Thanksgiving...Swiss style
Last Thanksgiving we were invited to join the Greenlee family's Thanksgiving celebration. At a time when we knew so few people, it was very nice to be included. While in the states in September, I suggested to Bob that we host a Thanksgiving celebration this year and he agreed. As no one has off on Thanksgiving Day, since it's not a Swiss holiday, we will celebrate on Saturday.
Now turkeys are not common in the grocery stores, but Vreni Greenlee had been able to purchase one and so I began to ask around how to go about ordering one, etc. As it got closer to Thanksgiving time, I noticed that the Aldi always had large turkey breasts in stock. My oven here is very small. I was concerned about having room for anything other than a turkey, if I bought one large enough to feed a group. But turkey breasts don't take up as much room and have more meat per square inch. But how do you cook a breast by itself and keep it moist? Especially when the only kind you can buy are without the skin?
So I consulted my favorite cookbook. Google. :-) I came across a recipe from Rachael Ray, that sounded delicious, but did call for the skin to still be on the turkey. I experimented. By doubling the herb coating, I was able to provide a "seal" for the turkey and the result was extremely moist and very tasty turkey. (I must confess. I'm not real fond of turkey, so it was a pleasant surprise to enjoy the taste.)
Today while at the store for some ingredients that I needed for dinner, I noticed that the Coop (local grocery chain) had whole fresh turkeys in the meat section. 3 of them. I checked the price. Twice. The largest one, a 9 kg (or about 20 lb), was a mere Sf 101. At the current exchange rate, that's $85. Or $4.25 a lb.
Glad I went with the turkey breasts. Happy Thanksgiving!
Now turkeys are not common in the grocery stores, but Vreni Greenlee had been able to purchase one and so I began to ask around how to go about ordering one, etc. As it got closer to Thanksgiving time, I noticed that the Aldi always had large turkey breasts in stock. My oven here is very small. I was concerned about having room for anything other than a turkey, if I bought one large enough to feed a group. But turkey breasts don't take up as much room and have more meat per square inch. But how do you cook a breast by itself and keep it moist? Especially when the only kind you can buy are without the skin?
So I consulted my favorite cookbook. Google. :-) I came across a recipe from Rachael Ray, that sounded delicious, but did call for the skin to still be on the turkey. I experimented. By doubling the herb coating, I was able to provide a "seal" for the turkey and the result was extremely moist and very tasty turkey. (I must confess. I'm not real fond of turkey, so it was a pleasant surprise to enjoy the taste.)
Today while at the store for some ingredients that I needed for dinner, I noticed that the Coop (local grocery chain) had whole fresh turkeys in the meat section. 3 of them. I checked the price. Twice. The largest one, a 9 kg (or about 20 lb), was a mere Sf 101. At the current exchange rate, that's $85. Or $4.25 a lb.
Glad I went with the turkey breasts. Happy Thanksgiving!
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