American Experience:
Fried Dough,
Sautéed Mushrooms,
Roast Turkey,
Mashed Potatoes With Artichokes,
Basic Mayonnaise

Fried Dough
(The Tucci Cookbook, page 97)

Sautéed Mushrooms
(The Tucci Table, page 155)

Roast Turkey
(The Tucci Table, page 136)

Mashed Potatoes With Artichokes
(The Tucci Cookbook, page 224)

Basic Mayonnaise
(The Tucci Table, page 218)






In darkness (five in the morning), Tom loaded his car with groceries, pots, pans, knives, and blenders for the trek across town to Michelle’s house. By six o'clock, the two chefs had already cleared and scrubbed the countertops, sorted the necessary ingredients, and begun marathon preparations for a Tucci Thanksgiving!!


Preheating the oven to 450, we pulled the thawed turkey out of the fridge and placed it in a roasting pan. Using Tucci’s recipe for roast chicken we combined melted butter with chopped rosemary, thyme, and sage into a savory mixture that was carefully squeezed between the turkey breast and skin. We also seasoned the bird’s cavity with salt and pepper before stuffing it with lemons and onions. We poured a half-bottle of Winking Owl Chardonnay into the pan. We did not have cheesecloth available, so we tented the turkey with aluminum foil as a precaution to prevent the skin from burning and placed it onto the bottom rack of the oven for its initial hour of cooking.

  


We turned our attention to zeppole ... fried dough. Several potatoes were boiled, peeled and mashed. We debated over the degree to which they needed to be mashed. As we were slowly adding flour to the dough-mix, the chunks became more prominent, and it became apparent that we should have mashed the potatoes more thoroughly. We attempted to address the issue by re-mashing them in the dough ball (after the flour had been added), with very little success. We could do nothing but cross our fingers and hope for the best.


Michelle's niece, Grace, helps with the dough


The dough incorporated yeast, requiring us to set it aside for two hours in order to permit it to double in size. We put it in a bowl, covered it in plastic wrap, and set it next to the oven, where its ambient warmth would help facilitate its rise.


Then we attempted to make mayonnaise. Stanley Tucci acknowledged in his basic mayonnaise recipe how finicky the process for making mayonnaise can be; requiring pre-warming the mixing bowl, whipping the egg yolks just right, and adding extra virgin olive oil drop by drop. Emulsification is a good sign. Separation of ingredients during mixing is certain death. Tucci noted that his first several attempts to make mayonnaise had been utter failures.

Our first attempt was a massive failure, too. It was obvious that we failed to understand just how slow and precise the process needed to be. It didn’t help that the recipe was vague and lacking in specificity, either. We couldn't ask 'WWSTD' (What Would Stanley Tucci Do?), because he apparently couldn't make it either. 

The entire effort was doomed right from the start, and the best word I could use to describe it is ‘yuk!’

  

So we decided to try again, this time using a professional mixer and allowing more time for the egg yolks to ‘foam’. We also used a syringe to add olive oil in excruciatingly tiny increments. We literally added oil by the drop. Slowly ... ever so slowly ... the mayonnaise began to emulsify. It remained slightly yellow in color, which confused us somewhat, but after a solid half hour of whipping and incrementally adding oil to it, we had a result that was approaching a decent finished product. 


But as we continued to add oil (as per the recipe), the mixture spontaneously separated. Within seconds, it went from creamy near-perfection to a curdled oily mess. Failure number two. Stanley Tucci was right. It is a difficult process. It certainly required more finesse than we had on this day. We decided to re-visit mayonnaise in the future.


Conversely, the turkey looked promising as we removed it for basting after ninety minutes of roasting! We added the remaining half-bottle of chardonnay to the pan prior to basting.


And our dough had, indeed, doubled in size and was ready for frying. We made several samples; dropping blobs of dough from a tablespoon into the oil. Tucci mentioned that they could be served plain or with granulated sugar. We did both. They were delicious fresh out of the fryer, but the longer they sat, as with most things deep-fried (i.e. McDonalds French Fries), the less edible they became. 

After the initial gorging by family members (one or two pieces per person), the rest remained untouched. 

If we were to do it over again, we would more-thoroughly mash the potatoes before adding flour and better form (flatten) the pieces before placing them in the pan.

  


Michelle then began the process of preparing artichoke hearts for sautéing in chopped onion and garlic (as a base for mashed potatoes with artichokes). We attempted to use fresh artichokes, but it became quickly apparent that we had no idea how to correctly peel an artichoke to its ‘heart.’ YouTube videos didn't seem to help either. After destroying four artichokes in the attempt, we opted to use flavorless and soggy product from a jar that seemed have the same effect on the potatoes.

  


One of the anticipated highlights of our Tucci Thanksgiving menu was sautéed mushrooms made with very rare and expensive chanterelle mushrooms. We discovered that one pound cost ninety dollars, because they (like truffles) can only be grown in the wild. Tam had them shipped overnight, and they arrived in a Federal Express package, sent from a farm in Maspeth, New York. The gorgeous golden-yellow oversized mushrooms looked both exotic and delectable.


Tom infused olive oil with garlic before adding button mushrooms. Once the buttons were softened, the chanterelle mushrooms were tossed in with butter for a quick two minutes to heat and glaze-coat them before serving. They looked and smelled fantastic!


The turkey had been roasting in the oven for four hours. Its tantalizing scent had been wafting throughout the house all morning. When we removed the pan and lifted the protective aluminum foil tent, it was obvious that we had created a culinary masterpiece. We set the 'work of art' aside to rest while we finished the side dishes.


Michelle’s brother-in-law, Jonathan, carved the turkey while final preparations were made; sides garnished, table set, and wine poured. After seven hours of work, the annual November cornucopia was ready to serve!


Our Tucci Thanksgiving dinner was a success!! The turkey meat was superlative; juicy, tender, and flavorful. Perhaps the best ever! The sautéed mushrooms were a unique and interesting delicacy. The home-made mayo was great ... for a brief shining moment ... until it wasn’t.



Some meals are clear-cut victories. Others are learning experiences ... this was some of both.

Learning opportunities? There were plenty! We learned that making mayonnaise is essentially an art-form. We embarrassingly learned that we did not know how to find the heart of a fresh artichoke. We learned that ninety dollar mushrooms tasted pretty much like ordinary mushrooms. And we learned (one more time) to be fully-prepared.

Learning is why we are doing this in the first place!!

So until our next culinary adventure ... Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!


Michelle and Tom