All good things come to those who wait...

After a relaxing, friend- and family-filled Thanksgiving break, Ryan and I spent Sunday maxing and relaxing around the Nut. We watched the Chiefs lose (boo), did some laundry and then proceeded to officially kickoff the holiday season by fixing our first big turkey (in years past we’ve only been brave enough to cook a turkey breast) with all the fixin’s.

I should have known we were doomed when we first began the “cooking” process. I say “cooking” because, well, you’ll see.

First off, I had one heck of a time getting the damn bird out of the package. Then, even though the turkey had been in the fridge for nearly four days (the package said three would do it), the inside of it was still icy. Not being patient enough to wait another day for it to thaw, we forged ahead, removing the neck and delving into the semi-frozen turkey, searching for the little bags of giblets or gizzards or whatever the heck turkey-part they (God knows why) save for you. Of course, we couldn't find them. I assumed at the time that was because we bought a cheap Best Choice turkey, and maybe they don’t give you that. And really, it’s not like I knew what to do with it anyway.

So, we slather the bird up with olive oil, herbs, salt, onions, apple slices, etc. and pop it in the oven. I set the timer for 3 hours, the time the package recommends for a 10-13 pound turkey. For the record, ours weighs in at 11.89 pounds.

Around hour four, the turkey is still hovering at 150 degrees. I turned the temp up 25 degrees, figuring it can't hurt..

Four-and-a-half-hours into it, I start suspecting that something is off, seeing that the turkey’s temperature was now dropping. At first, I thought we were being taught a lesson for not properly thawing the turkey. Then I noticed that the oven wasn’t as hot as it was…turns out, when Ryan went to drain the potatoes for mashed taters, he accidentally turned off the oven in addition to the stovetop. And, neither of us noticed because our oven has two dials – one for the temp and one for bake, broil, etc. So although I was trying to turn the temp up, my attempts were futile (talk about a poorly designed oven).

Anyways, to make a long story short (too late, I know), our three-hour turkey dinner took seven hours. We also found the turkey parts...no idea where they were wedged but they fell out of the cavity (SICK) when we pulled it out of the oven.

Despite our Thanksgiving debacle, there is some good news. We have a great first Thanksgiving as a married couple story and, during the extended cooking, had ample time to put our Christmas tree up. And, I have to brag, despite the screw ups, the turkey did come out tasty, and it hasn’t given us salmonella...yet. Not to mention that we have one of the cutest trees I’ve ever seen. (Thanks Erin and Alan!)

I plan on posting pics of the difficult turkey and our Christmas tree soon. I’m going out of town for a few days for work, so I’ll post those when I get back. Adios amigos!