Thanksgiving

Empanadas de Calabaza
At our house we welcome fall with sweet, tasty empanadas made with fresh pumpkin. The pumpkin simmering with piloncillo, cinnamon, and cloves gives off a sweet and earthy scent, reminding us that fall has arrived. To this day, whenever I smell cinnamon it evokes great memories of mi mamá baking in the kitchen. During the fall she would request that I bring her a pumpkin so she could make her delicious homemade pies and empanadas. She preferred the green striped pumpkins or the dark green ones, saying they were meatier. But if I could not find those, the orange ones were acceptable. She always made things work.

Figs are abundant in Jerusalem and many trees, bearing the most delectable fruit, actually belong to no one, so anybody can help themselves. Summer months are always tinted with the smell of wild herbs and ripe figs. The mother of Sami's childhood neighbor and friend, Jabbar, used her roof to dry the glut of figs (and tomatoes) in the hot summer sun, spending hours cleaning and sorting them meticulously. Poor Um Jabbar Sami and her son never wasted time and used to sneak up to her roof regularly, stealing her figs at their peak and causing havoc. This wasn't enough for Jabbar, though. The boy had such a sweet tooth that he always carried around with him an old match box full of sugar cubes, just in case. Unfortunately, this habit had clear ramifications, evident in his "charming" smile. This unusual combination of fresh fruit and roasted vegetables is one of the most popular at Ottolenghi. It wholly depends, though, on the figs being sweet, moist, and perfectly ripe. Go for plump fruit with an irregular shape and a slighty split bottom. Pressing against the skin should result in some resistance but not much. Try to smell the sweetness. The balsamic reduction is very effective here, both for the look and for rounding up the flavors. To save you from making it, you can look for products such as balsamic cream or glaze.

After we make a batch of this romesco sauce, we put it on things like eggs, grilled cheese, and turkey sandwiches. We find any excuse we can think of to dunk and cover stuff in the incredibly versatile and tasty romesco.

Editor's note: This recipe is part of a special Thanksgiving menu created by chefs Allison Vines-Rushing and Slade Rushing of MiLa restaurant in New Orleans. Fried turkey is the answer to a Thankgiving under the gun. There is no need to wake up at the crack of dawn to put the turkey in the oven. Let that bird brine for 36 hours then pop it in a cauldron of hot fat (outside, of course). And you've got turkey on the table in under 2 hours. It's not just any turkey. It has juicy meat all over, even the breasts. Don't feel guilty about the frying, you probably only eat turkey once a year. Serve it with a healthy array of sides if that makes you feel better. You'll need to invest in an outdoor turkey frying kit.

Editor's note: This recipe is part of a special Thanksgiving menu created by chefs Allison Vines-Rushing and Slade Rushing of MiLa restaurant in New Orleans. This dish is a rice pilaf, where the rice is toasted in oil with onion before liquid is added to finish the cooking. The addition of chopped pecans adds an additional nuttiness to the toasted rice. Pilafs are usually made with a meat-based stock like chicken; if you want a vegetarian version, you can easily substitute vegetable stock or water. We like to serve this alongside our turkey at Thanksgiving.

This recipe is part of the Epicurious Online Cooking School, in partnership with the Culinary Institute of America. To watch it being made, and to learn how to make other dessert classics, check out the videos.

This recipe is part of the Epicurious Online Cooking School, in partnership with the Culinary Institute of America. To watch it being made, and to learn how to make other dessert classics, check out the videos.

Editor's note: This recipe is part of a special Thanksgiving menu created by chefs Allison Vines-Rushing and Slade Rushing of MiLa restaurant in New Orleans. The licorice root is optional, but if used, will add a slightly sweet, woody flavor to this fall soup. If you can't find it locally, the chefs recommend Gourmet Spice Company as an online source. We have yet to come across a person who does not like butternut squash soup. Even staunch vegetable haters fall for it. (Maybe its sweet richness makes them think that it can't be healthy.) When it is on the menu at the restaurant, probably eighty percent of our customers order it, leaving the cooks to complain about how much they have to make. And if you peek through the kitchen doors, you will undoubtedly see one of us with a steaming hot bowl of it in our own grubby hands.

I see no reason why salads should be limited to greens. This one has a ton of different textures and flavors and is as visually rewarding as it is delicious. Vermont is famous for its fall color, so when I thought of this dish, I wanted all the components to come together on a platter in the same way that autumn leaves fall together in a collage of color on the forest floor. There are bits of roasted squash, blanched squash, pickled squash, and even toasted squash seeds. While I don't like dishes that are so fussy and manipulated they look less like food and more like art, I can't deny that we eat first with our eyes.

Pastry chef Jennifer Jones of Topolobampo in Chicago shared this recipe as part of a Cinco de Mayo feature on Mexican desserts. Coffee liqueur adds incredible depth to Frontera Grill's legendary chocolate pecan pie, but if you prefer to skip the booze in the whipped cream, use an equivalent amount of pure vanilla extract or espresso instead. Jones prefers to serve this pie when it's warm and gooey, but warns that it's a little tricky to cut that way. Her solution is to cool the pie completely, cut it into slices, and then pop it back in the oven until it's just heated through.

To make the breadcrumbs, tear up a day-old baguette or some crusty country bread and pulse it in a food processor until the crumbs are coarse. If you end up with more than you need, freeze the surplus in an airtight container.

Kale adds vitamin C and additional beta-carotene to the stuffing for sweet potatoes, while tofu contributes protein. For extra fiber, eat the skins. Round sweet potatoes work best; if you use oblong potatoes, trim along the top of each lengthwise instead of cutting off the top quarter.

A wholesome twist on a traditional Thanksgiving side, this dish uses farro, also known as emmer wheat, an Italian grain that is high in fiber, magnesium, and vitamins A, B, C, and E. Other grains, such as pearl barley, can be used instead; cook them according to package instructions.

The flavor and texture of these miniature spiced soufflés are reminiscent of sweet potato pie, but with far fewer calories and much less fat.

Before the development of canning, pickling was one of the most important preserving methods, along with salting, drying, and smoking. Particularly in warm countries, pickling was favored for the way it used acid to stop or retard the growth of bacteria. Some historians credit the Egyptians and Romans for developing this technique, which was brought into Spain and then to Mexico. Turkeys, especially ones raised naturally, have a rich, dense flesh and dark, meaty flavor that can stand up to—and are improved by—heartier, more complex flavors like this escabeche. My favorite garnish for each taco serving is a slim feathery frond—no more than two inches long—from the top of a small stalk of fennel. It looks pretty, has good flavor, and is delicious with this filling.

When you think of fruit pie, a double-crust beauty with juices bubbling up and out of the top probably comes to mind. And though you will often hear that baking requires precision to turn out right, once you get in the habit of baking fruit pies, you will begin to see an opportunity for some flexibility with the fillings. With a little practice, you can learn to adapt the basic formula depending on what fruit is in season, and to adjust the amount of sugar or thickener (such as flour or cornstarch) based on the juiciness of the fruit. You might even begin to experiment with combinations of fruits, or flavorings such as zests and spices, to suit your own tastes. Apricots and cherries taste great together, as do peaches and blueberries. If you want to combine fresh and dried fruits, try pears with dried sour cherries; up the ante with a pinch of Chinese five-spice powder. In order to get to that improvisational stage, however, you have to start with something very basic, and what’s better than starting with the American standard—apple?

You will need to dry the bread cubes overnight; transfer them to resealable plastic bags until you’re ready to make the stuffing, up to one day more. (You could also dry them in a 300°F oven for 20 to 30 minutes, if necessary.)

To make this delicious gravy, you will need to first make a flavorful stock with the reserved turkey giblets and neck (you can do this while the turkey is roasting). Also, reserve 3 tablespoons of the pan drippings from the turkey roasting pan (after the turkey has been removed to a platter), as well as the pan itself. Pour remaining drippings into a gravy separator and let stand until fat has risen to the top, about 10 minutes, or pour into a glass measuring cup and discard the fat that rises to the top.

It’s a safe bet that every cook will be called upon to roast a turkey at some point in his or her life. Since it’s usually a once-a-year endeavor, there’s not much room for practice. Instead, rely on proven methods and plan carefully. This is one instance where making sure you have the right equipment (a pot large enough to hold the brining turkey, plus a spot in the refrigerator to place it; a heavy roasting pan; cheesecloth for “basting” the bird as it cooks; and an instant-read thermometer) and sufficient time (a day for brining and then at least 5 hours for bringing the bird to room temperature and cooking it) is crucial. Also, take care of as much as possible in advance, such as preparing the stuffing the day before and refrigerating it overnight, while the turkey is brining. Then it will be much easier when the time comes to focus on the task at hand: roasting the perfect turkey. Brining the meat ensures that the turkey will be tender and juicy. The brining solution contains aromatics for more flavor, but you could forgo those and simply use a mixture of salt, sugar, and water. For food safety reasons, it’s essential that you let the brine cool completely before adding the turkey. Before being put in the oven, the brined bird should sit at room temperature for 2 hours; once it’s out of the oven, let it rest for 20 minutes. For a moister bird, cook to 165°F; when taking the temperature, remember that the roast will continue to cook after being removed from the oven. One more safety note: Never stuff a turkey ahead of time. Warm stuffing should not be put into a turkey until just before roasting. If the stuffing contains warm ingredients, such as sautéed onions or celery, get it into the bird and into the oven as soon as possible. Chilling warm stuffing before cooking it in a turkey is not as safe because the stuffing will, through cooling and heating, spend too much time at temperatures at which bacteria thrive (between 40 and 140°F).