One of the benefits of my all too-brief respite north of the US border years ago, in addition to the purchase of some mighty fine land, was the introduction to the Canadian Thanksgiving holiday; celebrated this coming Monday.

In the US, that day marks Columbus Day. Given my Creek heritage, that's never been a really big cause for celebration in the farms and woodlands of NW Florida. So now, well, I celebrate Thanksgiving with my Canadian friends (OB ANG: a great many of which are Anglican and some are even on this list). Happy Thanksgiving friends!

Come by for some turkey. I haven't decided whether to smoke it or fry it yet, but frying is the likelier:

DEEP-FRIED TURKEY:
Printer version of this recipe

1 Twelve Pound Turkey, more or less (wild or domestic, un-stuffed) - whole

Heat vegetable oil to 350 degrees in deep pot. (If you haven't done a lot of these, to figure out how much oil to use, you first put the turkey in the pot you're going to cook it in and then fill with water till covered, making sure to leave 5 or 6 inches to avoid getting splashed with boilingoil. Remove the turkey and note the water level. Pour out the water, DRY, and fill pot with oil to that point).

Now that the turkey is wet, cover liberally and pat down inside and out with a combination of fresh ground black pepper, Zatarain's or Tony's Creole Seasoing or something of the like, and a lot of Zatarain's or Old Bay seafood seasoing.

When the oil is hot, lower the bird into it and cook till skin is golden. A 12 pound bird takes about 20-30 minutes, no longer. If you try and cook a second one in the same oil, it will take 5 or 10 minutes longer due to contaminants in the "old" oil.

Take the bird out, put on newspaper or something to blot up the oil and drain. Slice and serve.

Note: Do this outside, with plenty of space around the pot, keep children and any drunks trying to help away, and make sure no one tries to "bob" for the turkey.

This recipe is also useful for those of you living in castles: when unwanted Goths, Vandals, or relatives come to visit..... just pour it over the battlements (after removing the turkey).