The wind is howling outside, winter is near, and sun is streaming through the windows. That's California for you. We are grateful for putting up the G-in-a-B a month or so ago. It is a tube metal A-frame structure with vinyl sheeting to house the tractor and riding mower, and smaller equipment that could stay out but is better off protected. More cats arrived @ the place next door but we haven't seen them since the first few days. We are toying with a feral of our own now that we know the dogs are receptive and it seems so lonesome still without Yolo.
Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday in a lot of ways. Sometimes we've got a houseful, sometimes not; sometimes we're home, sometimes not. It's an in-the-moment kind of holiday and embracing whatever comes. So when we're home, it's bird and dressing, masheds and gravy, fresh cranberry, some type of pasta, a bunch of veggies, a dessert, and rolls.
We didn't have fresh apricots on hand for the fresh cranberry and improvised with figs from the freezer and brandied apples from the pantry. The marinated tray had some green beans and pepperoncini from the garden. The pasta had all garden sauce and seasonings, which was fun. The bird was all natural, but previously frozen ... so what does that make it ... not quite fresh but ? The Hubs brined it, and we had enough room to put both kinds of stuffing -- my Aunt Myrt's famed bread sage (or garden sage), and Randy's savory cornbread.
Almond Roca was new, and it was easy. It is basically salted caramel beyond the soft ball stage with chocolate & chopped roasted almonds piled on. We tried a pumpkin pie fudge, with fresh pumpkin from last year that had been pureed and frozen. Fudge is too rich and sweet, and this was too, so the next batch will be half the sugar for the flavors to balance out. I think it might be a keeper with some quantity adjustments.
Fall is salted caramel and apple season, and just for fun we crushed a small piece of AR in a jar of cooling caramel and that opened up a whole new world. Next year will probably be full of yummy experiments with natural sugar substitutes for our sugar sensitive friends & fam, and developing a line of fresh caramel flavors. And now that hearts are broken with marshmallow, who knows what else. The herb garden is now picked clean and we're using the oven as a dehydrator. Small dehydrators work and so do hooks in the garage, but we are up against holiday giving ideas and there is a lot to do. We set a 175 oven with 6 trays of herbs in a single layer, and left the doors cracked open so it dehydrates and not bakes. We rotated often and the herbs crumbled and were easy to clean. Extra treat: small mason jars at the Dollar Tree - two for a buck - that are just the right size.
The kids did the white tornado in the kitchen, and then we all had a nice big piece of Madelyn's homemade apple pie, before some heading off and some playing Yahtzee until the carbs took hold. The day ended too soon, like always. So Black Friday is a blogging day, chatting with friends, drinking coffee late into the afternoon, and hanging with the Hubs&Co. I was happy to see our beautiful new stove in action. And there's still a full weekend before it's back to work.
Marshmallow Fluff
2 egg whites at room temp
1/4 t. cream of tartar
(IN A STAND MIXER, beat on medium and high until soft peaks form. Set aside)
3/4 c granular sugar
1/2 c. light corn syrup (we used a little less)
1/4 c water
pinch of salt
(COMBINE in small saucepan over med heat, bring to boil stirring often, and use a candy thermometer for it to reach 240 degrees - turn off.) Tip: our stove cooks a little hotter so we fluctuated between low and medium and took our time getting to 240 degrees but it did not burn.
MIX. Turn the stand mixer on low and slowly drizzle the hot sugar into the egg mixture. Once added, increase the speed to medium high for 7 minutes until stiff, glossy peaks form. Add 1 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla extract and beat 1 more minute on high.
Store in airtight container in refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
