Rings and stuffing!!!

Yesterday we went and saw a man about some rings.

It was very exciting. We were supposed to go on Sunday, but I wasn't feeling well, so we rescheduled. I met daz after work and luckily he has acquired the skill of detecting when I am cranky because of hunger. Yes, it happens. I swore I was fine, but after sharing some takoyaki I realized how much I had needed that food. So back to the rings, we are having our wedding rings custom-made by Ken Kobayashi, who runs a tiny metal work shop in Kichijoji. By chance we had met his son (who also works as a metalsmith) at our 4th of July BBQ this year. He plays the digeridoo very well. He had mentioned that he worked at a shop that made wedding rings, so we went and met his dad (although we did not know they were father and son at the time). Ken has come up with a top-secret engraving technique that allows us to draw (in our own handwriting) anything we want on the inside of the ring - here are some examples. This is the main drawcard for us and also the fact that we know who is making our rings and that they will make them exactly as we want them. I am figuring that robots will make an appearance on our rings.

So apart from thinking about what I am going to write/draw on daz's ring, I have (as I mentioned yesterday) been day-dreaming about stuffing. I know it seems silly, but I really do love the stuff (no pun intended). As I was looking up recipes on the web, I was happy to come across this article in the New York Times that confirmed that I am not the only one who obsesses about stuffing. So, to be honest I have never made stuffing myself, but this year I will be attempting stuffing for the first time for Thanksgiving. What are your favourite stuffing ingredients? Do you have a special recipe? Considering we only have a small tiny oven, we will be buying a whole roasted turkey chicken (turkey is just too expensive - I found one place in Tokyo that will cook a whole turkey for you, but the smallest one costs over 6000 yen). However I will be roasting pumpkin, making fresh stuffing and a potato bake (this was popular last year). We of course cannot forget the gravy and cranberry sauce.

So far here are my stuffing ingredients:

• sausage
• onions
• day-old breadcrumbs
• Aomori apples (we just received a box of 24 top-quality apples from my host family in Aomori yesterday - woohoo!)
• sage
• butter
• pepper, salt
• maybe pine nuts
• celery
• thyme
• garlic

yum, yum, yum. can't wait.

Comments

[Mariko]

Hey stuffing freak! I have a stuffing recipe that a friend made up that my husband thinks is one of the best things he's ever eaten in his life. Unfortunately, I don't have it with me, but the key is dried cherries. The recipe also has mushrooms, sausage, and the usual suspects. I'll send it to you when I get home in December.
The rings are going to be gorgeous. We got our rings from a local ringmaker, too. There's something special about knowing who actually made the rings!

[caroline]

yum. sounds delicious. I like to use walnuts instead of pinenuts but both are great. and a very late congratulations on your engagement!

[rae]

yeah, have to agree, stuffing is great! i usually do mine in a slow cooker - just toss everything in and forget about it til dinner - my kind of cooking!

[frecklegirl]

Oh wow! That is the coolest... I wish Casey and I could figure out something like that for our wedding rings.

So romantic! :)

[cillaann]

Congrats on the engagement, the rings sound like they will be awesome. Here is my family stuffing receipe that we have been making for the last 120 years.
Southern Stuffing

1 stick of butter
2 garlic cloves
1 c wild mushrooms
1/4 cups of walnuts or pecans
1 onion, finely chopped
1 c celery, finely chopped, 3 stalks
1/4 c bacon bits
1 Loaf of very dry bread cubes diced 1/2 inch thick
1 pan very dry corn bread (made several days before)
1/4 t salt
1/4 t pepper
1/4 t paprika
1/4 t dried marjoram (or oregano)
2 t dry parsley
1/2 t ground sage
2 c chicken stock (until bread is moist)
1 egg

Directions:
Brown garlic in butter (or olive oil). Add mushrooms and saute.
Add the rest of the vegetables and cook until they begin to soften.
Stir bacon bits into mixture, then down heat to low and add bread cubes
Continue cooking for approximately 5 more minutes stirring continuously.
Turn off the heat add one mixed egg and warm chicken stock. Allow the stock to
soak into the bread crumbs. Form the stuffing into tight balls and place on a baking sheet
and cook in the oven at 350F for 30 minutes.

Note: I usually use fresh herbs but I listed the dry herbs for ease.

[molly]

Oh, how I love Thanksgiving! I am going to a Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow, but I wimped out and I'm bringing bread and wine and letting other people work on the more involved dishes. I still can't figure out how to make anything with the different kitchen appliances here. All the talk about stuffing is making my hungry--I hope your creation turns out well!!

[empress]

Congrats again! I'm so excited for both of us. We finally bought our rings 2 days ago after searching high and low for the perfect rings. I'm very happy and pleased with what we've found. Good luck in your arrangements!!

[Jennie]

Out of curiosity, where's the place that will cook a whole turkey for you? Luckily, we talked the only friend in my circle with an oven to host a Thanksgiving potluck. But this expensive-turkey-place might be good to know for future reference.

[kat]

Jennie, I contacted Kyle of Kyle's Good Finds in Nakano about roasting the turkey for us. You can check out his site at www.kylesgoodfinds.com - they also bake brownies, cakes and cater dinners.

[Meg]

Holidays at my boyfriend's place are always a very troubling affair for me. They have a tendancy to overcook everything and cover it in cheese. It doesn't matter what it is. *shudders, remembering the asparagus* Anyways, the one thing they do right, though, is stuffing. My boyfriend's mom makes this absolutely amazing cornbread stuffing with cranberries in it. It's all sweet and yummy, and then every once in a while the cranberries are that kinda nicely contrasting tart-sweet... SO good. Now, I haven't seen a single damn cranberry the entire time I've been in Japan, but there's a possibility you might be able to find some dried ones if you either go to Ameyoko-whatsis in Ueno, or else the Produce Market outside the Fish Market in Tsukiji. I know my boy and I found one guy there who sold huge bags of dried goods; we made off with an enormous bag of walnuts-cashews-and-almonds in glee. Oh, wait, you're Aussie, aren't you? Hm. Do Aussies like cranberries? I've never been quite clear on whether they're a strictly New England thing... Do they even GROW in Australia? *ponder ponder ponder...*

...I can't believe I just googled that. Well, apparently America produces half the world's crop, and Australia seems to produce none at all, but does, in fact, import. Ok. Now that the mystery is solved, I will... um... basically, just thank you for all the great leads on yarn stores, and then flee. *grin*

*fleeee!*