Paleo Thanksgiving Prep- Day Three No Rest For The Weary!

Happy Thanksgiving Eve! The last day of Thanksgiving prep is upon us! First thing, this morning, I put my big turkey to brine.  This is how we do it Cajun style, in an Igloo ice chest. I followed the recipe from Danielle Walker's ebook "Thankful". All I can say is, it smells delicious.

Once my turkey was secure in it's salt bath, I prepped dish after dish. I prepared my gluten free sausage and apple stuffing, traditional green bean Cassarole, Paleo green bean Cassarole, and mashed sweet potatoes with brown sugar apples and pecans on top. I like to do one dish at a time. That way I can pull out all the ingredients for one dish, put it all together, and wash every utensil, bowl, and pot before moving on to the next. This also helps to avoid cross contamination if I'm preparing allergen containing dishes.

Next, I took a break away from the kitchen. I ran around the house, moving furniture (again!), vacuuming, cleaning the guest bathroom, doing a load of laundry, ironing the table linens, and putting yet another leaf in the dining room table.

Back to the kitchen I went! I'm not proud of it, but I shoved a banana in my mouth for lunch. My Paleo, Crustless Pecan Pie was my next project.  I like to eat my pecan pie cold; so, I had to bake it today so I could refrigerate it overnight.  I know, I'm the only person I know who does this. It's just one of my quirks!

It looks so yummy!

By the time I finished baking my pie, it was time to cook dinner.  I could have taken the easy way out; but, I didn't. I made Chicken Parmesan with gluten free breadcrumbs and pasta. I realize it's not paleo. But, I have so many gluten free items in my pantry that I bought before I knew I had to go hard core paleo.  I don't like to waste food.  Besides, I was exhausted!

After dinner, I tackled the setting of the table. I like to set the entire table the eve before the holiday. An hour later, I was done.

Almost done!

Finally, it was time to chill!  I removed my snood and let my hair hang free. In case you don't know what a snood is, it's basically a fancy hairnet.  I didn't want to take a chance of losing some hair in the food I worked so hard to prepare.  Lately, it falls out by the handfuls. I would be mortified if one of my guest ended up with a mouthful of hair. Yuck!

And what was Boho doing as I toiled away?

She was snoozing!

So, everything is ready to go. Tomorrow is the big day, Thanksgiving! I'll let you know how it all works out.  I'll be putting our turkey in the oven at 9:30 AM. I have everything scheduled for the time each dish needs to go into the oven. I'll prepare the remainder of the veggie dishes and the two different gravies (one is paleo). I'm hoping to get dinner on the table by 3:00 PM. We'll see how that goes!

Right now, it's 11:30 PM. As soon as I post this blog, I'm going to bed. Goodnight!

Paleo Thanksgiving Prep- Day Two or What Was I Thinking!

So, this morning I set off to do my Thanksgiving dinner shopping.  I needed to purchase a few hard to find foods; so, decided to shop a grocery store that carried a big variety of specialty foods. I parked my car in a spot pretty far from the entrance, as I always do. I figured there is someone out there who needs a closer spot than I do. Besides, I like to walk. Midway through my walk, I started to feel that old wicked ache in my hip joint. Aargh!  I could not let the pain deter me. I had seven family members and Boho counting on me to provide them with a Thanksgiving feast. I hobbled onward.

Inside the store, desperation festered from last minute shoppers scurrying around like rats in a maze. I carefully maneuvered my way through the fresh produce department. Luckily, I was the rare bird who wanted organic only produce.  I picked out my Fuji apples, sweet onions, sweet potatoes, parsley, and green beans without so much as a sighting of another shopper.  Yeah for me!

In the meat department, I quickly located the fresh free range turkeys. Yikes, fifty bucks for an eighteen pounder!  I knew Trader Joe's had them pre-brined for $1.99 a pound.  As I stood contemplating, a woman came by and started shuffling the turkeys around. " That's an awful lot to pay for a turkey, don't you think?" She asked me.  " Yeah, I think I'm going to get one from Trader Joe's for $1.99 a pound," I answered.  She proceeded to tell me that she'd just come from Trader Joe's because they were SOLD OUT! I grabbed my $50 turkey and placed it into my shopping cart.

The next three hours were spent collecting the ingredients I needed to make my mixed paleo/traditional dishes. I travelled to three different stores to locate everything. Well, almost everything. I could not, for the life of me, find raw cashew butter! I, finally, decided to make my own with raw cashews I picked up at Trader Joe's ( by the way, the woman I met earlier was right- NO TURKEYS). I said a silent prayer of thanks to God for sending me that wonderfully informative woman at precisely the right time.

Once home, I carried my loot into the house, looking like a pack mule. I don't know what it is; but, I hate making more than one trip.  Boho barked at me as I balanced on one leg, slipping off my boot and replacing it with my slipper. She was still barking as I reshifted and did the same with the other side. I plowed through the house until I reached the kitchen and laid the sacks on the floor.

The rest of my afternoon was spent putting away my groceries, taking out the garbage ( tomorrow is garbage day), adding the extra leaf to the dining room table, moving the furniture to accommodate guest, choosing table linens, baking grain free bread for the stuffing, and cooking dinner ( Cilantro chicken and zucchini).

I wish I could answer the question I keep asking myself. What was I thinking? I have never waited until the last minute to prep for Thanksgiving or any other holiday ( I host all of them!). I don't know if it has anything to do with my diagnosis, the trip I took to visit my newborn nephew, or my constantly evolving symptoms. All I do know, is I will never do this again!

Tomorrow, I will clean house ( which includes shampooing the carpet), brine the turkey, and prepare the green bean casseroles, sweet potatoes, and grain free sausage stuffing.  These will all be made in advance and then refrigerated.  Thanksgiving day, all I need to do is pop them in the oven about a half an hour before serving. Easy as pie! Oops, I forgot about the Paleo Pecan Pie! I'll make that tomorrow, too.

All of my recipes can be found on my Pinterest boards, Gluten Free For Me and Paleo-a-go-go.  Http://www.pinterest.com/bohoandmo 

And: Danielle Walker's Thanksgiving ebook on Amazon.com

Paleo Thanksgiving Prep- Day One

Well, I wanted to use a photo showing a beautiful fall day. But, this photo shows the reality of an autumn day in Illinois. And, trust me, from the photo, you cannot feel how cold it is outside!

Anyhoo, today is my first day of formal planning of my Thanksgiving menu. It's the day that I finalize the dishes to be cooked and make my list of items I need to purchase at the grocery store tomorrow. Normally, I have this done already. But, this year, I have had to learn a whole new way of planning and preparing foods. Luckily, I've received some help along the way.

If you are new to the gluten free or paleo lifestyle, your best bet is to find a professional who has been living it for awhile.  I don't know if you've heard of Danielle Walker, founder of Against All Grain.  She offers some of the most delicious recipes I have ever found.  Her book, Against All Grain, has tons of recipes for foods I thought I would never be able to enjoy again.  And now, she has created an ebook just for Thanksgiving. You can find it on Amazon for only $1.99!  Most of the dishes I've decided to cook for Thanksgiving are from this ebook.

This is her original cookbook.

I should tell you, I am not receiving any kind of compensation for this review. This is my honest opinion, nothing more. With Danielle Walker's ebook, I have been able to plan a paleo feast for me and my family, complete with stuffing and dessert.

Tomorrow comes the hard part.  Shopping for paleo friendly meats, where I live, is beyond difficult.  I should have lots of fun tomorrow trying to find everything I need. I already know I'm going to visit at least three stores seeking my ingredients! Wish me luck!

More recipes can be found on my pinterest boards at www.pinterest.com/bohoandmo.

Also, check out www.againstallgrain.com.