Thanksgiving Cooking for Two: Beer Basted Turkey and Olive Pecan Sourdough Stuffing

My husband and I often celebrate Thanksgiving by ourselves a few days before we join our families for the big meal. This year I decided to share some recipes for those who might also be doing some Thanksgiving cooking for two. This is the first post in the series. Be sure to check out the side dishes that go with this main course. 

I’ll be the first to admit that Thanksgiving isn’t my favorite holiday of the season. It doesn’t make much sense, though. I love fall and pumpkins and I love to cook. Seems like I’d be all over a holiday that has those things well covered. 

I can offer no explanation other than my fondness of a winter wonderland, warm cocktails, cookies and cheesy Christmas movies. It simply beats out Thanksgiving every time. 

Despite it not being my favorite, I still like to cook and I like to get creative. We typically travel to the homes of our families for Thanksgiving dinners. (Yes, dinners. As in two in one day.) There, the family has traditional covered. But it rarely satisfies my need to try some new and creative. 

When it comes to food for the holidays, I’m a believer in keeping at least one tradition and adding something new each year to keep things exciting. So to try my something new, I usually do that when cooking for just  myself and my husband.

The problem is that when you have two more meals on the horizon, having any leftovers at all puts you at risk for getting Thanksgiving-ed out. So this year, I concentrated on creating a Thanksgiving meal that truly was just for two. We came to the table hungry, but we had no leftovers. Except a little pie, but I’ll get to that later. And who doesn’t want a little extra pie, right? 

It seems that there are also lots of others out there searching for a bit more information on Thanksgiving cooking for two. And why not? Personally, I think celebrating with two is sorely undervalued. I look forward to it every year. 

The turkey is always the biggest challenge. For that I turn to breast loins. No, it’s the not the whole bird and has little fat, but when cooked well, it makes a good substitute when you want a small portion. Being big beer fans around here, I incorporated that for basting the meat and what was leftover infused the rich, dark gravy. The loins are great for slicing so that it can be served in small medallions, covered in gravy with a bit of extra gravy on the side. 

Now that we have the turkey covered, lets move on to my favorite of the meal, the stuffing. Stuffing is one of those dishes that can be made hundreds of ways according to so many different preferences. I prefer a drier, crumbly stuffing and the skillet is the perfect place for making this. Plus, no baking time required. 

Sourdough bread makes the BEST stuffing. I usually like a bit of dried fruit, like cranberries, in mine, but my husband isn’t much a fan for sweet. This year I added one of his favorites, green olives. Chopped pecans added just a little bit of the sweetness I was looking for. 

Together the turkey with hints of pale ale in a rich gravy paired with the tangy sourdough stuffing are a great main course for Thanksgiving dinner. 

So there you have it, the turkey and stuffing a already done. Brussels Sprouts in Parmesan Garlic Butter and Smoky Maple Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Sugared Pepitas are coming up next. 

More Thanksgiving Cooking for Two:

Brussels Sprouts in Parmesan Garlic Butter
Smoky Maple Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Cinnamon Sugared Pepitas
Ginger Molasses Pumpkin Pie

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