November's possibilities are exciting.....

This has been a crazy month so far. My baby brother got married, my birthday happened, holiday preparation is in full swing. Of course, we just started the second trimester of our homeschool and it looks so fun. Thanksgiving is next week and I am excited for all the cooking involved. However, I am looking forward to the year I can cook the whole meal and serve it to my friends and family. Don't get me wrong I do love the big family dinners but only cooking a side dish really cramps my inner chef. This year I am making a brownie ice cream cake for my sweet nephew, his birthday usually falls on or around the day, and a Cajun seasoned turkey in our infrared propane cooker and maybe I can sneak in another dish without upsetting the in-laws. I have my favorite recipes for theses two dishes, the brownies are always Ghirardelli's delicious brownie recipe and my turkey rub comes from Bon Appetit. I will for sure post pictures next week, but for now here are the recipes I will use.

Bon Appetit (my favorite magazine ever!!!!) Cajun Seasoning

5 Tbsp Kosher Salt
2 Tbsp Cayenne Pepper
2 Tbsp Garlic Powder
2 Tbsp Sweet Paprika
1 Tbsp Dried Oregano
1 Tbsp Dried Thyme
1 Tbsp Black Pepper
1 Tbsp Onion Powder

Stir these all together in a small bowl with an airtight lid. Can be made one month ahead, and stored in the airtight container. Remove the amount you need from the bowl and reseal the lid (you don't want to contaminate the extra seasoning with turkey grossness). I keep this seasoning around all year for the random pots of gumbo, for grilled chicken...well the uses are kind of endless and you will be surprised how fast you use it all once you start using it. I buy those Costco/Sam's size of each spice so I can make it whenever :)

So you just basically rinse the turkey, take out all the innards from the cavity and rub it down with the seasoning. I rub under the skin, on top of the skin and inside the cavity. Then cook it either in the oven or I use the infrared propane cooker (truthfully my husband does this part, mostly, it appeals to his inner grillmaster).The bird gets crispy like a fried turkey but without the oil and it's so juicy! I want to add that I just love, love, love this cooker. ( no one made me say it) It's great for pork loin, but that's for a later day.

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41keMAAbtJL._SL500__SR290,237__.jpg

OK so to the best part DESSERT!!

Ghirardelli's Chocolate Brownies
Makes 16 brownies

1/2 c Semi-sweet chocolate chips (get the best you can afford)
4 oz Semi-sweet baking bar (same deal here)
1/2 c Butter, cut into pieces
1 c Firmly packed brown sugar
1 Tbsp pure(never imitation) vanilla extract
2 Eggs
3/4 c + 2 Tbsp AP Flour
1/4 tsp Baking powder
3/8 Tsp Salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, prepare an 8 inch square pan by lightly buttering it.Chop 4 oz chocolate and melt over double boiler until smooth. Remove from heat and set aside to cool. Stir in vanilla and brown sugar. Add eggs and mix well. In a separate bowl sift together the dry ingredients. Slowly add sifted dry ingredients into the egg/chocolate mixture. Fold in chocolate chips, then pour into prepared pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes.

**Little disclaimer!! These are recipes I have used many times and written in my little recipe composition book ($0.10 at back to school time) so I may have slightly modified the recipes. I believe they are pretty accurate to the originals, however.