What’s the first dish to go at your Thanksgiving dinner? Dressing/stuffing? Green Bean Casserole? Pumpkin Pie? For Tom Grittner’s family, Lemon Asparagus With Savory Granola has become a new favorite. The homemade granola might be the key. Photos: Chris Emeott
If trying something completely different feels like going too far out on a culinary limb, making subtle changes can infuse freshness into any meal. Chef Tom Grittner of The Table at Everly Farms Winery graciously shared the recipes for and stories behind some of his favorite Thanksgiving dishes.
Lemon Asparagus With Savory Granola
- 1 lb. fresh asparagus
- 2 Tbsp. oil
- 1 lemon
- pinch of salt
Toss the asparagus in oil. Sprinkle with salt, and roast in the oven at 400 F until lightly charred and tender (about 8–10 minutes). Zest and juice the lemon over the asparagus to taste (about half the lemon). Sprinkle savory granola over; serve.
For the granola
Dry
- 1 cup oats
- ½ cup puffed quinoa
- ¼ cup pumpkin or sunflower seeds
- ¼ cup hazelnuts or pine nuts
- 2 Tbsp. sesame seeds
- 1 Tbsp. whole coriander
- 1 Tbsp. cumin seeds
- 1 Tbsp. fennel seeds
- 1 tsp. red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp. ground black pepper
Wet
- ¼ cup. extra virgin olive oil
- 2 Tbsp. honey
- 1 Tbsp. water
- 1 ½ tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. lemon zest
- ½ tsp. ground ginger
- ½ tsp. smoked paprika
Toast the nuts; sesame, coriander, cumin and fennel seeds; and red pepper flakes until fragrant. Put in a bowl with other dry ingredients. Add all the wet ingredients to a pot; bring just to a boil. Do not reduce. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients; mix until fully coated. Add to a tray with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper; spread thinly without empty patches in between. Bake at 300 F for 35–40 minutes. Take the pan out of the oven every 10 minutes; stir to ingredients, making sure they evenly brown. Let cool on the tray. Break up the granola, and store it in an airtight container.
Mashed Potatoes and Gravy
Left: Mashed Potatoes and Gravy are one of Tom Grittner’s all-time favorites—and not just for Thanksgiving. (He had a Mashed Potato Bar at his high school graduation party.) To make the dish a smash hit, he recommends using high-
fat content butter (at least 82 percent).
For the potatoes
- 4 lbs. Yukon Gold potatoes
- 6 cloves garlic, grated
- 3 ½ lbs. high fat butter (Kerrygold is a good brand, or use anything over 82 percent fat.), softened and diced
- 1 cup cream
- salt, to taste
- black pepper, to taste
- green onions, chopped, to taste
Boil the potatoes with the skin on, so they do not absorb too much water. (The dryer the potato, the better.) Peel the potatoes while they are still hot, and pass them through a potato ricer for a smooth texture. Add the riced potatoes to a pot on low heat to dry out any leftover moisture from the potatoes. Grate the garlic on a microplane into the potatoes. Add a few cubes of butter at a time to the potatoes; vigorously mix them in until they are fully incorporated before adding more butter. If the emulsion starts to split, add a little bit of the cream to the potatoes. (You might not use all the cream, and that is totally fine.) Add salt and pepper. Top with green onions.
For the gravy
- ¼ cup fat (butter, fat used for turkey or turkey drippings)
- ¼ cup flour
- 2–3 cups broth, any variety
- salt, to taste
- pepper, to taste
- 1 tsp. white pepper
- ½–1 tsp. herbs (oregano, parsley or thyme)
Add the fat to a pan to heat and melt. Whisk in flour 1 Tbsp. at a time. Slowly pour in the broth a cup at a time, whisking over medium heat to desired thickness. Add salt, peppers and seasonings.
Confit Turkey
- 1 turkey
- 1 cup salt
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 Tbsp. fresh rosemary
- 1 Tbsp. dried thyme
- 2 tsp. black pepper
- 2 tsp. dried oregano
- 2 tsp. ground mustard
- 1 Tbsp. onion powder
- 1 Tbsp. garlic powder
- 2 tsp. ground ginger
- fat, tallow or any animal fat
Note: Adjust spice amounts to the size of turkey.
Beginning with the salt, combine all the ingredients. Rub the turkey with the dry brine; place in the refrigerator for 24–36 hours. After dry brining the turkey, cut the thighs and legs off, and place those in a Dutch oven. (Reserve the breast for later.) Cover the turkey with fat, tallow or any saved animal fat. Bake in the oven at 250–270 F. for a couple of hours. Depending on the size of the turkey, remove it from the oven when it is tender and falls off the bone. On Thanksgiving Day, reheat the turkey in the oven to crisp up the outside. For the turkey breast, roast those the day of, reaching an internal temperature of 165 F.
Everly Farms Winery
Instagram: @everlyfarmsmn
