Thanksgiving

'Twas a feast at our house this year.  Here is what we made, in no particular order.  In case those short urls stop working, here is the link to the full thing:
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2013/11/12/dining/essential-thanksgiving.html?_r=0

Pumpkin cheesecake
You know it.  Start with desert first!  Next time, don't need as much topping (only used half of it).

Bitty's make ahead gravy
http://nyti.ms/1dqzKEn  Turned out pretty well.  Seemed like it was going to be lackluster until we added the turkey drippings.

Dry-brined Turkey
A mix of the NY Times (http://nyti.ms/1dqtU5U) and Bon Appetit (Nov 2013, pg 23) (http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Citrus-and-Peppercorn-Dry-Brine-51198820).  Started with a 16 lb swanky turkey from whole foods.

• We made the rub like in the bon appetit, but put it on the night before, and then put it in a turkey bag in the fridge.
• The next morning we rinsed the brine off, dried it off and put it back in the fridge, uncovered for a couple hours.
• We took it out about an hour before cooking to let it warm up.

Now we sort of followed the times recipe.

• Heat oven to 450.
• Add cider (delicious!), wine, onion, garlic and bay leaves to pan.
• Put lemon and onion in turkey cavity.
• Roast 30 minutes, then lower heat to 325, cover with foil, and roast for ~3 hours

This turned out quite well.  Was juicy and flavorful meat.

Cornbread stuffing
Ok, so Rach's mom actually made this one.  But it was good enough to go here in the "what we made" section.  Again, Bon appetit, november 2013, pg 135. (http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/member/views/CORNBREAD-DRESSING-WITH-SAUSAGE-AND-FENNEL-52544291 This isn't the official one, but it seems like the same recipe).  I think she used half cornbread and half regular bread.  Yummy.

Brussels sprouts with pepitas
http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/recipe/maple-roasted-brussels-sprouts-pumpkin-seeds

These were pretty tasty.

Spinach Salad with Bosc Pears, Cranberries, Red Onion, and Toasted Hazelnuts
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/spinach-salad-with-bosc-pears-cranberries-red-onion-and-toasted-hazelnuts-355430