Holidays

Adapted from CookWise by Shirley O. Corriher (William Morrow and Company, Inc., 1997). Copyright 1997 by Shirley O. Corriher

© 2004 Lynne Rossetto Kasper

Thanksgiving is usually all about the turkey (and it's offered in our menu as an option), but I think vegetarians and vegans have been politely surviving on cranberry sauce, creamed onions and mashed potatoes far too long.

Like most people, I've got my lazy spots, and squash is one of them. I love winter squash in just about every guise, but I just can't stand peeling it. With all the great kitchen gear I've got, I've never found a gizmo that makes removing the hard shell of a butternut squash easy - I think squash-peeling cooks should get hazardous-duty pay. You can be sure I was one of the first in line at the supermarket when peeled, ready-to-cook squash arrived.

Judy Rodgers of San Francisco's legendary Zuni Café shares a homey, modern holiday menu that includes an interesting stuffing and a turkey roasting technique designed to free up precious oven space.
 

In response to a listener's frantic email about how to get the Thanksgiving turkey and all the side dishes onto the table at the same time (with one oven and four burners), Lynne came to the rescue with advice and a do-ahead feast.

Crisp, bronzed and fragrant, this turkey takes a mere ten minutes to the pound cutting the usual roasting time down by a third to a half. Steam from the white wine in the pan makes the skin especially good, and roasting on a rack of vegetables and apple gives you especially fine pan juices for gravy.

I love this stuffing! It's warm, moist, soft, meaty, profound in flavor - all the good things. Who knew that taco shells could crumble up to make such a great dish? I do like to cook it outside the turkey, instead of inside the bird, to better control its cooking time. If you want a better flavor mingle between stuffing and bird, don't hesitate to dribble some turkey pan juices over the stuffing.