Today I wanted to share with you how you can prepare a delicious Thanksgiving meal for four people by only using your Microwave Oven. You might not think its possible to do such a thing, but I am going to prove that not only can it be done, but it can be done well. Using your microwave oven can cut down on the time needed to cook a fabulous holiday dinner. Your guests will be amazed and surprised when they realise that you used your microwave to cook the full dinner and they will be most appreciative and impressed when you sit them down at the table to eat it. Not only is everything very appealing to the eye, but everything is also incredibly delicious! Time saving, delicious and eye appealing. You just can’t go wrong! 

The dinner is composed of three aspects. Fabulously stuffed Turkey Tenderloins with a rich Creamy Mustard Sauce, Cheesy Potato Casserole and a tasty Citrus Dressed Apple Salad. I have also cooked some frozen baby peas to go along with the rest of it. You can purchase ready-made bread rolls to serve along with your meal as well as a prepared dessert to serve at the end. (I chose to serve apple pie and ice cream.) Quick and easy to make, with minimal fuss and minimal clean up afterwards. 

    

These Stuffed Turkey tenderloins are so delicious.  I had my doubts as to how they would turn out. I had never cooked anything like this in the microwave before.  I got the recipe from a Grocery store leaflet that I had collected in my Big Blue Binder many moons ago.  Back in the day when microwave cookery was the rage! We had an expert in Microwave Cookery back in Canada, named Madame Jehane Benoit.  I cut my teeth on the recipes of Madame Benoit as did many other Canadian girls!

   

These were so very easy to make.  You make a simple stuffing, composed of cubed bread, chopped ham, lemon zest and juice, some butter and seasonings. Once you have the stuffing made you cut your tenderloins in half crosswise and cut a deep pocket into each.  You fill each pocket with some of the stuffing and then secure the edges with a couple of toothpicks to help hold it in.  You then place the tenderloins into a microwave safe dish, with the widest edges of the turkey facing outwards and the narrow ends facing inwards. You then just cover them with some wax paper or baking paper and they are ready to cook.  7 Minutes on one side, flip over and 7 minutes on the other side.  Done. 

I created a simple and deliciously creamy sauce to spoon over the finished tenderloins.  It is flavoured with Dijon mustard, and also goes together very quickly in the microwave.  It tastes fabulous with the turkey tenderloins!  I spooned a bit over to serve, and then passed the remainder a the table.

  

The Potato Dish is also a very simple dish to make and very quick as compared to a potato gratin done in the oven.  Simple ingredients put together in a concise and simple way, with fabulous results.

   

You make the sauce first.  Its a simple bechamel.  I like to add some hot sauce to my bechamel, especially if I am adding cheese as well. There is something about hot sauce and cheese that is like magic. Once the sauce is made you stir in the cheese and cubed raw potatoes and then continue to cook it in the microwave for about 15 minutes, stirring it every five minutes or so.  The finish is simply some buttered crisp bread crumbs.  If you wanted to brown them up a bit you could flash them under a hot grill, but it really isn't necessary.

 

  

The salad is a very simple one, composed of two kinds of eating apples, laid out attractively on a bed of lettuce, and dressed with a simple, yet tangy, citrus dressing. You can make the dressing up to 24 hours in advance. I used one green eating apple and one red eating apple in the salad for colour and contrast. You also need to chop some scallions/salad onions for in the dressing.

   

 

You may want to cook an additional vegetable to go along with the other parts of your meal. I did frozen petit pois.  They cook very quickly in the microwave and the pretty green colour went very well with everything else, and really dressed up the plate! 

 

I cut each tenderloin diagonally into slices and laid them out onto heated plates, spooning a bit of that lush sauce over each, with the majority of the sauce being passed at the table.

 

It really was a very delicious meal.  I was well pleased with how everything turned out and it took less effort than a traditional Thanksgiving dinner.  

 

Dessert was simply a frozen apple pie that I had baked the day before.  I warmed it in a low oven while we were eating our main course and served it with some vanilla ice cream and wedges of good cheddar cheese. 

You can dress the table up with a relish tray holding some crisp vegetable sticks such as carrots, celery,  radishes, etc. I would also have some chutney or cranberry sauce on offer, along with some rolls and butter.

Here is a handy timetable you can follow to make sure everything gets to your table in a timely manner: 

24 hours before your meal: 

 Prepare your dessert. In my case I served an apple pie that I bought frozen and baked the day before the meal. You can serve this with a scoop of ice cream on top. Just pop the baked pie into a low oven when you begin your main meal and it will be nicely warmed and ready to eat when the main meal is finished. Scoop some ice cream on top and serve with some cheddar cheese wedges for a real treat!

 On the day: 

  Two hours prior to serving - prepare the dressing for the Apple Salad, cover and place in the refrigerator. Prepare and stuff your Turkey Tenderloins, cover and chill in the refrigerator. Set your table. 

One hour prior to serving – Prepare and cook the Cheesy Potato Casserole. Leave off the topping until you are ready to serve them. In the meantime, cover and keep warm while you cook the Turkey Tenderloins. Core and slice the apples, tossing them with a few TBS of the citrus dressing to help prevent them from turning brown. 

Just prior to serving – Assemble the salad. Warm your rolls and heat your plates in a low oven. Prepare and cook the sauce for the tenderloins. Sprinkle the crumb topping over your potatoes. You may want to serve some condiments as well, such as a good cranberry sauce or a chutney. You will also need some butter to serve with the rolls and a hot beverage such as tea or coffee to serve with dessert afterwards. If you are a wine drinker, you could serve a well-chilled white wine with this dinner.

We were both very pleased with this unusual and delicious dinner.  Even if you don't celebrate Thanksgiving, I think it would make a fabulous meal for entertaining when there are only four of you.  Its nice to know that with very little effort and not a lot of time you can serve a dinner that is delicious and that truly tastes like a celebration! 

 

Todd just adores Prawns. Its not something I cook for him very often, but every once in a while I do treat him to some.

 

I am allergic to them, so I have to be careful. I am okay cooking them, just not okay eating them. There is no reason that he should be deprived of something he loves simply because I can't eat it myself.  He puts up with me cooking pizza and pasta from time to time after all!

 

We get beautiful King Prawns from the people at Seafresh Quality Foods.  Seafresh is an on line fish monger which sells quality fish, seafood, poultry and meat.  I have always been incredibly impressed with both their product and their delivery service!  I have never had a bad experience. You can read about my first experience here!

 

Nothing has changed.  I am still just as impressed with them as I have always been and will always highly recommend them to anyone wanting to purchase quality seafood, fish, poultry and meat.

 

What I really love about their King Prawns is that they are quick frozen individually. I can take out as many or as little as I want, which makes them very handy to use and ideal for us as we are a small family.  Also because only Todd eats them, I can take out just enough for him to enjoy without having to thaw out the whole pack.  They are also shelled and de-veined at the source, so, once defrosted, you can just cook them without any messing about.

 

I had leftover pizza for breakfast this morning (I know, very naughty!) and so I knew I wouldn't be really hungry or wanting a large dinner.  This was the perfect day for me to cook Todd his favourite King Prawns.

 

I had some fresh basil which needed using up, and fresh cherry tomatoes that were near their use by date as well.  I decided to incorporate them into a quick and easy stir fry that I thought he would enjoy!

 

This is such a quick and easy make.  In fact that is one thing that I really love about fish and sea food. It cooks really quickly and is my go to choice when it comes to wanting to get a dinner on the table pronto!

 

Raw and defrosted King Prawns are sauteed in a bit of olive oil on both sides to begin with. It doesn't take very long, about 2 minutes altogether, to cook prawns. They cook really fast.  As soon as they turn pink they are done.  Don't be afraid and over cook them, if you do you will be disappointed as over-cooked prawns are rubbery.  They will continue to cook as they sit, so about two minutes cook time is actually perfect!

 

Once they are cooked, you scoop them out and add some garlic and red chili flakes to the pan.  You only need to cook these until they are fragrant. The smell of that lovely garlic will permeate the air and you will be able to smell the heat of the chilies. How much chili you add it up to you. I only add a pinch.

 

It is really important that you don't allow the garlic to brown.  Browning it turns it bitter, so really be careful that this doesn't happen. Only cook until you can smell it. 

 

After that you add some dry white wine.  I buy small bottles of wine (red and white), each holding only about 1 glass of wine, just for cooking purposes. We don't drink wine.  Today I used an Australian Chardonnay.  You let that bubble up for about 3 minutes and then you throw in the tomatoes and basil, seasoning the mix with some salt and pepper.

 

How long you cook the tomatoes is up to you. I like them to be fairly wilted so that they release their juices as this makes a bit of a sauce for the prawns.  Once your tomatoes are done as much as you like, you can just re-add the prawns to the pan and heat them through briefly.

  

That's it! Dinner is served!  I spooned this over some steamed white rice for Todd, but they would also be really lovely spooned over pasta.

 

Todd really feels special when I cook something like this just for him.  That makes me happy! 

A few things about Seafresh: