Thanksgiving side dishes that go with smoked turkey

It doesn't get more Texan than cowboy campfire cooking, and what a heady Thanksgiving menu cowboy cuisine inspires. Think smoke and bacon. Dutch-oven potatoes. Simple foods that translate easily to your home kitchen.

Photo by EVANS CAGLAGE/Staff Photographer; styling by TINA DANZE/Special Contributor; goblet and plate: Z Gallerie; napkin and placemat: Sur La Table; flatware: Cost Plus World Market

Nice accompaniments to smoked turkey are Sausage and Grits Dressing, a salad with ranch dressing and Mango-Cranberry Salsa.

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The dishes pair nicely with smoked turkey – and having somebody else smoke the bird simplifies things for the cook on Thanksgiving Day.

To assemble our menu, we turned to a number of local cowboy chefs and ranch and chuck-wagon cooks, especially the ones profiled by Grady Spears and June Naylor in Cooking the Cowboy Way (Andrews McMeel, $29.99).

Many, like self-proclaimed outlaw chef Terry Chandler, do their cooking indoors as well as out. Find him at his Fred's Texas Cafe in Fort Worth – when he's not out cooking by his chuck wagon. He's got your number with bacon-based Green Chile Cream Gravy that's just right with a slow-smoked Thanksgiving turkey and cayenne-kissed Oven-Fried Potatoes.

Mango-Cranberry Salsa may seem too froufrou for the trail, but the recipe comes straight out of Barbecue, Biscuits & Beans: Chuck Wagon Cooking (Bright Sky Press, $24.95). It's by two Albany, Texas, chuck-wagon cooks, Bill Cauble and rancher Cliff Teinert.

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Round out your cowboy Thanksgiving with oven-roasted potatoes, Sausage and Grits Dressing that we borrowed from our Southern Living neighbors, and a green salad with ranch dressing fancied up with leftover crumbled bacon from the gravy.

Individual chocolate-pecan tartlets from Hill Country baking queen Rebecca Rather make a grand finale. You can serve them plain or add your own whipped cream flourish to mark the end of a wonderful Thanksgiving feast.

For making the most of leftovers, there's Smokehouse Turkey and Rice Soup.

Kim Pierce is a Dallas freelance writer.

SMOKEHOUSE TURKEY AND RICE SOUP

1

smoked turkey carcass

1

teaspoon garlic powder

1

teaspoon ground cumin

1

bell pepper, chopped

1

onion, chopped

1

carrot, chopped

1

large potato, skinned and cubed

1

cup tomatoes, cubed

1

cup rice

Salt and pepper to taste

In a large stockpot, cover the turkey carcass with water. Add garlic powder and cumin. Simmer 3 to 4 hours.

Remove carcass from broth. Strain broth to remove all bones. Remove meat from bones and discard bones. Return broth to pot. Add bell pepper, onion, carrot, potato, tomatoes, rice and reserved turkey meat. Return to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 1 hour. Adjust seasonings. Makes 4 servings.

PER SERVING: Calories 331 (7% fat) Fat 2 g (1 g sat) Cholesterol 27 mg Sodium 675 mg Fiber 4 g Carbohydrates 60 g Protein 16 g

SOURCE: New Braunfels Smokehouse: Our Favorite Recipes by Susan Dunbar Snyder (Treeline Publishing, $29.95)

OVEN-FRIED COWBOY POTATOES

10

medium new potatoes, skin-on

½

cup butter

1

teaspoon salt

1

teaspoon cayenne pepper

1

teaspoon chopped fresh parsley (optional)

Preheat oven to 450 F. Cut potatoes into quarters lengthwise. Melt butter in oven-safe 13x20-inch pan or 2 smaller pans. Place quarters cut-side-down in hot butter. Bake for 25 minutes, turn potatoes and bake 15 minutes more.

Remove from oven. Mix salt and cayenne. Sprinkle over potatoes. Sprinkle on parsley, if desired.

Makes 8 to 10 servings.

PER SERVING: Calories 202 (47% fat) Fat 10 (6 g sat) Cholesterol 27 mg Sodium 336 mg Fiber 3 g Carbohydrates 22 g Protein 4 g

SOURCE: Adapted from Barbecue, Biscuits & Beans: Chuck Wagon Cooking by Bill Cauble and Cliff Teinert (Bright Sky Press, $24.95)

MANGO-CRANBERRY SALSA

½

cup sweetened, dried cranberries

¼

cup lime juice

1 ½

cups peeled and chopped mango (see Note)

2

to 4 fresh jalapeños, seeded and chopped

2

cloves garlic or 1 shallot, minced

2

tablespoons chopped cilantro

EVANS CAGLAGE/Staff Photographer; styling by TINA DANZE/Special Contributor; shot glasses: Crate & Barrel; wood charger: Z Gallerie

Set out individual servings of Mango-Cranberry Salsa in shot glasses.

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Soak cranberries in lime juice 20 minutes. Reserve juice and roughly chop cranberries. Combine all ingredients, including reserved juice. Allow to stand for an hour before serving. Makes 2 cups.

Note: This is a very flexible recipe. If you can't find mango, substitute crisp, peeled and cored apples. Vary fruit and chile amounts to taste.

PER 2-TABLESPOON SERVING: Calories 25 Negligible fat Negligible sodium Fiber 1 g Carbohydrates 7 g

SOURCE: Adapted from Barbecue, Biscuits & Beans: Chuck Wagon Cooking by Bill Cauble and Cliff Teinert (Bright Sky Press, $24.95)

GREEN CHILE CREAM GRAVY

6

large green chiles, such as Hatch, Anaheim or poblano

1

pound bacon, diced (see Note)

¾

cup all-purpose flour

4

cups milk or half-and-half (see Note)

½

teaspoon salt

½

teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Roast the chiles over an open heat source until they blister; transfer to a closed container like a paper sack to allow them to steam. Once they are cooled, about 20 minutes, peel, seed and chop into medium dice. (Note: If they are hot chiles, wear gloves.) Set aside.

Fry the bacon in a skillet over medium heat. When it's crisp, remove and set aside to drain; reserve crumbled bacon for a salad topping. Add flour to bacon drippings and stir constantly until flour stops foaming. Add the milk or half-and-half, increase heat to medium-high and stir until gravy begins to thicken. Don't let the gravy boil. Reduce heat and add salt and pepper. Stir in green chiles and serve. Makes 10 to 14 servings.

Note: You will have crumbled bacon left over from this recipe. Use it to top a green salad. The original recipe calls for heavy cream, but milk or half-and-half will still produce a very rich gravy.

PER SERVING: Calories 164 (62% fat) Fat 11 g (5 g sat) Cholesterol 16 mg Sodium 144 mg Fiber 1 g Carbohydrates 12 g Protein 4 g

SOURCE: Fred's Texas Cafe / Adapted from Cooking the Cowboy Way by Grady Spears with June Naylor (Andrews McMeel Publishing, $29.99)

SAUSAGE AND GRITS DRESSING

5

cups canned chicken broth

1 ¼

cups uncooked, stone-ground white or yellow grits (see note)

1

cup (4 ounces) shredded cheddar or jack cheese

Nonstick cooking spray

1

pound ground spicy pork sausage

1/3

cup butter

5

celery ribs with leaves, chopped

4

garlic cloves, minced (about a tablespoon)

1

large onion, chopped

½

cup chopped fresh parsley

1

large egg, lightly beaten

EVANS CAGLAGE/Staff Photographer; styling by TINA DANZE/Special Contributor; serving spoon and fork: Sur La Table

Sausage and Grits Dressing combines two Southern favorites in a single dish. The turkey is from Greenberg Smoked Turkey in Tyler.

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Combine broth, water and grits in a large saucepan; bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 20 to 25 minutes or until very thick, stirring often. Remove from heat and add cheese, stirring to melt cheese. Spoon grits mixture into a 13x9-inch baking pan lined with heavy-duty plastic wrap. Cool completely. Cover and chill 2 hours or until very firm.

Preheat oven to 450 F. Invert grits onto a large cutting board and discard plastic wrap. Cut grits into ¾-inch cubes. Place in a single layer on a large baking sheet coated with nonstick cooking spray. Bake for 20 minutes; turn grits cubes and bake 12 more minutes until crisp and browned. Remove grits cubes and reduce oven temperature to 350 F.

In a large skillet, stirring to crumble, cook sausage until it's no longer pink; remove from skillet, reserving drippings in skillet. Add butter and melt over medium-high heat. Add celery, garlic and onion; sauté 5 minutes, or until tender. Combine onion mixture, sausage, grits cubes and parsley, tossing gently. Drizzle beaten egg over grits mixture and toss gently; spoon into an 11x17-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Bake, uncovered, at 350 F for 40 to 45 minutes or until browned. Makes 8 servings.

Note: For a shortcut, you can substitute 24 to 32 ounces ready-to-eat polenta for the homemade grits. Whole Foods Market also carries ready-to-eat grits.

PER SERVING: Calories 409 (55% fat) Fat 25 g (11 g sat) Cholesterol 104 mg Sodium 1,163 mg Fiber 1 g Carbohydrates 25 g Protein 21 g

SOURCE: Adapted from Glorious Grits by Susan McEwen McIntosh (Oxmoor House, $22.95)

PEQUEÑO CHOCOLATE-PECAN TARTLETS

Crust (recipe follows)

1

cup chopped pecans

½

cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1

cup firmly packed golden brown sugar

3

large eggs

½

cup Lyle's Golden Syrup or light corn syrup

1

teaspoon vanilla extract

½

teaspoon grated orange peel (orange part only, optional)

½

cup chocolate chips

Whipped cream

Make the crust.

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Spread the pecans in a single layer on a baking sheet and toast until darker in color and fragrant, 7 to 9 minutes; set aside.

Using an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or a handheld electric mixer), cream butter and brown sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs, 1 a time, beating on medium speed after each addition. Add the syrup, vanilla and orange peel, and beat on medium speed until incorporated. Fold in pecans and chocolate chips. Set aside.

Reheat the oven to 350 F. Unwrap the refrigerated dough and cut into 1/8 -inch slices. Press dough slices into the bottoms and all the way up the sides of 2-inch-diameter minimuffin cups. Spoon about 1 tablespoon of filling into each cup. Bake until the crust is golden and the filling is set, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool for 15 minutes. Turn tartlets out of the pan. Serve warm or at room temperature with your favorite whipped cream. Makes 24 (2-inch) tartlets.

Crust: Place 1 ½ cups bleached all-purpose flour in a medium bowl; set aside. Cut ¾ cup unsalted butter, chilled, into ½ -inch cubes, and add to flour. Cut 1 (3-ounce) package cream cheese, chilled, into ½ -inch cubes, and add to flour. Using a pastry blender or two knives, cut butter and cream cheese into the flour until mixture resembles cornmeal. Add 2 tablespoons cold water, and combine until the dough holds together. Use your hands to gently form the dough into a log about 1 ½ inches in diameter. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 2 hours. Note: The dough can be made up to 2 days ahead.

PER SERVING: Calories 272 (60% fat) Fat 19 g (10 g sat) Cholesterol 66 mg Sodium 37 mg Fiber 1 g Carbohydrates 25 g Protein 3 g

SOURCE: Pastry Queen Parties: Entertaining Friends and Family, Texas Style by Rebecca Rather and Alison Oresman (Ten Speed Press, $32.50)

MENU AND DECORATING NOTES

EVANS CAGLAGE/Staff Photographer; styling by TINA DANZE/Special Contributor; wire tray: Crate & Barrel

Keep the centerpiece simple and low: candles and unshelled nuts, perhaps some pine cones

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Smoked turkeys are available at some barbecue restaurants, such as Pappas Bros. Bar-B-Q, Sonny Bryan's Smokehouse and Mike Anderson's Barbecue. Whole Foods Markets that serve barbecue also sell whole smoked turkeys. Some places, such as Back Country Bar-B-Q and Dickey's Barbecue Pit, will smoke your turkey for a fee. Prices vary. Goodies From Goodman offers free shipping on its smoked turkeys at goodiesfromgoodman.com. You can pick up a Greenberg smoked turkey at Central Market, or order from the company in Tyler up to the day before Thanksgiving; call 903-595-0725 or order at gobblegobble.com. Prices vary.

Salad greens with ranch dressing: Toss your favorite mix of greens with ranch dressing and top with bacon crumbles left over from Green Chile Cream Gravy. Add some tomatoes or chopped red and yellow bell pepper for color.

Give your table a dash of cowboy chic by tying the napkins with strips of leather from the crafts store.

This article was first published in Nov. 2009.

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