Thanksgiving Mishaps!

[BucknellAlum]

At 9:20 am I hit my first snag of the day. I was assembling the stuffing (I confess to not using my own bread cubes) by dumping a bag of seasoned cubes into the bowl and then a bag of soft bread cubes in the bowl. Start to stir them a bit when I notice that half of the soft cubes are MOLDY! They are a greenish hue

I start to pick out the moldy ones and then realize it would take all morning. Fortunately DH has time to run to the store and buy new bags of bread cubes. (And just yesterday I thought it was not fair to the employees that the grocery store was open on Thanksgiving!)

I hope that is my last snag. How about you? Any unexpected "oops" moments?

[Angelina]

None here yet, and probably won't be since I am only making the cranberry sauce, but something is definitely mishap-ing downstairs!

My landlady's fire alarm is going off! I don't smell anything burning yet, and I can hear them talking downstairs. But I am ready to grab my vegan puff pastry roast and make a run for it!

[Hammster]

Nothing significant so far. I lost 2 egg whites while peeling a dozen hard cooked eggs.

[wintersummer]

Originally Posted by BucknellAlum

Fortunately DH has time to run to the store and buy new bags of bread cubes. (And just yesterday I thought it was not fair to the employees that the grocery store was open on Thanksgiving!)

I feel the same way! I've always felt really bad employees had to work on Thanksgiving, but I had to make another trip to store this morning, in attempt to find some sage. Stores had been out last 2 days. I got some - but it was the last package! Store (Whole Foods) was almost empty at 8 a.m. - only 6 cars in parking lot.

No major mishaps. The dressing recipe I used called for sourdough bread...I'm not sure if it's going to be a winner.

[ADM]

Originally Posted by wintersummer

I feel the same way! I've always felt really bad employees had to work on Thanksgiving.

In some stores, the employees who work on holidays get triple time!

[Peweh]

Last night I was making fresh cranberry sauce and it boiled over. Not a major mishap since I was bringing it to my mom's where everyone eats canned sauce anyway... but can I just say what a PAIN to clean up!!

[vbak]

I was going to crack the eggs into the stuffing and then decided to crack thenm into a bowl first so I could beat them up. Luckily I canged my mind because the first egg was all bloody! Thar has not happened for decades.

[Trishinomaha]

Originally Posted by vbak

I was going to crack the eggs into the stuffing and then decided to crack thenm into a bowl first so I could beat them up. Luckily I canged my mind because the first egg was all bloody! Thar has not happened for decades.

My mom taught me to do this years ago. DH thinks I'm nuts because I don't just crack an egg into what ever I'm making. I always use a custard cup to break each egg in before adding. Like you said, it happens once in blue moon but it does still happen.

I decided to do stuffing in the crock pot just this morning. I am running out of appliance space! Dinner is not till 6 . The bird is warming up and will go in the oven soon.

[LakeMartinGal]

I found a dead bug in the apple juice I'm mulling... I'm sure the boiling will take care of it.

[Trishinomaha]

Originally Posted by LakeMartinGal

I found a dead bug in the apple juice I'm mulling... I'm sure the boiling will take care of it.

The juice or the bug? Just kidding....

[mkc]

I was setting up our Big Green Egg and realized I completely forgot about buying a disposable roasting pan (my regular roasting pans don't fit).

We were definitely not going to the store and I really wanted to use the Egg rather than the oven.

Thank goodness it's only an 11 pound turkey. I am using a wide,somewhat shallow Calphalon 2-handled pan (not sure what it's for) with a vertical roaster designed for a chicken. The bird just barely fits in the dome that way!

Michelle

[kathyann]

We were just finishing the last bite of dinner when I realized that BOTH kinds of cranberry sauce (homemade for me and canned/jellied blech for my mom!!) were still sitting in the fridge!! Guess the sandwiches will taste extra special with lots of cranberry on them!!

[ChristyMarie]

Originally Posted by Trishinomaha

My mom taught me to do this years ago. DH thinks I'm nuts because I don't just crack an egg into what ever I'm making. I always use a custard cup to break each egg in before adding. Like you said, it happens once in blue moon but it does still happen.

Or when an eggshell cracks and you get a bit in with the egg. I also never measure over the bowl I'm using, always to the side.

So far the salmon spread I bought said "use by 11/19." I bought it on the 22nd. That will be returned.

Haven't cut into my pie yet *crossing fingers*

[Gecko]

So far the only thing is that I forgot to measure the onions before putting them in the cornbread dressing. I had chopped one onion so I guess it was an OK measurement. It was kind of funny though, because I was washing up everything from prep this morning and I went to wash the measuring cup and realized it wasn't dirty. I said to myself "well I guess you forgot to use this didn't you? I hope that the dressing turns out OK, but really you should remember to measure so people will think it tastes good". My DD#3 walked in and said "mom, are you talking to yourself?" and she started laughing. I told her that I was getting old and this was what I did to remind myself for next time I make stuffing.

[sneezles]

Yesterday's mishaps have been mentioned on other threads so on with today's!

While getting the giblets ready to make the stock I nearly sliced through my thumb...I managed to slice through the nail about 1/2 inch from the tip of the thumb. Still pretty sensitive and painful will just have to be very careful not to rip it while it's still on the nail bed...stupid knife!

Had to bake the biscuits in the toaster oven where the thermostat isn't reliable so the the tops browned a bit too much but still tasty just not pretty.

Potatoes turned to glue immediately after starting the KA...the boys ate them without complaint but I didn't eve put any on my plate. The mixer malfunctioned while using and I have only had it back 10 days so will be talking to KA again.

We only had the pecan pie and it tastes great as long as you don't eat the top edge of the crust! Too full to try the pumpkin but will after tonight's turkey sandwich!

[Gecko]

Originally Posted by sneezles

Yesterday's mishaps have been mentioned on other threads so on with today's!

While getting the giblets ready to make the stock I nearly sliced through my thumb...I managed to slice through the nail about 1/2 inch from the tip of the thumb. Still pretty sensitive and painful will just have to be very careful not to rip it while it's still on the nail bed...stupid knife!

Oh sneezles, ouch! You're right - stupid knife, it really should know the difference between giblets and thumb . I am glad that it wasn't any worse.

[BucknellAlum]

The rest of the day went well, but I forgot to add the goat cheese to the autumn salad and I really missed it.

[Andrea_2]

I had trouble with a pumpkin bisque recipe that I had been quite excited to try. I should've listened to myself when I thought the recipe called for too much stock and that it would be too watery. Thankfully, I started the recipe early this morning, because it took 8(!) hours for it to cook down to bisque consistency. The recipe claimed it would be ready in 30 minutes. Yeah right... Ended up GREAT in the end though!

I decided to try making a labor intensive gravy, and when I reached the stage of straining it into a bowl, the bowl tipped over and I lost almost all of it.

The biggest mishap went to the dessert category though. My friend said she'd bring dessert, but when she got here she said that the pie she was making failed, so she brought some ice cream and praline sauce instead. She went to warm the praline sauce in the microwave though and heated it too long and it caught fire. She then grabbed the bowl out of the microwave, but a hole had burnt through the bottom and she ended up with severe burns on her hands.

[vbak]

The turkey was done waay sooner than I anticipated-four hrs. for a stuffed 24 lber. I thought great I ccan wrap the bird up in towels to keep warm and i can make the gravy ahead and not when people are walking in. We were supposed to eat t 5, an at 5:20 I realized i forgot to put the pan of dressing into the oven. We ate at 6. They know Mom can't tell time.

Susan, your finger description makes my stomach hurt. Andrea, 8?? hours to cook the soup down? Cripes!

[JHaris]

Originally Posted by vbak

I was going to crack the eggs into the stuffing and then decided to crack thenm into a bowl first so I could beat them up. Luckily I canged my mind because the first egg was all bloody! Thar has not happened for decades.

You are not the only one. Years ago I learned the hard way to always crack an egg into a separate bowl like a custard cup. I cracked an egg after doing several into my receipe and it was decidely a rotten egg! I had to take a break from cooking since I was so grossed out. Needless to say the whole recipe was put in the trash and out to the garbage can. The smell was horrible.

[Laurielee]

No cookng mishaps, but we were relaxing after dinner and heard a loud crash in the kitchen, I ran in and there is my apple pie on the floor, broken glass everywhere, my dog knocked it off the counter


I was like darn, why couldnt it have the pumpkin pie ( I hate pumpkin pie)

Laurie

[bekki]

I'm beyond embarrassed to admit this on a cooking board, but here you go. I have 1 year old twins and neither the time nor energy to prepare a whole T-Day dinner (which just happens to be my favorite meal of the year). We have no family nearby and all of our friends are out of town, so we were left to our own devices.

Anyway, I ordered a dinner from a local upscale market. I was NOT paying attention when I was ordering (darn kids), and so when the guys asked what extras I wanted, I asked for cranberry sauce, gravy and sweet potatoes, assuming making Stove Top was within my reach, that would cover all of our bases.

Except, I'm a MORON and didn't realize, duh, I'm ordering a dinner that comes with everything, and I didn't need any extra (I think I understood "extras" as what sides I wanted). Anyway, I now have more gravy and cranberry sauce and sweet potato cassarole then I could ever imagine. I think it will all freeze pretty well, but I honestly do not know what I was thinking!

[sneezles]

Originally Posted by vbak

the first egg was all bloody!

Originally Posted by JHaris

it was decidely a rotten egg!

Rotten egg is one thing but an egg with blood isn't bad and if it's going into something I'd have used it

[Gail]

NOT my finest hour.

It started out on Monday when I opted to make pumpkin bread--something I've made dozens and dozens of times. As I was cleaning up the kitchen, I mentioned to my husband what a happy loaf it was. His reply: Is it supposed to be sunken in the center?

!!!!!

I thought, however, that my luck had taken a turn for the better when I made my pies. Both were beautiful and had the courtesy not to bubble all over my oven. This was encouraging. Moreover, I was actually organized for a change.

In an effort to save time, I made potatoes the night before. When I tasted them, I deemed them disgusting. Considering that they were awful fresh, I didn't see them improving after a night in the fridge. So, my husband went out Thanksgiving morning to buy more potatoes and I started again. Those were fine.

Those were the small blunders. Now comes the big stuff. I confess that I've never really known where the "thickest part of the thigh" is. It sure would've been smart for me to Google a photo online. Unfortunately, I didn't think of this until the turkey had been cooking two hours. Needless to say, I was smart enough to realize that turkeys do not cook in two hours, no matter what the ill-placed probe tries to tell me. Knowing this was a dumb thing to do, I MOVED the probe after doing my darnedest to sear the site of the probe (Mistake One). I then put the turkey back in oven and went about my merry way. Guests were due at 4-4:30. I was aiming for dinner on the table at five. OK.

When the buzzer on the lower oven went off (sweet potatoes) I checked inside and turned oven down to "warm." Or anyway, I thought I did. (Mistake Number Two) Apparently, it was the turkey (!!) This meant that for the next half hour or so, the poor, mishandled turkey was struggling to come to the proper internal temperature at a temperature which was far too low.

Turkey beeped that it was ready around 4:15, which gave me time to move it to rest in another location while I made gravy. To my horror (and I hadn't yet put two and two together at this point) the onions at bottom of pan (and drippings) were almost completely burnt! I scavenged through what I had to find usable, did my usual gravy prep and tasted. EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEWWWW. Dreadful. This recipe is all about the gravy. If the gravy is ruined, Game Over.

I am GUESSING I must've "eewed" a bit loudly, because suddenly everyone was in the kitchen wearing expressions of great concern. My mother wanted to start over (not having tasted it) my cousin suggested adding more liquid and my husband declared it was fine and he would eat it. (My son pointed out that like Mikey, his father will eat ANYTHING.) I added both water and half-and-half to gravy, decided it was palatable if not wonderful and moved on to the rest of the meal.

Then I saw the turkey (my husband was slicing it). Does the word Sahara or Gobi mean anything? I have made this recipe quite successfully numerous times. I KNOW how to make turkey and gravy and generally do it quite well. Somehow I don't think my cousin believed me...

You know you didn't do well when the topic of discussion at the table becomes "what-went-wrong-with-the-gravy" and your mother wants you to tell your cousin what you did so he can diagnose it because he is a "gourmet cook" (a hated term-- I should probably point out-- that she normally uses to describe me to others) I KNOW what went wrong; I don't NEED to set up a little booth at the table and confess my sins. Nope. Just want to crawl under the table, thank-you-very-much.

Despite the fact that the stuffing, salad, two types of veggies, potatoes, sweet potatoes, cranberries and pies were all quite good, if the turkey and gravy aren't up to snuff, the dinner is a disaster. Knowing what happened and why didn't make it any easier to accept ; I can only say that having slept 13 hours afterward suggests I was likely a wee bit exhausted and off my game plan...

[Julzer]

I made Overnight Crockpot Stuffing (it was perfect when I turned off the slow cooker). Then I took it to my MIL's and kept it on low until we ate (with the lid on---which steamed it). It looked like Alpo when it was time to eat. I even scraped it into a pan and put in oven to dry out....nope, still Alpo. It had a great taste but the texture wasn't very desirable.