinner. Mashed potatoes, gravy, piecrust, and stuffing all fit into this category. With practice, these dishes become simple, but they can intimidate novices and elude practiced cooks looking for the perfect version. These recipes are labeled 101, and if they seem long, its because I have included extra details that even old hands can learn from.