I did it!!! I'M THE MAN!!!

Well, I pulled it off.

I made:
- 1 20 lb turkey
- Mashed Potatoes
- Gravy
- Pretzel Salad
- Taco Dip (Cindy)

Other people brought other items, and there's a ton leftover for me even after everyone took their share.

If you brine your turkey it just means to soak it in a salt water solution. Brining a Turkey makes it retain its moisture... A brined turkey loses about 7% of its water volume, normally it loses about 18%. I also cooked the turkey in an oven bag, again making it retain its moisture. We had enough grease to make a TON of gravy. Awesome!!!

The result was a turkey you could just peel meat off of. I did use a carving knife, but I was basically just pushing the meat off if it. For my first big bird, I had enough advice from my Aunt Diane and from Julie to make it come out just right.

I made mashed potatoes and gravy. This was really easy.

The pretzel salad is a great sweet and salty combination. Basically, it's cool whip, Jello and pretzels. I made every layer with low fat and low sugar substitutes, and it was still great.

The Taco dip was just that. Cindi Sankey introduced her version to our family years ago and it really stuck to me.

In a general reflection, turning 30 has been good to me. In the Hebrew tradition, turning 30 is like our equivalent of turning 18. I am finally the man of the house. Now I just need to fill it. :)

Love,

Dave

PS. INTERNET PICTURES!!!!