Turkey 3 Days: Turkey Gravy and Spuds

I love this easy comfort food.

First step:  First Day Crock Pot Turkey

Second step:  Make Gravy

Third step:  Add pre-cooked turkey

Serve over mashed potatoes.

How to Make Gravy

There are probably oodles of ways to make gravy, but this is how I do it!

The formula to remember is 1/4 cup butter, 1/4 cup flour, 2 cups broth.

In a pot over medium heat, melt about 4 T butter.  Add 1/4 cup flour, whisk to mix thoroughly.  When it just begins to brown, add the broth.  If I don't have broth, I use water and bouillon (like Superior Touch's Better Than Bouillon). 

I like to add some garlic, parsley, and poultry seasoning or rosemary for turkey/chicken gravy.  I like garlic, pepper, and savory for beef.  Sometimes, I just like it very plain.  Use what you like!  Continue to whisk.

Heat to a boil, simmer until it thickens.  It will thicken more when removed from heat.

My family ate this before I could get a picture of the final product.  I have a brood of gravy lovers!

Turkey 3 Days: Turkey Noodle Soup

 First step:  Turkey 3 Days: First day crock pot Turkey

Start with the broth you already made.  Skim the hardened fat off the top.  The stock may be like Jell-O, which is actually a good thing, as gross as it may seem.  (Did you know gelatin comes from bones?  Now you do!)

 Chop your veggies.  I like onions, carrots, celery and a little garlic. (I chopped them fairly fine this time as a ploy to make it harder for the kids to pick them out!)  I drizzle a little olive oil in the pot I will use for the soup, and add veggies once the oil is hot.  Stir fry until the veggies just start to soften.  I go by smell.  It's ready when it starts smelling good! 

Then, dump your stock into the pot and add water.  I have a 6-quart pot, so I fill it up to about 2 inches from the top.  Once the broth is heated, I toss in some dried parsley, a few shakes of poultry seasoning or Mrs. Dash or both, a pinch of nutmeg, and salt and pepper.  If the flavor isn't quite right, I'll also add a spoonful of chicken base (I like Superior Touch's Better Than Bouillon).

Once the veggies are nearly fully cooked, turn up the heat, boil, and add noodles to cook a couple minutes less than the box tells you to (they will continue cooking in the pot).  My favorite noodles are nice fat "homemade" egg noodles or Kluski noodles; however, Second Son is allergic to eggs, so I have switched to regular pasta.  Last, turn the stove off, and add the turkey meat you boiled previously.  It is already cooked, so it just needs to get heated and will also help to cool down the soup.  

Yum!

Next up: Turkey Gravy and Spuds

Trapped

How did I start the year so optimistically and end up feeling so crappy now?

That's the thought that came to me in the shower this morning.

I think a big part of the answer is: hormones.  I've always had issues with my "cycle" which is one of the many reasons I've been pregnant so many times.  My body is happier being pregnant.  It's certainly not more comfortable, but it beats my "normal" cycle of pain and I have WAY less migraines.  Pregnancy must supply a steady flow of the right hormones.  Maybe it's just easier to bear the uncomfortableness of pregnancy because it's for a great purpose.  I don't know.

It's been almost a year since the birth of my fourth child, and it occurs to me that this is usually about the time that I would be thinking about getting pregnant again.  But we are done having children.  I won't get off that "easy" this time.

Another big part of the answer is: stress.  Everyone has stress.  I'm not saying I am special in this regard.  But everyone has a different threshold of what they can handle.  I think I'm at max-capacity again.  My elevator will not leave ground level without breaking some cables.
We experienced life-changing upheaval a few years ago and I was just starting to get my head above water.  Then everything changed again.  It felt like everything we had been working toward was in vain.  There was no more light at the end of the tunnel.  No more hope for better stability in the future.  My husband's career path is again unknown.  I am fortunate that my husband is a hard worker and determined to provide for us.  I have great respect for and faith in him.  The last few years have strengthened that.  I don't fear like I did years ago; I know from experience that God provides.  Yet, it's hard for me to change directions.  I get mental whiplash quite easily.

So, let's throw in another element:  we're moving.  More specifically, we're moving to a bigger house.  So I should be happy, right?  I'm about half happy.  The other half of me is recoiling.  We will be tenants for the first time in our married life, and we will have to find tenants to rent the house we currently live in. There are school districts to change, utilities to transfer, and I will miss my neighborhood.  It all has me a little uneasy.  I like what is familiar to me.  I prefer to stay within the boundaries of my own little kingdom.  And I really don't like packing.  And did I mention that we'll be renting from my in-laws?

So.  Those are the major things, piled on top of the day-to-day things.  Too many choices, too many things to do, too much pain.  I had a migraine the other day that sucked the life out of me and left me clinging to the couch waiting for my already over-worked husband to come home.  These are the days that I feel like a bad mom and wife.  These kind of days make me feel like I will never accomplish anything.  These days press down on me and make it hard to breathe.  Where do I go from here?

Getting help is almost as discouraging as the pain itself.  I feel trapped.  Making healthy choices is much easier when you are healthy.  But trying is always better than giving up.  So, here I go, one step at a time.

Turkey 3 Days: First day crock pot

This is my most recent lifesaver.  Turkey Breast.  Supper for 3 (not necessarily consecutive) days.  Hallelujah!

Day One
Crock Pot Turkey Breast
Step one starts at the grocery store.  This is important: make sure the turkey breast you buy will fit in your crock pot!

I usually let the turkey thaw in the fridge for a night or two.  Sometimes three.  Once, I totally forgot about thawing it and put it in the sink with cold water to thaw.  That worked okay, but forethought works a lot better.  There is usually a big flap of fat on the end, I cut that off.  The brand I buy comes with a gravy packet, which I don't use.  Read the list of ingredients and you be the judge.

Pop that turkey in your slow cooker, slather on some garlic and rosemary (or poultry seasoning), salt and pepper, and a sprinkling of brown sugar.  Cook on low for about 5-6 hours.  Your crock pot may be different than mine, so keep an eye on it.

I usually make a pilaf or nuke some "baked" potatoes, add a veggie, and there's supper!  Now, a little more work...

My family eats a little less than one half.  Once I cut off the amount we will eat that night, I return the turkey to the crock, power off, until after we are done eating.  Then, after supper, I remove the other half of the meat, cut into pieces, and contain for later.  Then the bones and hard-to-remove-meat go back in the pot.  Add water to cover, add a couple allspice balls, maybe a bay leaf, and let it go a couple hours on high.

Once the kids are out of my hair, preferably sleeping, I can remove the meat (it will fall off the bones) and strain the broth.  Reserve the meat for your next meal. This whole process can get messy, but if you do it right, you will have such nice soft hands.  Ha ha, you'll see what I mean when you try it!  Put the broth in the fridge overnight.  The fat will float to the top and harden, so it will be easy to remove later.

So, now all the hard stuff is done.  Free sailing for two more days!  Well, kinda.

Up next:  Turkey Noodle Soup
or Turkey Gravy and spuds

Frustration

I am frustrated.  And exhausted.  And questioning my value.  I think that last thing is probably the worst.  I know I don't always feel like this, and I know there is hope, but it's harder to see right now under the weight of all the things that are piling up on me.

It's hard for me to admit that I may be less than what I want to be.  I guess that's why I'm writing this. If there's someone else out there who feels the same way, you are not alone.  And if putting my feelings into words will help me, maybe it's a starting point.  I am pulled in all directions and don't know where to start.  Or maybe I know more than I should.  It's all overwhelming.  And frustrating.