Holiday Pies

When you make your Holiday Pies this year, if you can make up one or two extra.

Drop them off at the local Fire Station or Police department so that those that have to work get a special treat also.

COOKING A STUFFED TURKEY

Cooking a stuffed turkey can be a bit tricky. No matter what method you choose, you will need to make sure that you bake your bird to an internal meat temperature of 165º in an oven no less than 325º.

If you cook the turkey at any temperature less than that the stuffing will not cook thoroughly. The stuffing internal temperature needs to be more than 140º to kill any bacteria.

Using a slow cooking method with a stuffed bird has been known to cause numerous food poisening cases.

Holiday Prosecco

You are having a Christmas party and you want to serve something a bit different this year. Here is a treat that not only tastes great but is quite affordable.

Prosecco is an italian wine that is a bit stronger in alcohol strength than beer. It is named for the Prosecco grape.

It is dry and crisp with hints of fruit.

You can serve it just like champagne and with it's low price a bottle it is great to use for large groups of people.

Nuttier Nuts

The holidays are upon us and all of the recipes are asking for nuts. So how do you toast nuts for most recipes? Here is a quick guide. Be sure to use the prepared and toasted nuts as soon as possible, or store in a tightly sealed container.

To toast the nuts you can place them in a single layer in a baking dish or baking sheet. Keep a close eye on them because the times below are suggested. Once nuts begin to toast they can burn very quickly.

You can bake all of the following nuts at 375°F for 4-6 minutes, you can tell that they are done when:

Pecans - Toasted color will be slightly darker than raw color

Walnuts - Toasted color wil be pale brown and a definate stronger aroma

Macadamia Nuts - Toasted color will be golden brown

Hazlenuts - Toasted color will be darker than the raw nut and the skins may begin to crack

Almonds - Toasted color will be a light golden brown