Here are the Thanksgiving recipes everybody always asks me for. (And which I cook for my own family every year.) Now get that turkey thawed and get started!

Here's our favorite Thanksgiving menu. Click on the dish name for the recipe.

Oysters Bienville
Brined and Sugar-Cane Smoked Turkey
Turkey Giblet Gravy
Root Beer-Glazed Ham
Mushroom and Gruyere Bread Pudding
Turkey-Andouille Gumbo
Orange Cheesecake

Oysters Bienville
When cooking, oysters release a good deal of water, and that can rip the sauce apart. The solution is to use more bread crumbs than looks or feels right. And to have the sauce fully cooked and hot before it goes into the oven, so that the dish can be cooked mostly by heat from above.

1 lb. small shrimp (50 count), peeled, rinsed, and chopped coarsely
1 stick butter
1 rib celery, chopped coarsely
1 large, ripe red bell pepper, seeds and membrane removed, chopped coarsely
8 oz. small white mushrooms, chopped coarsely
1/4 cup dry sherry
4 strips lean bacon, fried crisp, crumbled
2 green onions, sliced finely
1 cup of oyster water (or as much as you can get, plus enough water to make a cup)
1/2 cup flour
2/3 cup warm milk
2 egg yolks
2/3 cup finely shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup bread crumbs
1 tsp. salt-free Creole seasoning
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
4 dozen large oysters, well drained

1. Heat 1 tsp. of the butter in a skillet until it bubbles. Sauté the chopped shrimp until it turns pink. Remove and set aside.

2. Add 2 Tbs. butter to the pan and heat until it bubbles. Add the celery, bell pepper, and mushrooms. Sauté until they get tender. Add the sherry and bring to a boil for about one minute.

3. Add the shrimp, bacon, and green onions. Cook for another minute, then add the oyster water. Bring it to a boil and cook for about two minutes. The sauce should be wet but not sloshy. Remove from heat.

4. Heat the remaining butter over medium-low heat in a saucepan. Stir in the flour to make a blond roux. When you see the first hints of browning, remove from the heat and whisk in the hot milk to form a béchamel. (It will have the texture of mashed potatoes.)

5. Add the egg yolks to the béchamel, stirring quickly to combine it before the eggs have a chance to set. Whisk  the mozzarella slowly into the béchamel.   

6. Add the béchamel to the pan with the shrimp mixture. Stir to into combine completely.

7. Combine the Creole seasoning, salt, bread crumbs, and cheeses. Blend two-thirds of this mixture into the sauce.

8. Cover the bottom of a shallow baking dish with oysters, leaving just a little space between them. Top with the Bienville sauce. Sprinkle the top with the remaining bread crumb mixture. Bake in a preheated 450-degree oven for about 15-20 minutes (depending on the size of the baking dish). The dish is done when it's bubbling and the top is browned.

Serves eight to twelve.

Brined and Sugar-Cane Smoked Turkey

I cook my Thanksgiving turkeys in my barbecue pit. (It's one of those barrel-shaped Char-Grillers.) It gets hotter than a smoker, but because I keep the turkey away from direct heat, it cooks slowly and absorbs a lot of smoky flavor. The crisp skin takes on an appealing bronze color. It also smells wonderful, and the meat inside is moister than it is with any other cooking method. Even if I wanted to try a different style, my family wouldn't let me.

Another advantage: it gives you plenty of room in the oven for other dishes you need to cook or bake.

STEP ONE: Thaw the turkey, if frozen. This takes at least three days, and should be done in the refrigerator. Put it into the pan you'll roast it in to catch any leaks—and to remind you to get a pan.

STEP TWO: Marinate the turkey in salt water overnight. This old trick really works, and doesn't make the turkey salty. It keeps the bird very moist during cooking, and that's the big challenge in roasting a turkey. Put the turkey in an ice chest or covered container with enough water to cover it. Dissolve one cup of salt per gallon of water (the amount is not critical). Add enough ice to keep the bird safely refrigerated.

STEP THREE: Fire up the grill. Whether you use gas or charcoal (I greatly prefer the latter), you need something to generate smoke. I use sugar cane. I make a trip to the sugar plantations along the river and gather their leftovers. But any good smoking wood can be used. The best results come from wrapping them in a packet of aluminum foil and putting them right next to the fire. That fire should be on the opposite end of the grill from where you're going to put the turkeys.

Remove the turkeys from the marinade. Disengage the metal gizmos holding them together. Remove the giblets. Season the outside with salt and pepper.

Then stuff the cavity with...

2 ribs celery, cut up
1 onion, cut up
1 orange, cut into eighths
1 lemon, cut into quarters
A shake of tarragon
A stem of fresh rosemary

Then the turkey goes on a wire rack, which in turn is place into an aluminum pan. Make a tent of foil over the top. Place the turkey as far as possible away from the fire. All heat should get to the bird in smoke.

Close the cover and add coals throughout the morning to maintain a temperature of 200 to 250 degrees inside the pit. It takes about five and a half to seven hours for the internal temperature of the turkey to reach about 175 degrees. Use a meat thermometer for this; the little pop-up plastic thermometer only pops when the turkey is a touch overcooked.

Take the turkeys out and put them on the table to rest and cool for 30 minutes before carving. Save the juices in the pan for making gravy.

Turkey neck and wing tips
Giblets other than liver
1 onion, cut up
1 rib celery, cut up
Stems from a bunch of parsley
1 small carrot, cut up
1/4 tsp. leaf thyme
1/4 tsp. marjoram
1/2 tsp. black peppercorns
1 bay leaf
Pan juices and drippings from turkey
1/4 cup flour

1. Bring two quarts of water to a boil and add the turkey necks, the giblets, onion, celery, parsley, and carrot. Put the thyme, marjoram, peppercorns, and bay leaf into an herb infuser or cheesecloth pouch and add to the pot. Keep at a low boil for two hours, or long enough to reduce the liquid by about half.

2. Strain the stock and chill until the turkey's ready.

3. After removing the turkey from the roasting pan, pour the drippings into a gravy separator or small bowl and let stand to allow the fat to rise to the top. Meanwhile, add a little water to the pan and scrape up the browned bits on the inside bottom. Add this to the drippings.

4. Remove all the fat you can from the drippings, but save about one-fourth of a cup of the fat. Use this with the flour to make a light roux in a separate pan.

5. Combine the stock, the defatted drippings and the roux in a saucepan over low heat. Whisk as it comes to a boil to get a smooth texture. Add salt and pepper, if needed, to taste.

Root Beer-Glazed Ham

In New Orleans, we use the superb, locally-produced Chisesi ham for this. Otherwise, a top-quality, lean, naturally-smoked boneless ham is what you want.

The drippings get so crusty that you'll want to use a disposable pan to bake the ham. The stuff is impossible to dislodge.

Glaze:
24 oz. (two cans) Barq's root beer
1 1/2 Tbs. pepper jelly
1 bay leaf
1 1/2 Tbs. Tabasco Caribbean style steak sauce (or Pickapeppa)
6 cloves
1 stick cinnamon
Peel and juice of one-half an orange
Peel of half a lemon

1 cured, smoked ham, about 10-14 pounds
1/2 tsp. dry mustard
3/4 cup dark brown sugar

1. I usually make the glaze the  night before, so I can get the ham right into the oven in the morning. Combine all the glaze ingredients in a saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil, then lower to a simmer, and cook for about a half-hour. Strain the pan contents and discard the solids. Reduce the liquid to about a half-cup. Refrigerate if you do this in advance.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Place the ham on a rack in a disposable aluminum pan. Cut shallow gashes in a criss-cross pattern across the top half. Spoon the glaze over the ham to completely wet the surface.

3. Combine the brown sugar and the dry mustard and pat it all over the ham. Pour a half-cup of water into the pan. Put the ham in the oven at 350 degrees.

4. Spoon some of the glaze over the top of the ham at 15-minute intervals until it's all used up. Try to get some glaze on all parts of the ham. Add more water to the pan when it dries up.

5. Continue baking until the ham reaches an internal temperature of 160 degrees on a meat thermometer. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for a half-hour before carving.

Serves twenty to thirty.


Savory Bread Pudding with Mushrooms

This is at its best with meaty, wild-tasting mushrooms: portobellos, criminis, shiitakes, chanterelles, porcinis, etc. The best cheeses are the ones that melt well and have an interesting tang: Gruyere, Fontina, Swiss, Provolone, mozzarella. (If you use the latter two, use a little Parmesan, too.)

3 cups half-and-half
4 eggs, beaten
1 tsp. Worcestershire
1/4 tsp. Tabasco
1/4 tsp. salt
1 Tbs. butter
18 inches of a loaf of stale French bread
1 1/2 cups sliced mushrooms
3/4 cup thinly sliced green onions
1 1/2 cup shredded Gruyere, Fontina, or other easy-melting white cheese

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.

1. Combine the half-and-half, eggs, Worcestershire, Tabasco, and salt in a bowl and blend well.

2. Slice the bread into thin (about 1/4 inch) slices. Butter the inside of a 9"x5"x4" baking dish or casserole. Place a layer of bread along the bottom. Sprinkle one-third each of the cheese, mushrooms, and green onions over the bread. Pour one-fourth of the milk-egg mixture over this, enough to soak it well. Push down gently until the bread is soaked.

3. Repeat the layers in the same order as above, following with a dousing of liquid. Finish with a layer of bread and the last of the liquid.

4. Place the baking dish in a pan of warm water and put the entire assembly into the preheated oven. Bake for an hour and 15 minutes at 300 degrees. Let it cool for at least a half-hour before serving. It can be sliced, but it’s perfectly fine to spoon it right out of the dish at the table.

Serves eight.


Dirty Rice

Dirty rice is the brother of jambalaya. It's much less complex, yet in its way is every bit as delicious. Unlike jambalaya, which can be served as a main course, dirty rice is a side dish. It's also a way to use all that stuff you pull out of the inside of a whole chicken. While you can use the heart, it's better to leave that out, and use about 50 percent chicken liver.

1/2 pound turkey giblets (heart removed)
1 large onion
1 green bell pepper with seeds, stem and membrane removed
1 rib celery
1/2 pound ground pork (desirable: substitute up to a third of this with pork liver)
2 Tbs. butter
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper
2 tsp. salt-free Creole seasoning
2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. marjoram
1 1/2 cups Uncle Ben's or other par-boiled rice
2 1/2 cups chicken stock

1. In two or three batches, chop the giblets, onion, bell pepper, and celery in a food processor until finely chopped.

2. Sauté the ground pork in a skillet until all the pink is gone. Drain the excess fat.

3. Heat the butter in a large, heavy saucepan and sauté the chicken-vegetable mixture until the onions are clear. Add the Worcestershire, crushed red pepper, Creole seasoning, salt, and marjoram. Stir, cover the pot, lower the heat, and simmer.

4. While that's cooking, prepare cook the rice. Put it, the chicken stock, and the salt into another saucepan. Bring the stock to a boil, lower to a simmer, cover, and cook 25 minutes, until all the liquid has been absorbed.

5. When the rice is cooked, fluff it with a kitchen fork and add it to the pan with the chicken-vegetable mixture. Add the ground pork. Stir to distribute all the ingredients. Add salt and pepper to taste.

6. Dump the mixture loosely into a pan and bake in a 300-degree oven for about five minutes, longer if the rice is very damp. It should be a little dry but not hard.

Serves eight side dishes.


Turkey-Andouille Gumbo

This is one of those soups that gets better after it sits in the refrigerator for a day. You might consider doing that, which will also reduce the amount of time needed on the stove by about a third.

1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup flour
1 large onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
One or two cooked turkey carcasses, with all available scraps
3 quarts chicken stock (or water)
1 Tbs. salt
1 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. Tabasco
2 bay leaves
1/4 tsp. dried thyme
1 lb. andouille or smoked sausage
2 green onions, chopped
2-3 cups cooked rice
Filé powder (available from stores with New Orleans products)

1. Blend the flour and the oil in a saucepan and make as dark a roux as you can, stirring constantly to avoid burning it. (The higher the heat, the more assiduously you must stir.)

2. When the roux is medium-dark, turn down the heat and add the onion, bell pepper, celery and parsley. Sauté them in the roux until the onions are clear and have begun to brown a little.

3. Add the turkey bones and meat to the pot, along with the chicken stock or water, salt, pepper, Tabasco, bay leaves, and thyme. Bring to a simmer and cook for about an hour.

4. Slice the andouille into one-inch-thick discs. Wrap them in paper towels and microwave them on medium power for about three minutes, to remove excess fat. Add the sausage to the gumbo pot.

5. Lower to a simmer and cook the gumbo for one to two hours. Stir every now and then. Remove the turkey bones, but strip off all the meat and return it to the pot.

6. Add the green onions and simmer for another three or four minutes.

7. Serve over cooked long-grain rice with a pinch or two of filé at the table.

Serves six to ten.


Orange Cheesecake

You must make this the night before Thanksgiving. The most time-consuming part of making a cheesecake is cooling it. This must be done slowly and gently, or you'll have cracks in the top.

Crust:
2 packages (out of the standard three in the standard box) cinnamon graham crackers
1/4 cup sugar
1 stick butter, melted

4 8-oz. packages cream cheese, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 cup sour cream
4 eggs
1/2 pint whipping cream
1 Tbs. vanilla
1 tsp. lemon juice
1/4 cup orange juice
Zest (grated peel) of one orange

Preheat the oven to 275 degrees.

1. Put the cream cheese and the sugar into the bowl of a mixer and blend on medium-slow speed until completely blended and fluffy--about 10 minutes.

2. While that's going on, make the crust. Grind the graham crackers into small crumbs in a food processor. Add the sugar and the butter and process until the butter has soaked all the crumbs.

3. Line the bottom of a 10-inch springform pan with parchment paper. Dump the crust mixture in and press a wedge of crumbs into the bottom corner all the way around. Then make a bottom crust, and finally press the remaining crumbs up the sides of the pan. It is not necessary for the crust to come all the way to the top of the pan. Set aside.

4. Add the sour cream to the mixer bowl. With a rubber spatula, scrape down the sides of the bowl after this and each other ingredient addition throughout the recipe.

5. Add the eggs, one at a time, allowing them to blend in completely before adding the next one. (Break each egg into a cup first to make sure it's okay before you add it.)

6. Add the cream, the vanilla, the juices, and the zest. Mix for another five minutes or so.

7. Pour the filling into the crust. Place the springform pan in a shallow pan (i.e., a pizza pan), and place it in the center of the oven at 275 degrees (no convection). Pour warm water into the bottom pan. Bake for 90 minutes, until you see the cheesecake has just a hint of browning on top.

8. Turn the oven off, but leave the cheesecake inside. After an hour, open the door a crack and let the cheesecake cool in the oven another half-hour. Remove the cheesecake and let it finish cooling on a counter. After another hour, remove the sides of the springform pan and put the cheesecake into the refrigerator. Chill at least three hours before serving.

Makes one ten-inch cheesecake; serves twelve to sixteen.

© 2005 Tom Fitzmorris. All rights reserved.