NanaK, first off I LOLed at your "candy shot". Didn't know you were swinging from chandeliers too. Or maybe dancing on the bar like Punk? LOL. You are raising turkeys it looks like! What a wonderful collection you have going. Those bullion cups are really lovely. And I am definitely liking that pretty tablecloth as well. Gosh I remember Woolworths and how I loved shopping there. Especially as a child and my parents would let me buy a china horse or dog when we went. 25 Cents each. LOL. I think I miss those days! Hugs and Happy Thanksgiving, Karen

We fed 20 people this year, plus another 8 grazers who showed up at my place because we're more fun than their Republican relatives. I roasted a 24 pound turkey and a 10 pound ham side by side in the Bluestar since neither would fit in the speed oven. For the last hour of roasting I moved the meat out to the outdoors grill so we could load up the indoors oven with homemade rolls, all the dressing, sweet potatoes, etc. I baked all the pies the day before, btw, and was very glad to have them all ready and not needing to be fussed with on T-Day. I was sort of in a hurry this year and just bought the biggest sale bird I could find, got it home and discovered it was a big old tom and had been pre-brined/injected/whatever. I wasn't too happy about it, but I did like the price. No matter. This year I tried a bit of a new strategy. No aluminum foil, bird in a roasting pan with a rack, aromatics (1 apple, one orange, each quartered, 5 or so celery ribs, sprigs of fresh thyme and rosemary) stuffed very loosely in the cavity. I coated the skin with olive oil, then salted and peppered the exterior, set the oven to 325ú, poured a pint of low sodium chicken stock in the bottom of the roasting pan and just left the bird alone to cook. I used a thermometer shooting for 175ú at the deep thigh then a 30 minute rest before carving. Over the course of cooking I ended up adding about 1 more pint of broth and then one pint of water. I did not baste the bird at all. There is no need for it and its a good way to get your fingers burned. All I wanted was to make sure the liquid in the bottom of the roaster did not evaporate and burn. When that bird was done it was most outstanding. My wife, the gravy master, did not even use any additional water for the gravy. She premixed the flour in a bit of water and slowly worked it in to the ample liquid remaining in the bottom of the roaster. The gravy brought tears to our eyes. It was intensely flavored, better than any I have ever had. I served a small oyster stuffing for the elect in the assemblage who like the wonderful creatures and we happy few sort of disappeared into nirvana there with our turkey and dressing and gravy plus ham.

DO NOT make more gravy with the stock! It sounds like you have two problems. Leftover stock and a lot of leftover gravy. Reduce some of the stock, defat it and freeze it in small portions. It is a good addition to any pork item. A little stock could be added to a pork roast along with whatever vegetables you are cooking with it. It would also make a great addition to a parsnip/leek bread pudding recipe I have. I will need to find and post that recipe. I love green beans cooked in turkey stock that has been reduced to a glaze. The gravy can be frozen in small portions for pot pies. It can also be used for a quick meal with a rotisserie chicken, sliced and served as an open faced sandwich. Turkey gravy would also be good drizzled over a stuffed pork chop. And who says a baked potato needs butter and sour cream? Fluff up the potato still in the skin and whip in a little turkey gravy. On a side note ..... how is your friend that you were making soups for? Teresa

Lunchlady, like chi83 said, the Quorn brand is vegetarian but NOT vegan. A strict vegan would absolutely not eat it. But Tofurkey products are vegan, and while I don't think it's quite as good, it could be spiced up with a good vegan gravy. These, and other brands would be found in any health food store or like chi said, Whole Foods. A lot of mainstream grocery stores now have a section of fake meat, usually one in the freezer aisle (where they would have breakfast "sausages", gardenburgers, etc), and one section that has the fake hot dogs and sandwich "meats". The tofurkey products would be in the freezer section. Here is a link that might be useful: tofurkey info