2008 Turkey Post Mortem

Yesterday marked my 11th turkey. Ah, memories: it seems like only yesterday when I cooked my first bird. While it was as dry as the Mohave desert and tougher than a female Russian shot-putter I was proud of my efforts. Pride aside, the damned thing sat in the 'frig for days afterwards and I couldn't figure out why no one wanted left overs... including me. 

Since that time my techniques have improved as have the results. Yesterday's bird, though eaten by only a 4 of those in attendance (the other 5 being vegetarians but that's another story) was a masterpiece of culinary excellence. Julia Childs would have been proud; okay, so Julia might have been too sloshed to eat but that's beside the point. Anyway, the turkey was moist, tender, with a golden brown, crispy skin. The gravy, made from the drippings combined with port wine, rosemary, & thyme was a nice additional touch. It was Thanksgiving at its finest.

My secret: soak the bird in a brine solution and roast it in a roasting bag. I used Emeril's recipe as my starting point but took it a step further by using the bag and a few other secret ingredients in the rub. While I agree that this post should have occurred before Thanksgiving that would required foresight and who the hell has time for that before a holiday?! 

While the mark of a good turkey is certainly found in its presentation on the holiday table one cannot deny its merits as a left over must be considered in any discussion of a quality bird. How is it between two slices of warm pumpernickel with lettuce, tomato, and (of course) Durkee's Famous Sauce, can it withstand a minute-and-a-half in the microwave with some left over dressing & gravy, and does it give you turkey farts?

Now c'mon, don't flinch or get all high and mighty on me. I'm talking with descendants of Bill and Jim Carr here. This is houte couture conversation---yes I said turkey farts! I am simply trying to state that, while the merits of the quantity and quality of flatulence produced by the digestion of meleagris gallopavo can certainly be debated, if you are inclined to have an affinity towards said phenomena you may also want to include that in your rating of a fine turkey. If not, that might seriously affect how much you liked it. Truth be told, I can attest with utmost certainty that my brined turkeys are fart-free---or as Big Bill used to say, "there's not a fart in the carload."  

Update from Seattle

I'll get us started with an update from Seattle. 

Kieran is now 7 months old. He's a mellow little guy and loves to watch his big brothers play and run around the house. He's sitting up on his own and really wants to crawl but hasn't quite got the hang of that yet. With two recently sprouted bottom teeth he's quite a chewer and anything he can get his hands on goes straight to his mouth, which is why I've usually got a pacifier "plugged-in."

Bennett's 3 1/2 and goes to preschool 3 mornings a week. He still LOVES baseball and wants to go outside and play any time it isn't raining, which this time of year is rare. If he can't play outside he'll use the Michigan bat that Aunt Margie and Uncle Ron gave him and hit pom-poms inside. The kid's got quite a swing. He also loves coloring, listening to music, and wrestling with Elias. He also likes to wrestle with Kieran but we're trying to discourage him from using his little brother as a tackling dummy. As an alternative he recently started playing ring toss with Kieran serving as the poll onto which Bennett tosses the rings. 

Elias is now in 2nd grade and seems to really enjoy his school. Legos are still his thing but Playmobil runs a close second. He's very excited about Christmas this year and has started instructing Bennett on the finer points of creating one's Christmas list. No catalog is safe from his keen eye. Reading's a new favorite activity of his, too. Garfield cartoons and (thanks to Aunt Joanne) the Hardy Boys top his favorites list.

Darcy recently moved from academia to private practice at Swedish Medical Center in Seattle. It was a difficult decision but she is enjoying the new position. She's become quite an aquarium aficionado and enjoys exploring the world of freshwater fish and plants with the boys. She also manages to do some oil painting, too! 

I'm having a blast with the boys and managing the household. I'm on the board this year at Bennett's preschool and room parent for Elias' class. My free time's usually spent here, on the computer, either organizing my music collection, keeping up with friends, or tweaking pictures in Photoshop (as photography has become my creative outlet). 

That's all from the left coast. If you want to check out photos of the boys, I upload most everything to my Flickr photostream.   

Welcome to The Carr Connection

Family connections are important. In days past families were both geographically and emotionally close. They ate Sunday dinners with one another, celebrated holidays together, and even dropped by for a visit unannounced. Aunts and uncles knew nieces and nephews, first cousins new second cousins, and brothers and sisters talked regularly. 

As with many families, distance has changed our relationships over the past few generations. It's my hope that we can harness this relatively new technology to stay in touch. While I don't expect us to join together for Sunday dinners perhaps we can share a little more about our lives, have a laugh or two, and bridge the gap. 

So bring it on! E-mail me with news about you, your children, or grandchildren. Share a joke, question, or wish. Tell each other happy birthday or share a congratulations. For those of you new to blogging there's the opportunity to make a comment after each post. Since I'm relatively new to the world of blogs I expect there to be a few glitches at first. Stay with me as I work through them and things should smooth out over time. 

Now let's roll...