our turkey is almost done defrosting, and its taking a bath in the brine later today. the brine consists of cold ice water, enough to cover the bird, equal parts sugar and salt, some bay leaves, and whole peppercorns. i usaully go by taste, but around 3/4-1 cup each of the salt and sugar. 24-48 hours in the brine makes all the difference in the world, it adds a nice subtle flavor, but more importantly leads to a much moister bird. just remember to thouroughly dry the turkey before roasting.

forget those stupid pop up indicators that "tell" you when the turkey is done. if they even work at all, that bird will be history by that time. spend a few bucks on an instant read therometer. around 165 in the deepest part of the thigh is about what your looking for, and remember let it rest tented with foil for at least a good hour before you go slicing into it, otherwise all your hard work will be for nothing. i take the whole breasts off, seperate the drumsticks and thighs, and do the same with the wings. i take a few minutes and pull the leftover meat off the body, not much as i'm pretty good. i throw it in a stock pot, add onion, celery, and carrots, and cover with cold water. bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer for around an hour and boom, homemade turkey stock. perfect for gravy/soup.

for the gravy, i pour all the juices out of the roasting pan into a cup, allow to seperate, and remove most of the fat. i heat the pan up, and deglaze with white wine, scraping up all the brown bits. i add the stock, as well as the original juices from the pan, and let it bubble away for a while. check the seasonings, add more salt/pepper. near the end, i add a whole lot of fresh chopped sage, thicken with a roux, strain and done.

i always make this drink on thanksgiving, not really traditional by thanksgiving standards, but its my tradition. add ice, around a shot or so of vodka(maybe half that if pizzaboy is there, as i'm sure we have all had to deal with drunken relatives that screw up the whole meal before ) top with a few splashes of pineapple, shake,strain, and serve over more crushed(not cubed, very important) ice. add a twist of lime, and top with sprite/7up, or even seltzer if you like things less sweet. goes down easy, livens up the day!