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Let’s go back to the ‘40s, ‘50s and ‘60s. On the Hitchens Farm, Mom always held the dinner, and the main course was turkey.

I need to say here that Mom loved having family and friends at her large dinner table and enjoyed every moment of it. Notice I did not say “entertaining� — the entertainment part was supplied by the children.

All the grown children with their spouses and children arrived automatically, along with whoever else mom knew had no other place to go.

My sister and I always watched as the driveway and side of the country road filled with cars. Our thoughts were, “All them dishes to be done,� as Mom always said, “Don’t worry about the dishes. The girls will do them.�

Let’s explore some meats, with turkey being the first one. During the ‘50s, Dad brought home “Tommy� in August to be fattened up for dinner in November.

Well, my three younger brothers and I had other plans — Tommy became our pet. We chased him, and he chased us. Eventually he became friendly and would run to us as we chased each other.

Then, one day about two days before Thanksgiving dinner, Tommy was missing. We found him soaking (naked) in a tub of cold water in the outdoor kitchen. By the time Thanksgiving dinner was on the table the four of us, bawling our eyes out, had told everyone not to eat Tommy the Turkey.

Each year afterwards, Mom bought a turkey from the store and had to show us the frozen turkey in the packaging.

Let’s cook a store-purchased turkey.

COUNTRY ROAST TURKEY WITH BREAD STUFFING

14-16 lb. turkey, 3 sticks chopped celery, 1 medium chopped onion, 3/4 cup butter, 1/4 tsp sage (optional), 12 slices day-old bread (cubed), 1/4 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp black pepper.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. If using a frozen turkey, thaw completely. In a saucepan sauté celery and onion in butter until tender. You can also add sage for more flavor. Heat thoroughly, remove from heat and pour over cubed bread. Mix well. Season the inside and outside of the turkey with salt and pepper. Fill the cavity of the turkey with the bread mixture. Cook turkey, covered, about 20 minutes per pound. Baste turkey with pan drippings occasionally. If more liquid is needed, use chicken or turkey broth.

BRAISED DUCK BREASTS WITH APPLES AND ONIONS

1 tbsp olive oil, 2 duck breasts, 1 large onion, 2 large garlic cloves, 2 medium red apples, 4-5 sprigs fresh thyme, 1 cup stock (chicken or vegetable), 1/2 cup frozen cranberries.

Slice the onions into ¼ inch thick pieces. Do not peel the apples. Quarter each apple, remove the core from each quarter. Then slice each quarter into four wedges. Thinly slice the garlic cloves. Bring the duck breasts to room temperature, pat them dry with a paper towel. Using a sharp knife, make long diagonal cuts along the skin of the duck breasts. The cuts should cut all the way through the duck skin but not cut the meat. Once done, make another set of cuts at 90 degrees to create a diamond pattern. Making these cuts will help the duck fat render. Generously season the duck breasts with salt and pepper. Heat one tbsp of olive oil in a heavy bottom pan on medium-high heat. Add the duck breasts to the pan skin side down and cook without moving for about 6-8 minutes. Once the skin is properly seared and crispy, the duck breasts will very easily release from the pan. If you try to lift the duck breasts and they are really sticking to the pan then let them cook for another minute or so. Once seared, remove the duck breasts to a plate skin side up. Drain all the fat from the pan into a bowl to use for the next step. Return the pan to the stove, add a little bit of the saved duck fat (about 1/2 a tbsp) and add the sliced onions. Cook on medium heat, stirring occasionally for 10 minutes until the onions just begin to soften and slightly turn color. You may need to add a bit more duck fat as needed. Add the sliced garlic and cook for another 1-2 minutes. If desired, add a bit more duck fat (1-2 tsps) to the pan, add the apple wedges, thyme leaves, and mix well. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Move the apple-onion mixture around to create space for the duck breasts. Return the duck breasts to the pan and nestle them between the apple-onion mixture skin side up. Add the stock to the pan, bring it to boil. Reduce the heat to low so that the mixture just simmers, cover the pan tightly with a lid and cook on low for 1.5 hours. After 1.5 hours, remove the lid, turn the heat up to high and cook for about 3-5 minutes to reduce the sauce a bit. Once the sauce is reduced, add half a cup of frozen cranberries, mix them in with a spoon and transfer the pan to the oven turned to broil. Broil for about 3-5 minutes or until the skin gets crispy again. Make sure to watch the oven carefully as broiling can turn the food from beautifully golden and crispy to dark and burnt in about 45 seconds if you leave it too long. Serve with mashed potatoes, steamed vegetables or rice.

TEXAS STYLE SMOKED BRISKET

1 12-14 pound whole packer brisket, 2 tbsps coarse Kosher salt, 2 tbsps coarse black pepper, 2 tbsps garlic powder.

Store your brisket in the refrigerator until you are ready to start trimming. Cold briskets are much easier to work with. Flip your brisket over so the point end is underneath. Remove any silver skin or excess fat from the flat muscle. Trim down the large crescent moon shaped fat section until it is a smooth transition between the point and the flat. Trim the excess or loose meat and fat from the point. Square the edges and ends of the flat. Flip the brisket over and trim the top fat cap to about 1/4 inch thickness across the surface of the brisket. In a mixing bowl or empty spice container, mix the salt, pepper and garlic. Spread over the brisket to evenly distribute the spices on all sides. Set your smoker to 225 degrees using indirect heat and hardwood smoke. Place the brisket on the smoker with the point end facing your main heat source. This is a thicker part of the brisket and it can handle the additional heat. Close the lid and smoke until and internal thermometer reads 165 degrees (usually takes around 8 hours). On a large work surface, roll out a big piece of butcher paper (or foil) and center your brisket in the middle. Wrap the brisket by folding edge over edge, creating a leak proof seal all the way around. Return the wrapped brisket to the smoker, seam side down so the weight from the brisket crimps the edges of the paper wrap down tight. Close the lid on the smoker and, maintaining 225 degrees, continue cooking until the internal temperature of the brisket reaches 202 degrees in the thickest part of the meat (takes anywhere from 5-8 hours). Remove the brisket to a large cutting board and allow it to rest for 1 hour before slicing. Slice both the point and the flat against the grain with a sharp knife and serve immediately.

ITALIAN STUFFED TURKEY BREAST

This last recipe is from an old dear friend of mine who is no longer with us. Barbara might be gone, but her amazing recipe lives on.

For the stuffing: 2/3 cup dried cranberries, 7 tbsps Marsala, 2 tbsps olive oil, 2 banana shallots (peeled and finely chopped), 1/4 tsp ground cloves, 1/2 tsp ground allspice, 2 tsps chopped fresh sage, 2 1/4 pounds Italian sausages, 2 eggs (beaten), 1/2 cup grated Parmesan, 1 cup breadcrumbs, 11 lb. boneless turkey breast (butterflied, with skin left on), 1/4 cup duck or goose fat.

Put the cranberries and Marsala into a small saucepan and bring to a boil, then take off the heat and leave to one side. Put the oil into a large frying pan or similar heavy pan, and fry the shallots for a minute or so, then add the spices and chopped sage, turning them into the soft shallots. Squeeze the sausage meat out of its skins, add to the pan, and break it up — using a wooden fork and spatula for ease — turning it in the hot pan until it loses its pinkness. This will take about 5 minutes. Take the frying pan off the heat and turn the contents into a large bowl, mixing in the steeped cranberries and any Marsala clinging to them, and leave to cool. You can cover with plastic wrap and put in the refrigerator for up to 2 days at this stage. When you are ready to stuff the turkey breast, take the bowl of sausage meat out of the refrigerator. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Uncover the bowl of sausage meat, add the eggs, Parmesan, and breadcrumbs and — I use my hands for this — mix well. Lay the butterflied turkey joint out in front of you. It really does look like a butterfly, though admittedly a fleshy one. Spread the stuffing out first in the slight cavity in the center of the butterfly and then outward onto the wings though not going right up to the edge (or it will squidge out when cooking) but as evenly as possible over the whole joint. Carefully, in one swift but steady movement, fold one “wing� over the other to close the joint and then sit the turkey in a large roasting pan, breastbone (or where the breastbone would be) on top as it would look were it the whole bird, with the pointier bit farthest away from you. Thread two skewers through the widest part that is nearer you — to keep it closed and smear it all over with the duck or goose fat. Roast the turkey breast for 2–2 1/2 hours, then check it is cooked with a turkey or meat thermometer. When cooked, it should read 165 degrees in the center. (If you’re leaving it to rest, as you should, or to cool, you could take it out at 160 degrees — it will retain heat and continue to cook for a short while once out of the oven.) Cut through the whole joint in wide slices right across; they will need to be quite thick, at least 1/2 inch, maybe 1 inch, to keep the stuffing intact within the slice.