Whitey's Deep Fried Turkey

Meh. It wasn't that great--- it lacked something.

Holding Thanksgiving the Day AFTER

There are, in fact, some benefits to holding Thanksgiving the day after the real Thanksgiving. I ordered a deep fried turkey from Whitey's Fish Camp, namely because the none-too-bright girl who answered the phone was unable to tell me how spicy the Cajun seasoning was going to be. She said she hadn't tasted it and then said it "was probably a medium heat" and that it was about as spicy as the other food they serve. Because I cannot recall eating there, that didn't do me any good.

So I called Whitey's. They're $10 cheaper and were more helpful. Because I am picking up the turkey the day after Thanksgiving, it will still be warm and won't need much heating up. If I were holding Thanksgiving on the actual day, I would have had to pick it up the day before Thanksgiving. It would then cool as it sat in the fridge and the reheating in the oven would take forever! The whole point of a deep fried turkey is how moist it is. Sticking it in the oven for that amount of time might wick some of that moisture away, though the crispy skin will help protect it.

The History of Pie...

We say that something is "as American as apple pie," but of course the apple pie didn't originate here. Early recipes can be traced back to England, around the 1300s. Most of these didn't have sugar, or had very little, since sugar was costly.

The earliest apple pie recipes featured pastry that wasn't meant to be eaten. That is, the pastry was only meant to be a disposable container for the fruit filling. These were often sold by streetside vendors in London. By the 1500s, sugar was more readily obtained, so you could eat the pastry surrounding it as well. Early colonists in America had not cultivated apples available to them at first, so they had to be imported. Once apple trees were growing, they were mostly used in cider, though there were apple pie recipes in the U.S. by the 1700s.

What we know as apple pie today is actually closer to the Dutch version of the recipe, laced with cinnamon, sugar and with the traditional lattice work top crust.

Apple pie became quintessentially American during WWII, but the origins of the phrase "as American as apple pie" still remain murky. Wikipedia says that "for mom and apple pie" was supposedly the standard answer from American soldiers in WWII whenever journalists asked them why they were going to fight.

Head here for the rest of this article on the history of pie...

Bistro de Leon Thanksgiving

I love St. Augustine's newest French bistro. I won't be able to go there for their Thanksgiving day feast, but if you don't want to cook here's the skinny on it:

Join Chef Jean-Stephane Poinard at the Bistro de Leon for Thanksgiving Dinner on Thursday, November 27. Choose from 2 seatings: 1:00pm and 4:00pm. Valerie and Chef Poinard will be serving the following menu as they COOK FOR YOU SO YOU CAN ENJOY THE DAY WITH FAMILY & FRIENDS.

THANKSGIVING DINNER $30/pp (children ½ price $15)

1:00 AND 4:00 SEATINGS

Thanksgiving Turkey OR Pineapple Pork Tenderloin
French stuffing with sausage and mushrooms
Mashed Potatoes
Carrot Cumin Flan
Tomato Provencale
Sweet Potatoes Gratin
Cranberry Relish

Optional Specialty Desserts ($5.95)

Apple Tarte Tatin with Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream
Poached Pear
Pecan Tart

Reservations Suggested!

Special Take Out:

Order Thanksgiving Dinner to Take Out by November 20 and receive a 10% discount on your order for Take-Out Only~


Bistro de Leon

12 Cathedral Place
St. Augustine
www.bistrodeleon.com
(904) 810-2100