Thursday, December 31st - Happy New Year and Good Riddance 2020!

 So Christmas is over for yet another year. For most it was not the same celebration but hopefully you enjoyed it. If nothing else, it will be a memorable one, though not necessarily for the best reasons.

Ours was quiet. Patti and Greg and the kids came over for dinner. We were allowed as they advised if you live alone you could gather with one family. Good thing I don't have more than one child. It must have been tough for some families to decide who's house does Grandma go to? But in the end it's really a small price to pay if it helps beat this thing.

The turducken was quite the experience. I'd never completely deboned a bird before but now I feel quite confident doing it. First it was the chicken, which had to be completely deboned. Then the duck and finally the turkey. The turkey didn't have to be completely deboned. You left the leg bones (but not the thigh bones) and you also left the wings intact. Thank goodness for YouTube videos! Because ducks have such a large amount of fat under the skin, one video suggested searing the skin before assembly. Makes sense, as it might be really greasy with all that duck fat running through everything. The bonus is a container of duck fat in the fridge. That stuff is like gold for roasting potatoes. 

I deboned everything on Christmas eve and then wrapped everything tightly and put back into the fridge till Christmas morning.

First they were stacked on top of each other, with a layer of sausage stuffing in between each.

Next step was to stitch up the back. All birds had been opened down the back and the bones removed. 

After stacking, the sides were pulled together and the sewing began. I used a needle and some really strong thread. I felt a little like Meredith Grey inserting all those stitches into the layers of skin!

 

Once it was all sewn together and turned over, it looked just like any other turkey. I roasted it in a roasting bag and it came out perfect. I did forget to take a picture of it when it was done but it pretty much looked like any other roast turkey. The easy part was the carving. You just cut down through the middle as there were NO BONES! Easy, peasy. 

Am I glad I did it? Absolutely,  It was a real learning experience and something I never thought I'd be able to pull off. Would I do it again? Not likely. Been there, done that. For the most part it was tasty, although we did find the leg parts of the duck tough and chewy. Not that I should have been surprised by that. In future I will continue to cook duck my usual way - pan sear the breasts and confit the legs. 

I was glad that I still had time to completely cook it on Christmas day. I had gone over to Guelph on the 24th and stayed overnight. Then when all the gifts were open I went home to prepare dinner. 

South of Guelph there is a subdivision with lots of big, beautiful houses and they really go all out with the decorations. It was snowing when we headed out on Christmas Eve to look at the lights and that just added to the magic. Click on the link to see a short video I took as we drove by. Just ignore the conversation as we pretty much forgot we were taping as we drove!

https://photos.app.goo.gl/AzCRMZAhEfytEqqd8

Once the festivities were over on Christmas morning, it was time for me to head home. I had cleared the snow off my car the night before but you wouldn't have known it in the morning. Good thing Santa brought Greg a new snow blower for Christmas!

I spent my day preparing dinner. I had set the table the day before so I had the whole day to putter in the kitchen. 

The family arrived around 5:00 and we had a lovely meal together. The kids really enjoyed the newest residents at my house. I picked them up on the 23rd and brought them home.

This is Cabernet...

... and this is Merlot!

They're lop eared lion head bunnies. Apparently they are 18 weeks old and sisters. They were bought for two kids who are 5 and 6 years old and who apparently quickly lost interest and I guess mom was tired of taking care of them.  So now they live at my house. I'm sure I can find someone to look after them for me when I travel (whenever that might be!)

James brought a back pack with him on Christmas day and advised he was planning to stay over. News to me, but no problem - really happy to have him. I have the day bed up in the attic. It's a bit untidy up there at the moment. In fact, it's become a bit of a dumping ground and high on my list for the coming lockdown days. But he said he didn't mind. In fact he ended up staying for two night before I drove him home. Not much to do and he didn't bring his boots or outdoor clothing with him so we pretty much stayed inside. We watched a number of old jeopardy episodes to see how many correct answers we could each come up with!  He has to isolate for 14 days before he goes back to Borden so it was great to have some time together while I could. 

Tonight being New Years Eve, will be pretty quiet. Fortunately one of our admin friends has organized a Zoom party. So far 11 people have responded that they are participating. There are 20 on the guest list so hopefully more can join us! 

Have a great new years eve everyone and someday we will tell our great grandchildren about the new years eve that wasn't !