Corey is the Chef in our home. We are so lucky! We thought we'd share a couple delicious family recipes for Thanksgiving. Corey's parents both immigrated to America from Germany in the 1950's.  He gained his love of cooking from his mother.  Thus, we have a wonderful and unique heritage as Corey is a first generation American.

Corey's BRINED TURKEY is the best!  Every year he volunteers to cook the turkey and he experiments with different combinations.  He's tried smoking, frying, baking and brinning the turkey.  This year we gathered with our Zander family for an early Thanksgiving dinner and Corey's brined turkey was "perfection".  Try it!

Brine Ingredients

2 cans Apple Juice concentrate
2 gallons Water

4 Tablespoons Fresh Rosemary Leaves
5 cloves Garlic, Minced

1 ¼ cup Salt

2 cups Brown Sugar

3 Tablespoons Peppercorns
5 whole Bay Leaves

Peel Of 2 Large Oranges

Peel of 1 Lemon

Ice

Injection Ingredients

2 cups apple Apple Juice

¾ Cups butter

Combine apple juice and butter and warm in microwave until butter is melted.  Mix together and using an injector, inject the mixture primarily in breasts and legs.

Preparation Instructions

Combine all ingredients in a large pot. Stir until salt and sugar dissolve. Bring to a
boil, and cook for 5 minutes. Add ice to cool completely.

Place uncooked turkey in large pot or brining bag.  Pour solution with turkey and refrigerate for 20-24 hours. If you do not have room in your fridge, you can cover with ice and place a cooler or other protected area. 

When ready to roast turkey, remove turkey from brine. Submerge turkey in a pot or
sink of fresh, cold water. Allow to sit in clean water for 15 minutes to remove excess
salt.

Discard brine. Remove turkey from clean water, rinse, pat dry, and cook according to your
normal roasting method. 
From: tastyl<itchen.com/reci pes/hol i days/my- fawrite- turkey-bri neJ?pri nt= 1l#size3x5

Aunt Irma's Yam Casserole - Tamara's Thanksgiving favorite:
For me, this Yam casserole is better than the pumpkin pie! - Tamara

  

YAM CASSEROLE                                         TOPPING

2 lbs. cut and peeled yams                       4 oz. chopped pecans (photo has whole pecans)
1/2 c. brown sugar (I use a bit less)           2/3 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. butter                                            1/2 c. flour
2 eggs, beaten                                        1/3 c. butter, melted
1/3 c. milk
1 tsp. vanilla

1.  Boil yams until tender; drain & mash until smooth.
2.  Add rest of main ingredients & put in a greased dish.
      (8x8, or 9x13 if you want a shallower casserole.  I usually 
       1 1/2 times the recipe for a 9x13)
3.  Combine topping ingredients & sprinkle on top of yams.
4.  Bake at 350* for 40-45 minutes.

Can Color Help You Sell A Home?

Yes! Just like curb appeal matters, the colors of your home can and will influence buyers. With that in mind, we explore which colors tend to appeal to the masses.
The color scheme of your home from the outside in, sets the tone. It's like going to see a theatre play and seeing an intricately crafted and appropriately painted set for the production. It can immediately intrigue you–before the play has begun and even if you knew few details about the play. 

There's been a trend to paint just the front door a deep, rich color like red. This may not be appealing to all. However, buyers would tend to overlook it because it's a simple change as well as one that can easily and cheaply be changed to the new owner's choice. As long as the colors look good together, this wouldn't necessarily turn buyers away.

Paint inside your home: One good tip for sellers is that if they can do nothing else, they should get some fresh paint up on the walls. The new paint helps showcase the home and gives it a new-home feel. This makes a big difference in the "feeling" of your home: crisp, clean, "new" and inviting.

There are a wide variety of interior colors. Don't feel like you have to go with only beige. You can be a little more daring, using bold accent colors--particularly on walls or rooms that face the south. Painting a small room a dark color will give a dark, closed-in feeling, so think about the size and location of each room before you paint. Aim to create comfort, a sense of calmness, relaxation, and a place where family can unwind. Earth-tone colors convey this very well.

There are a wide variety of interior colors. Don't feel like you have to go with only beige. You can be a little more daring, using bold accent colors--particularly on walls or rooms that face the south. Painting a small room a dark color will give a dark, closed-in feeling, so think about the size and location of each room before you paint. Aim to create comfort, a sense of calmness, relaxation, and a place where family can unwind. Earth-tone colors convey this very well.

For a more chic and sophisticated look, interior designers often choose from the grey palette. A dark grey color can create a bold statement and attract the eye to a particular area. We just painted a room in our house grey, and we love it!

Whatever colors you choose, remember that your aim is to appeal to the masses. Test the colors out first. Get opinions from the experts.

As real estate agents, we have been in hundreds of homes and can offer you some very good guidance.

Call us for a FREE In-Home Staging Consultation or Market Analysis!     801-815-3355

Have a great week! ~ Tamara

Credit for this article goes to Phoebe Chongchua