Turkey

In two days, families will gather around tables full of food to celebrate the most American of holidays, Thanksgiving. The word holiday originates from the words holy day. What we think of as the "first" Thanksgiving was certainly a feast day, but it bore little resemblance to today's revelry and not just because they didn't play football. First, a day of thanksgiving in Colonial Massachusetts would have consisted of fasting and prayer so we know the "first Thanksgiving" was really a harvest festival.

Turkey canned in Pa. feeds the world

Corner Oaks Farms will host its second annual "A Taste on the Corner" from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 27, at the Washington County Agricultural Education Center located at 7313 Sharpsburg Pike, south of Hagerstown. The farms will feature bite size samples of two varieties of roasted turkey including the broad breasted white and broadbreasted bonze. Also new this year, Corner Oaks Farms pork and lamb will be available for tasting and ordering. RSVPs are requested to attend this event.

A huge inflated turkey stands in front of a home along Martinsburg Pike near Shepherdstown, W.Va.

Timetable for roasting a turkey at 325 degrees with the conventional oven open pan method: Unstuffed turkey 8 to 12 pounds 2 3/4 to 3 hours 12 to 14 pounds 3 to 3 3/4 hours 14 to 18 pounds 3 3/4 to 4 1/4 hours 18 to 20 pounds 4 1/4 to 4 1/2 hours 20 to 24 pounds 4 1/2 to 5 hours Stuffed turkey 8 to 12 pounds 3 to 3 1/2 hours 12 to 14 pounds 3 1/2 to 4 hours 14 to 18 pounds 4 to 4 1/4 hours...

1 pound package frozen vegetables for stew 1 cup frozen peas 2 cups cooked turkey, cut into 1/2-inch cubes 12-ounce jar non-fat turkey gravy 1 tablespoon dried parsley 1 teaspoon dried thyme 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon pepper 1 refrigerated pie crust, room temperature Cook frozen vegetables and peas according to package directons. Drain any cooking liquid from stew vegetables and peas. Add turkey cubes, gravy, herbs, salt and pepper to vegetables in oven-safe 2-quart cooking dish.

By TERRY TALBERT Staff Writer Four-year-old BJ Gossard can rest easy now. His winged nemesis, Thomasina the wily wild turkey, was caught napping Saturday night and shipped off to a new home on a farm in the mountains of Washington County. BJ, who lives with his family in Cavetown, has been afraid of the bird ever since it flew its coop in a neighbor's backyard earlier this year, according to his mother. The boy claims the turkey chased him every time he tried to walk to his school bus stop.

Park-N-Dine's nod in Bon Apptit magazine proves that you don't need a culinary degree or even a recipe to make a great hot turkey sandwich. Staff Writer Andrea Rowland recently sat down to talk with two of the Park-N-Dine's hometown cooks - Lori Gladhill, 36, and Darren Golden, 35, both of Hancock. Gladhill and Golden have been cooking at the Park-N-Dine for about 12 years and six years, respectively. Q: How did you learn to cook? Gladhill: To tell you the truth, I more or less taught myself.

kristinw@herald-mail.com It's 4 p.m. Thanksgiving Day. You've just consumed enough food to fuel your body for three days. So what's next? A brisk walk through the neighborhood? An embarrassing attempt to compete with a 15-year-old at the high-energy video game "Dance Dance Revolution"? Nah. It's nap time. Across the country, thousands, if not millions of people, will be taking a respite before, after or, in some cases, during America's holiday meal. Whether you traveled throughout the night to be with family or it seems as if someone spiked the turkey with extra tryptophan, for some there is nothing more enjoyable than tipping that easy chair back and checking out for a good half-hour nap. And those deep in REM sleep should not be given grief by friends or loved ones.

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. -- Shenandoah Films founder Victoria Barrett promises that her latest documentary "Journey of Faith ... on the Trail of Christianity in Turkey" is more than a story. "It's a historical travelogue shot on Super 16 mm film," she says in a telephone interview from her Hedgesville, W.Va., home. The movie that took Barrett nearly 10 years to complete, to 15 locations throughout the world and surviving an earthquake, will make its debut at 7 tonight at Trinity Episcopal Church in Martinsburg.

Rohrersville Ruritan will hold an all-you-can-eat oyster, ham and turkey dinner Saturday from 1:30 to 5 p.m. at the Rohrersville Schoolhouse Building, 21023 Rohrersville School Road. Tickets cost $15 for adults. The menu includes stuffing, mashed potatoes, sauerkraut, green beans, gravy and dessert. Carry out will be available for those who bring containers. The building is handicapped-accessible. For more information, call J.R. at 240-818-1038.   Basket bingo Potomac Valley Fire Department, seven miles south of Sharpsburg on Harpers Ferry Road in Dargan, will hold a basket bingo Saturday at 11:30 a.m. at the fire hall.

Thanks to dinner attendees for their patience To the editor: St. Paul's United Church of Christ of Lemasters would like to thank everyone who came to our election day turkey dinner for helping to make it a success. We also want to apologize to those who had to wait to be served. Some of our help had some unexpected last-minute health issues and it left us a little short-handed in the kitchen. God bless all of you. Martha Shelly and friends Lemasters, Pa.

What began as a way for Mark and Jayne Metcalfe of Mercersburg, Pa., to give back to the community has grown into one of the largest, free Thanksgiving Day dinners in the area. “It's a way to give back to the community. There's a need with the economy the way it is. Plus we have a family that comes every year with 24 in their family. They have no houses big enough where they can gather for Thanksgiving dinner so they come here,” Jayne Metcalfe said Thursday. “And I don't like to eat alone, so my family has grown to 1,000,” she said with a chuckle.

Participating in the Hagerstown Community College Turkey Trot 5K has become almost as traditional for local runners as the turkey and stuffing they consume later Thanksgiving day. The 12th annual edition of the event Thursday morning had a record 1,370 finishers. “We're really happy with it. It's a race, but it's an event, too,” said race director Jaime Dick, who had live music and even an Elvis impersonator to help entertain the crowd. “We get so many people who say it's the only 5K they do all year.” The atmosphere was festive Thursday - and the field at the front was fast.

Editor's note: This column originally ran in 2009. It's four days after Thanksgiving, and you got through it unscathed.  I hope you didn't overdo it on the yams, pumpkin pie, mashed potatoes and other dishes that cause many Americans to unknowingly eat as much as 3,000 calories in one sitting. The one good thing you can count on is that you'll have an abundance of turkey to use for the next week.  Turkey is a great source of protein, which is the only macronutrient that is broken down and used for building calorie-burning muscle.

The family has assembled, the cooks are baking pies, the sports fans are watching football and the cousins are looking for something to pass the time until dinner. Let's play Turkey Toss! The Herald-Mail's 2012 Thanksgiving game is easy to play, and can be adapted for children or adults. Rules: 1. Print out the game board onto an 11-inch-by-17-inch piece of paper or purchase a copy of the Thenksgiving Day edition of The Herald-Mail and use the board game printed on page B1. Lay the board game in the middle of a table or on a hard-surfaced floor.

A free turkey dinner will be offered at Memorial Recreation Center on Thanksgiving Day from noon to 4 p.m. The event is titled “Community Partnership Event” and is sponsored by area churches and nonprofits. Memorial Recreation Center is at 109 W. North Ave. in Hagerstown. For more information, call 301-790-0203. Fundraiser for shelter Ruby Tuesday, at 1645 Wesel Blvd. in Hagerstown, will host its Cuisine for Critters fundraiser Friday to help animals at the Humane Society of Washington County.  The restaurant will donate 20 percent of your purchase to the animal shelter when presented with a flier that is available from the shelter.

In a little more than a week, we will celebrate the most American of holidays, Thanksgiving. We have a lot to be thankful for, and I hope you are. Today, however, I am going to talk about the guest of honor at most of your Thanksgiving tables, the turkey. The turkey is often one of the most misunderstood animals. They are often thought of as dumb and awkward, but that couldn't be further from the truth. It was Benjamin Franklin who thought so highly of the turkey, he wanted it to be the national bird and not the Bald Eagle.

Corner Oaks Farms will host its second annual "A Taste on the Corner" from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 27, at the Washington County Agricultural Education Center located at 7313 Sharpsburg Pike, south of Hagerstown. The farms will feature bite size samples of two varieties of roasted turkey including the broad breasted white and broadbreasted bonze. Also new this year, Corner Oaks Farms pork and lamb will be available for tasting and ordering. RSVPs are requested to attend this event.

Hagerstown Community College, in partnership with Maryland Food Bank - Western Branch will hold its 12th annual Turkey Trot at 8:30 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 22, at the Athletic, Recreation and Community Center at Hagerstown Community College. This year's event will feature a 5K run/walk for adults, the "Mashed Potato Race" for ages 3 to 10, and a food drive. All Turkey Trot participants are asked to bring two or more canned or nonperishable goods to be donated to the Community Food Bank Warehouse.