The Big Sandy Mountaineer -

I have a small turkey in the freezer and have decided to cook it this weekend. Having said that, now I have to figure out how to cook it. These days it is not nearly as easy to cook a turkey as it used to be.

There are several answers to this dilemma. One answer is to invite someone over to help cook the turkey. The other answer is not to cook all that used to go with having a turkey dinner.

If I have someone over to help cook, I am going to lean on them to cook the mashed potatoes, make a vegetable and make gravy.

I am going to cook the turkey, make the dressing and set the table. If I get all that done, I will have done a lot.

But, what if I can’t find anyone to help me cook the turkey this weekend? What should I do then?

Simple, forget the mashed potatoes, make a simple steamed green bean dish with mushrooms in it for a vegetable and I have a vat full of juices when the turkey is done, so I can manage gravy.

Sure the table will look bare because I am only having turkey, dressing, beans and gravy. So I will fill up the table with things that are easy to put on the table and do not have to be cooked but taste good with turkey. I will clean a batch of little green onions. They are perfect with turkey. I will get some black and some green olives on the table and for sure I will get some good garlic dills that go well with turkey.

One thing in which I will not stint is the combination of my mother’s and Grandma Lucke’s famous dressing. Call it stuffing if you cook it in the bird or call it dressing if you cook it dry out of the bird. Both are good but they do change cooking times when you cook out or in the bird.

To make the dressing you will need about eight to ten cups of prepared bread crumbs. They can be plain or corn meal but they should never be croutons. Use good bread crumbs.

1 pound breakfast sausage

1 cup chopped celery

I medium onion diced

2 cups diced mushrooms

½ pound butter

1 can cream of onion soup

1 can chicken broth

1 can chopped up green olives

Lots of rosemary, sage, salt and pepper

Sauté your sausage celery and onions in butter mix in fresh herbs, salt and pepper and chicken broth and cream of onion soup.

Sometimes I sauté the sausage first and stir it in to a big kettle of bread crumbs. Then I sauté all the vegetables in the butter and herbs. Then I add the cream of onion soup to that mess and the olives and chicken broth. Add that to your kettle of goop and stir it very well. It will keep just fine over night.

Bon Appétit!