# Post Thanksgiving dinner tips here! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 22, 2004, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-thanksgiving-dinner-tips-here/276011 "2004-11-22T00:34:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2004, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-thanksgiving-dinner-tips-here/276011/21 "2004-11-22T20:31:30Z")
Post-Thanksgiving dinner tip #1 The best meals are sometimes eaten at twelve-thirty in the morning, standing up in front of the refrigerator. Post-Thanksgiving dinner tip #2 A slice of dark meat with a slice of jellied cranberry sauce on a leftover roll should be plenty moist. If you’ve got a slice of white meat, you might want to think about adding a spoonful of mayo. ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2004, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-thanksgiving-dinner-tips-here/276011/22 "2004-11-22T20:31:36Z")
My only problem is Alton’s recipe calls for allspice berries and candied ginger, and I can’t find them. I picked up ground ginger, and will probably play around with other spices to compensate. I’m a little scared about cooking it for 30 minutes at 500 degrees…that won’t scorch the turkey, will it? ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2004, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-thanksgiving-dinner-tips-here/276011/23 "2004-11-22T20:38:03Z")
> [@ivylass](#): > > I’m a little scared about cooking it for 30 minutes at 500 degrees…that won’t scorch the turkey, will it? When we roast a turkey breast, we roast it at 450 for the entire cooking time. We’ve never had a problem with it getting scorched. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2004, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-thanksgiving-dinner-tips-here/276011/24 "2004-11-22T20:42:35Z")
> [@ivylass](#): > > My only problem is Alton’s recipe calls for allspice berries and candied ginger, and I can’t find them. > > I picked up ground ginger, and will probably play around with other spices to compensate. Ground ginger doesn’t substitute for candied or pickled ginger, AFAIK. [Here](http://www.recipezaar.com/recipe/getrecipe.zsp?id=101391) is a minimal turkey brine recipe (with no spices that will be difficult to find or not to some people’s tastes) that will still give you a moist turkey after cooking. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2004, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-thanksgiving-dinner-tips-here/276011/25 "2004-11-22T20:46:18Z")
> [@DanBlather](#): > > The ButterBall cooking tips err on the safe side as to temperature. 170 degrees is much better than 185 or 190 degrees. 190 :eek: The Chronicle, where we got our first brined turkey recipe, [recommends cooking to 165.](http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2004/11/17/FDGIQ9RTLC1.DTL) The breast meat isn’t pink at that temperature. ---
**Author:** ![Scarlett67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scarlett67/32/7387_2.png) [@Scarlett67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scarlett67)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2004, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-thanksgiving-dinner-tips-here/276011/26 "2004-11-22T20:57:41Z")
> [@ivylass](#): > > My only problem is Alton’s recipe calls for allspice berries and candied ginger, and I can’t find them. Have you looked in the Asian food section? A friend and her two daughters (7 and 17) are coming over. We’re having glazed ham (at Mr. S’s request) and I also bought a 3-lb. turkey breast for anyone who wants to be traditional. (We’re all semi-veggie anyway, so this will be plenty of meat with all the other stuff that will be on the table.) Anybody got ideas on what I should do with it? I found a recipe at [allrecipes.com](http://allrecipes.com) that involves making basically a “turkey roll” stuffed with bread stuffing, dried cranberries, and pecans. Sounds good, but do you have a favorite recipe? ---
**Author:** ![Scarlett67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scarlett67/32/7387_2.png) [@Scarlett67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scarlett67)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2004, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-thanksgiving-dinner-tips-here/276011/27 "2004-11-22T20:58:58Z")
Let me try that again: Have you looked in the Asian food section **for the candied ginger**? (I have no idea where to look for allspice berries if they aren’t with the regular spices.) ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2004, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-thanksgiving-dinner-tips-here/276011/28 "2004-11-22T21:06:29Z")
I’ll have a look there, thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2004, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-thanksgiving-dinner-tips-here/276011/29 "2004-11-22T21:07:40Z")
> [@Scarlett67](#): > > Have you looked in the Asian food section? > > A friend and her two daughters (7 and 17) are coming over. We’re having glazed ham (at Mr. S’s request) and I also bought a 3-lb. turkey breast for anyone who wants to be traditional. (We’re all semi-veggie anyway, so this will be plenty of meat with all the other stuff that will be on the table.) Anybody got ideas on what I should do with it? I found a recipe at [allrecipes.com](http://allrecipes.com) that involves making basically a “turkey roll” stuffed with bread stuffing, dried cranberries, and pecans. Sounds good, but do you have a favorite recipe? [Here’s a good maple-glazed turkey breast recipe.](http://www.post-gazette.com/food/19990516buffet4a.asp) It can be adapted to a bone-in turkey breast- put the glaze on the turkey, then cook it (brushing occasionally with more glaze) according to a bone-in turkey breast recipe. Mr Neville and I went to my sister’s for Thanksgiving a couple of years ago. She’s a vegetarian, so we were trying to think of something festive that didn’t have meat. We made [Zucchini Parmesan Latkes](http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/40007) and [Sweet Potato Latkes](http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/105919), both of which went over well. ---
**Author:** ![Motorgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e36b37/32.png) [@Motorgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Motorgirl)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2004, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-thanksgiving-dinner-tips-here/276011/30 "2004-11-22T21:34:01Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > Post-Thanksgiving dinner tip #1 > > The best meals are sometimes eaten at twelve-thirty in the morning, standing up in front of the refrigerator. > > Post-Thanksgiving dinner tip #2 > > A slice of dark meat with a slice of jellied cranberry sauce on a leftover roll should be plenty moist. If you’ve got a slice of white meat, you might want to think about adding a spoonful of mayo. LOL - I, too, thought this would be a thread for tips on what to do after the meal. My tip: go ahead and lie down. you know you want to… ---
**Author:** ![stargazer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eb8c5e/32.png) [@stargazer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stargazer)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2004, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-thanksgiving-dinner-tips-here/276011/31 "2004-11-23T00:00:40Z")
Hehe, I also thought it would be a “what to do with Thanksgiving leftovers” thread. So, to that end, I give you this: [Chicken & Fall Vegetable Pot Pie](http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/102378) with an [Herb Crust](http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/102379/). Yes, I know it’s originally a chicken pot pie, but just substitute the leftover turkey for the chicken. And you can really substitute/add in whatever you want in terms of filling – I don’t like turnips or their greens, so I use potatoes and peas. Whatever you do, DON’T change the gravy/sauce recipe or the crust. They _make_ this pot pie, and it is _fabulous_. I’m not exaggerating, it’s probably the best pot pie you’ll ever eat. It freezes well and you can make it in individual portions instead of the big communal dish… mmm. This is what I’m making Friday! 😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-thanksgiving-dinner-tips-here/276011.md?page=1)