Grubbin' with Loved Ones

I have personal reservations about celebrating Thanksgiving, mainly because of the origins of the holiday, but I will never turn down an opportunity to gather with loved ones and grub! I have great memories of family and friends gathering at my parents' house for a huge feast. The highest attendance was near 90 people. This past week marked the smallest Thanksgiving dinner in our history, and it was just as lovely. Leftovers are inevitable with 90 guests or 6. So here's an idea for repurposing them into brunch:

Turkey and Stuffing Egg Cups

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2. Grease muffin pan
3. Mash a layer of stuffing into the bottom of each cup (I added an egg to the stuffing before mashing to hold it together)
4. Bake for 5-8 mins to toast the stuffing a bit
5. Place strips of turkey around the cup
6. Break an egg into each (You might have to eliminate some of the white or the yolk, if you're concerned about cholesterol)
7. Bake for another 18-20 mins or until egg is set
8. Top with gravy, cream corn, or thinned cranberry sauce

Here are some other brunch ideas I had on reserve in case our eyes were bigger than our stomachs (they weren't by much!):

• Baked yams into biscuits with cranberry glaze
• Creamed corn into sweet corn cakes with sour cream
• Turkey and honey baked ham hash with left over veggies

You'd think we'd be stuffed after that feast, but the excessive grubbing continued for the next three days. Good thing I packed oversized sweaters to hide the belly! I dressed one up with a loose braided bun and Pegasus. It was a bit extravagant for the neighborhood, but I felt put together while shoveling food into face.

<3 C

Elegantly Simple & Fast

Since Pegasus belongs to Roe, I had a chance to wear this beauty when some FLAN members and friends visited Chicago back in September. Pair it with a simple dress and it's elegantly simple and a fast way to accessorize yourself. 

dress: forever 21

pegasus: stella&dot, hair clip: h&m

shoes: steve maddens

I love simple and fast meals and found this turkey taco filling recipe to meet both requirements.

Turkey Taco Filling

2 lbs ground turkey
diced onion
diced red pepper 
coconut oil
1/2 cup water 

Seasoning: 
2 tbsp chili powder
1.5 tbsp cumin
1.5 tbsp paprika
2 tbsp garlic powder
2 tsp oregano 
1 tsp red pepper flakes 

Mix seasoning together in a small bowl. Heat pan and heat coconut oil. Brown onion, red peppers, and turkey until not pink anymore. Add seasoning and mix. Add water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. 

Serve in taco shells or tortillas - in my case, I used lettuce as the wrap. Eating this fast and simple meal however, was not elegant at all. :)

good with or without siracha

Thank you for joining me today! I hope you have a happy and blessed Thanksgiving surrounded with loved ones and filled with lots of good food. :)

<3, phu

a little something extra

Both of the remixes today made me take some kind of plain ingredients to the next level.

This blue dress is one of my favorites, it's rouched to disguise my tummy, and i can dress it down enough to wear with boots or flats when i go out. But pegasus made me step up my game. I wore it to go out for a friends birthday, and found I just couldn't pair it with the usual. Had to step it up and put on some heels for the first time in..... yea couldn't remember when.






My food remix also took a pretty normal item, meatloaf, and gave it a new flavor. Giada de Laurentiis is one of my favorite chef personalities, and every recipe of hers I've tried was amazing. This turkey meatloaf with feta and sun dried tomatoes was no exception. It's easy, quick to prepare, and always comes out delicious, even if you aren't that careful about measuring ingredients.

It's also great to double the recipe, and save one loaf in the freezer for those times when you need an easy meal. I freeze mine wrapped in foil, and bake for about 1.5 of the time if it's still frozen when I throw it in the oven. 

• 1/2 cup plain bread crumbs
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1/4 cup chopped garlic and herb-marinated sun-dried tomatoes
• 2 cloves garlic, minced, optional
• 2 eggs, at room temperature, lightly beaten
• 2 tablespoons whole milk
• 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
• 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 pound ground turkey, preferably dark meat

Source

1. Preheat oven to 375
2. mix together all ingredients except the turkey. I bought too little feta, so 

3. gently add the turkey. 
4. i couldn't find my loaf pan, so I just formed a loaf on some lightly greased foil. 

5. Bake for approx 45 minutes. The outside should look browned, the cheese will be bubbling. If you have a meat thermometer, inside temp should be at least 165. 

6. Let rest before serving. Enjoy!!! 

Thanks for reading this week's remix!

<3 d

Perfect Thanksgiving Turkey

When the holidays roll around, I get all warm and fuzzy all the time.  On top of spending time with family and friends, my FAVORITE thing about the holidays are the holiday dinners I get to cook for.  It may take weeks of planning, days of preparation, and hours of cooking, but I'm always completely grateful and excited when I get to put a wonderful meal on the table for the ones I love.

Thanksgiving dinner 2008 at my mom's

Ever since I was in college I was testing different ways to prep a turkey.  It turns out my favorite turkeys are the ones I brine.  They're so juicy and flavorful, it never fails me.  Definitely allot hours ahead to cook and cool the brine, and then to marinate the turkey in the brine.  You'll definitely be happy of the outcome, and won't mind the time spent on it.

Brined Roast Turkey

• 1 (14 to 16 pound) frozen young turkey

For the brine:

• 1 cup kosher salt
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• 1 gallon vegetable stock
• 1 tablespoon black peppercorns
• 1 1/2 teaspoons chopped candied ginger
• 1 gallon heavily iced water

For the aromatics:

• 1 red apple, sliced
• 2 large carrots cut on the diagonal
• 1/2 onion, sliced
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 cup water
• 4 sprigs rosemary
• 6 leaves sage
• 1 cup of melted butter
• Pineapple slices & curly parsley for garnish

Directions

2 to 3 days before roasting

1. Begin thawing the turkey in the refrigerator
2. Combine the vegetable stock, salt, brown sugar, peppercorns, allspice berries, and candied ginger in a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Stir occasionally to dissolve solids and bring to a boil. Then remove the brine from the heat, cool to room temperature, and refrigerate.

The night before you'd like to eat:

1. Combine the brine, water and ice in the 5-gallon bucket. Place the thawed turkey (with innards removed) breast side down in brine. If necessary, weigh down the bird to ensure it is fully immersed, cover, and refrigerate or set in cool area for 8 to 16 hours, turning the bird once half way through brining.

About 3hrs before you eat (depends on the size of your turkey):

1. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F. Remove the bird from brine and rinse inside and out with cold water. Discard the brine.
2. Place the turkey on the roasting rack inside a pan and pat dry with paper towels.
3. Combine the apple, onion, cinnamon stick, and 1 cup of water in a microwave safe dish and microwave on high for 5 minutes. Add steeped aromatics to the turkey's cavity along with the rosemary and sage. Tuck the wings underneath the bird and coat the skin liberally with melted butter.
4. Roast the turkey on lowest level of the oven at 500 degrees F for 30 minutes. Insert a probe thermometer into thickest part of the breast and reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Set the thermometer alarm (if available) to 161 degrees F. A 14 to 16 pound bird should require a total of 2 to 2 1/2 hours of roasting. 
5. Let the turkey rest, loosely covered with foil or a large mixing bowl for 15 minutes before carving.

me trying to get the first bite

my mom carving the turkey! as we all wait patiently to dig in

Hope you all have a wonderful and warm Thanksgiving!

Thank you for reading today!

<3 roe

I fell in love...

Do you have an accessory or piece of clothing, or some random item that you just love?

Well, I saw Pegasus, and I fell in love.


I debated for a long time before buying this necklace.  I thought about its price, style, versatility, cost per wear.  The debate probably lasted a week, which is long for me.  In the end I am so happy I bought Pegasus, and definitely try to make the purchase worth my wild.


Every time I wear Pegasus I feel giddy all over.

{Outfit}

Shirt: H&M

Maxi: Old Navy

Shoes: via Make Me Chic

Purse: Banana Republic

Necklace: Stella & Dot

Thanks for stopping by and checking out my November Remix.  Stay tuned for the turkey remix!

<3 roe [a roesy life]

Giveaway: My Dear Darling

Click on the pic above for a chance to win!

Giveaway hosted by My Dear Darling