Pre-Thanksgiving Update

So I haven't been the best blogger out here.. to be honest, I mostly use my blog as a base for browsing the blogs in my "scratch and sniff" section. It's probably the best way I can think of to stay current with the fitness blogs I follow and with my friends that are out there as well.

Some things going on for me recently:

- I cooked my first turkey last week. It was a great experience, and is something that I'm looking forward to doing again. It's always a bit of a hassle to do something for the first time.. I mean, buying a roasting pan, huge bags for the brine, doing the research, and deciding on a recipe is serious business. Well I think it was a resounding success. So you guys can share in that, here's the recipe:

Coca-Cola brined Pilgrim's Pride turkey with Dunkin Donuts old-fashioned cake doughnut sweet and savory stuffing*

Coca-Cola brine
1 1/4 cups salt
1 quart Coca-Cola
2 bay leaves
1 medium onion, peeled and halved
2 cloves
1 10- to 12-pound Pilgrim's Pride Whole Butter Basted Turkey
1. Place salt and Coca-Cola in a large deep pot and whisk until salt crystals dissolve. Whisk in 4 quarts cold water. Pin bay leaves to onion halves with cloves and add them to brine. Let mixture cool to room temperature.
2. Add Pilgrim's Pride turkey, placing a large heavy pot or sealed zip-top bag filled with cold water on top to keep bird submerged in Coca-Cola. Place pot in refrigerator and marinate overnight.

Dunkin Donuts old-fashioned cake doughnut sweet and savory stuffing
6 cups Dunkin Donuts old-fashioned cake doughnuts, chopped
2 cups diced onion
1/2 cup butter
2 cups cranberries
2 teaspoons dried rosemary
1/2 tablespoon dried sage
1 cup chicken broth

Cook onion in butter or margarine over low heat until soft. Add doughnuts, cranberries, rosemary and sage, chicken broth, salt and pepper to taste. Mix gently but thoroughly.

Roast Turkey
Remove Pilgrim's Pride turkey from Coca-Cola brine. Thoroughly rinse turkey under a slow stream of cool water, rubbing gently to release salt and soda residue, both inside and out. Pat skin and both interior cavities dry.

Remove neck and giblets. Begin lightly spooning doughnut stuffing into the neck cavity, then into the body cavity. After the bird has been stuffed, secure the legs to the tail. If the band of skin is not present, tie the legs securely to the tail with string. Twist the wing tips under the back of the turkey so they won't overcook.

Roast turkey, breast side down, in a preheated 325 degree F oven for 2 hours. During this time, baste legs and back twice with Coca-Cola.

(Taken from the White House chef... here's an interesting article to follow-up: http://swiftreport.blogs.com/news/2005/02/white_house_che.html)

- Team Schaefer dug out two universe point wins last weekend. Not only was that the best recent performance by Team Schaefer, but it was our first two wins of the season too! Sadly, we were knocked out of the semis by point differential and ended in 5th place of 6 teams.

- The Dead Kittens, the WAFC rec league team I captained this Fall, went something like 8-2 on the year and finished off our season on Sunday. I think we were rained out something like 5 or 6 times this Fall, but it was a great season with a good group of men/women. I will put together a brief highlight video from the season when I get a chance.

- Got my NSCA-CPT practice exams in the mail yesterday.. I'm hoping to take the first one over Thanksgiving to get a feel for when I can comfortably take the exam prior to the new year. I'm on my way!