A Tale of Two Turkeys

We are a bit unusual in that we share Thanksgiving with friends that we only see once or twice a year on holidays. This tradition started many, many years ago when we moved to Massachusetts and knew few people well. One of my mother's career moves (she was a teacher), landed her an aid that quickly became a close friend, and we have been sharing this special holiday with them, the Black family, ever since.

Mr. Black has been doing his bird on the Weber for as long as I can remember. A couple of years ago he added a second bird to the mix, this one is smoked. I have always had a love for smoked foods. I remember smoked pheasant being a favorite of mine as a kid (I lived in Wisconsin, everything is shot, then smoked in those parts). Smoked cheese, ribs, and any other protein really. I love it all.

This long story is coming to an end, an end in which I get to declare that I am finally the proud owner of a smoker. I have had one of these bad boys 'on my list' for about 7 years now. I have done the cedar plank thing, and the smoker box insert thing. Neither of them impressed me. Now before you all get too impressed let me fess up and tell you I purchased the one that hooks up to my propane tank. This isn't true authentic Q, but it will do in a pinch, because after all, I am a modern woman and the gas grill is my version of microwave convenience.

This new contraption was filed under the "kitchen reno" project so at this point it's expense is a drop in the now overflowing bucket. I have two turkeys from a local farm waiting in my freezer, my husband already has the grill assembled. (He asked if I was going to do a bird tomorrow before we had even left Home Depot. I had to explain no, because they are still frozen. Besides, I need to hunt around for some fruit wood.) I hope you all had a wonderful meal with friends and family yesterday, we all have so many things to be thankful for- and this holiday of food celebration is always on the top of the list for us foodies. My favorite part of the meal was clearly the smoked turkey (which by the way is heaven on earth when pulled from the fridge for a snack the next day), what was yours?