Melissa Clark Transcript
Kerry Diamond:
Hi, everyone. You are listening to Radio Cherry Bombe, and I'm your host, Kerry Diamond, coming to you from New York City.
Today is our Thanksgiving episode, and we have a great guest for you, Melissa Clark. Melissa is a food reporter and recipe columnist for the New York Times’ Food section and NYT Cooking. Melissa has also written or co-authored, ready for this, 45 cookbooks. So she knows her way around the kitchen and a recipe. Melissa is the perfect person to chat with about Thanksgiving dinner, and in particular, turkey. We talk brining, basting, resting, carving, all the things. She shares her favorite sides, smart make-ahead tips, and all the little hacks that will make Thanksgiving feel a little less stressful and a lot more joyful. Melissa's Turkey 101 video just dropped on YouTube last week, so go ahead and watch once you've listened to this episode. They are perfect companions. We also get a peek behind the curtain of how NYT Cooking plans its Thanksgiving coverage. While most of us are still thinking about watermelon, corn, and tomatoes in the summer, Melissa and the team are deep in gravy tests and pumpkin pie trials. Whether you're hosting your first Thanksgiving or your 20th, stay tuned for Melissa Clark. Our conversation was recorded at Newsstand Studios at Rockefeller Center.
What's going on at Cherry Bombe HQ? We've teamed up with the Visa Dining Collection by OpenTable and Visa to present a new event series, Working Lunch: Tastemakers at the Table. It's a celebratory daytime dining experience that brings together food, community, and the incredible women shaping the hospitality world. Each stop in the series will include a delicious chef-driven lunch, networking, and a panel conversation between me and some of the city's top culinary talent. It's the perfect way to break bread, make connections, and toast to the season ahead. We kicked things off in Washington D.C. last week at Piccolina with Chef Amy Brandwein and had a really wonderful time. It was great catching up with everyone. We'll be in Manhattan this Thursday, November 20th, at Markette with Chef India Doris, then will be in Charleston on December 11th. Access to all working lunch experiences is available for eligible Visa credit cards, and tickets are on sale now. Terms and conditions apply. Visit cherrybombe.com for all the delicious details, and I hope to see you there.
Today's show is presented by JW Marriott. As you long-time listeners know, team Cherry Bombe is always on the move; that is true. Traveling for events, photo shoots, gatherings, and of course, our Jubilee conferences. Logging time in hotels is simply part of the job, but the best days are always the ones that feel very far removed from it, which is why we're inspired by JW Marriott's mindful approach to hospitality by creating restorative moments. Through serene spaces, garden-fresh ingredients, and thoughtful touches of nature, every JW Marriott stay is designed to bring care, joy, and mindfulness to your journey, helping you feel present, balanced, and fulfilled. A concept we can definitely get behind.
Learn more and book your next trip at jwmarriott.com. Now, let's check in with today's guest. Melissa Clark, welcome back to Radio Cherry Bombe.
Melissa Clark:
I am so happy to be here.
Kerry Diamond:
I am so thrilled. I mean, I feel like I'm in the presence of greatness here.
Melissa Clark:
Well, I am in the presence of greatness. You're amazing. And we love Cherry Bombe.
Kerry Diamond:
Thank you. Well, we love the whole NYT Cooking crew. You are the cinematic universe we follow.
Melissa Clark:
Well, thank you.
Kerry Diamond:
It's Thanksgiving.
Melissa Clark:
It's Thanksgiving. Okay.
Kerry Diamond:
Which is your Super Bowl.
Melissa Clark:
It is. We are getting ready. We are gearing up. We're ready for you.
Kerry Diamond:
When did you start working toward this?
Melissa Clark:
Every year, it gets earlier. So last year, I think they called the meeting in August. I feel like it was June this year. It just keeps getting earlier and earlier. But every year, every summer, I am roasting turkey in July. Just July and August are my turkey roasting months no matter what.
Kerry Diamond:
Okay, that sounds like my piece.
Melissa Clark:
Which is a very sweaty work-
Kerry Diamond:
Yeah, some people's idea of a nightmare. Okay, so you start preparing in the summer, gosh, you really have to get into that mindset, when everybody else has got peaches and watermelon and tomatoes.-
Melissa Clark:
I'm thinking pumpkins and gourds and apples and of course, turkey.
Kerry Diamond:
So this year, NYT Cooking is doing Turkey 101.
Melissa Clark:
Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
And you are, sorry to give you this title, the Turkey Queen.
Melissa Clark:
I am the Turkey Queen. I love it. It's very true.
Kerry Diamond:
I feel like you need a sash or something.
Melissa Clark:
I definitely have a little crown with a little turkey on it.
Kerry Diamond:
How are you the one who got this assignment?
Melissa Clark:
I volunteered for it. I put my hand up because we always ... every year you have to have a turkey. You cannot be a food publication without a turkey recipe. And every year, we agonize, agonize over what the next turkey should be. And we've done so many turkeys and I've done so many turkeys, but this year we're expanding our 101 offerings. So our 101 series are back to basics, really instructional. They're recipes, but they're more than recipes. They take apart the recipes and we're looking behind the techniques. We're looking behind the ingredients and really trying to come up with the ER recipe, like what is the best turkey?
So for Turkey 101, what I wanted to do was reinvent my simple roast turkey, which is a recipe that I love that I did a couple of years ago. And I wanted to do it except I wanted to make it even simpler. It's like how simple can we go and still have an incredible Thanksgiving turkey? I'm really gearing it toward two particular kinds of cooks. So someone who's never made a turkey before. If you've never made a turkey and you follow this recipe, I will hold your hand through the whole entire process. And in fact, I tell everyone, please read the recipe the week before because if you have any questions, you can reach us at NYT Cooking, we are here for you-
Kerry Diamond:
Are you doing-
Melissa Clark:
Well, we're not doing but we-
Kerry Diamond:
Because you used to do like a hotline, right?
Melissa Clark:
We're not doing a hotline, but we have Cooking Care. And so we're here for your questions. So it's going to be harder to get any of us on Thanksgiving Day or the day before. We might be a little busy, but if you can read the recipe ahead of time and you have questions, we are here for you.
Kerry Diamond:
So where do people send their questions?
Melissa Clark:
So it's cookingcare@nytimes is one place to do it. You can also find me at hellomelissa@nyt.com
Kerry Diamond:
Hello, Melissa.
Melissa Clark:
NY Times.
Kerry Diamond:
Do you read the comments on the recipes?
Melissa Clark:
I read all the comments. I read all the notes, yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
Do you weigh it in? I love how on some of the big stories, the journalist weighs in now.
Melissa Clark:
I try to weigh in, it's hard for me to weigh in because there's so many of them. And usually I'm reading ... Honestly, when I'm reading them, I'm kind of on my phone on the subway going somewhere, but I'm trying to read them. The reason I read them all is because I want to make sure that I understand what works for people and what doesn't. And it's just a way of self-improvement. I'm like, can I write this recipe in a way that's more clear? I read all of the comments from my last turkey recipe, simple roast turkey, and I applied them to this new one. So I was saying there's two types of cook.
So it's for the beginner cook, but it's also for the cook who maybe has done every turkey out there, the really seasoned turkey roaster. It's like, you know, this year I want to go simple.
Kerry Diamond:
They have dry-brined, they've wet-brined.
Melissa Clark:
Exactly.
Kerry Diamond:
They've fried, they've spatchcocked. They've done it all.
Melissa Clark:
They have done it all. They've steamed, remember the steamed turkey we did?
Kerry Diamond:
No, I don't remember the steamed. My gosh.
Melissa Clark:
We did a steamed turkey a few years ago. But if you want to get back down to basics and you want a delicious roast turkey, this is the recipe.
Kerry Diamond:
You mentioned how you can't be in food media and not have some kind of turkey package, but usually, the food outlets will choose what is the turkey of the season, the wet brining, the dry brining, all the things. So is the time saying we're going back to simpler times.
Melissa Clark:
That is exactly what we're saying.
Kerry Diamond:
Okay.
Melissa Clark:
We are saying this is the most accessible, the easiest turkey recipe that you can do. I mean, because the quality, it's no ... I mean it's no worse than it than my simple roast turkey. It's just fewer steps-
Kerry Diamond:
I do love that in a very, very complicated year, which 2025 has been, you're arguing for simplicity.
Melissa Clark:
I feel like people maybe need a little bit of a break. Maybe they don't feel like spatchcocking this year. I don't know.
Kerry Diamond:
Okay. Walk us through some of the things that you're sharing in the package.
Melissa Clark:
Okay, so for the Turkey 101, so when I was doing this, I actually went back and I roasted so many turkeys this summer. I went back and I tried a lot of the other recipes just to really remember the evolution of how I got to my simple roast turkey. So I did a wet brine and I did a dry brine and I did a no brine. And I really feel like for the effort-to-result ratio, a dry brine is your best bet. And it's really simple because it's basically just taking your turkey and sprinkling it with salt. And then, I give a bunch of things you can add or you don't have to add.
Kerry Diamond:
Such as ...
Melissa Clark:
Such as ... Well, I mean personally, I love citrus zest, so I love to put lemon zest. I mean, I love garlic, I love herbs. And so you can mix all of these things into your dry brine, but you don't have to. You can just do salt. And the idea is that you do this ahead. So the turkey ... the salt draws the moisture out, but then the turkey has time to reabsorb it. So you get a really well-seasoned flesh, you get an even cooking. And this year, different from my simple roast turkey, this year, I left it uncovered in the fridge the whole time, which is great because it dries out the skin.
Kerry Diamond:
I've read a lot of chefs say, do that for roasting your chicken.
Melissa Clark:
Exactly, and I do that for my chicken, and it's the same for a turkey. If you have space in the fridge, it really does help to dry out the skin. But I also made it when I salted it an hour before I put it in the oven and it was still delicious. So you have flexibility and I wanted to build in all of this kind of choices into the recipe so that you can do it in a way that suits you because maybe you're traveling for Thanksgiving, you are arriving somewhere the day before and you just need to make the turkey. You can use this recipe
Kerry Diamond:
And I will throw out a tip, even though I have known Melissa Clark. This might be even below Turkey 101. This is like turkey for dummies. Defrost your turkey in time. The first time we made-
Melissa Clark:
I think that we've all been there.
Kerry Diamond:
The first time I made Thanksgiving dinner for my family, I did not defrost the turkey early enough.
Melissa Clark:
No, what happened?
Kerry Diamond:
We had no turkey.
Melissa Clark:
Did you have the best turkey the next day?
Kerry Diamond:
I don't remember. I don't remember. I think I was so traumatized. I've forgotten about that Thanksgiving. But it was like in this little apartment I had on Staten Island and it was a fail. It was a Thanksgiving fail.
Melissa Clark:
We've been there, we've all been there. We've all had something that just doesn't work.
Kerry Diamond:
And also, we love to point this out every pre-Thanksgiving, if you are frying your turkey, you 100% have to defrost it because doesn't it become like a projectile?
Melissa Clark:
It could explode. It has happened. I've never seen it happen, but I've heard stories. If the internet tells the truth.
Kerry Diamond:
Right, I might just be passing on these crazy turkey frying stories.
Melissa Clark:
I know. No one's here to fact-check us.
Kerry Diamond:
No, no. We'll be right back with today's guest. Are you one of our New York City listeners? We would love to see you this Wednesday for a fun evening with legendary entrepreneur and makeup artist, Bobbi Brown. It's happening at the Jones Road shop in Williamsburg from 6 to 8 P.M. You Bobbi fans know that Jones Road is her wildly popular new beauty line. She talked all about it when she was on Radio Cherry Bombe, a few weeks ago. I love so many of the Jones Road products. Tickets are $80 and include a signed copy of Bobbi's book, a $50 gift certificate, good that evening, and all bites and sips. I'll be interviewing Bobbi, so bring your questions. I will make sure to take a few audience questions. There will be Jones Road makeup artists on hand in case anyone needs some help or a little refresh. That would definitely be me. Tickets are on sale at cherrybombe.com. If you're a ShopMy creator, you can create an affiliate link for the event and earn a commission. How cool is that? The link is in our show notes.
Dry brine, are you covering it inside and out?
Melissa Clark:
Yes. So that's really important. You want to season it all over. Here's another thing, if you can get under the skin. It is a good idea to try to get that dry brine under the skin. But if sticking your hand under turkey skin maybe isn't the thing you want to be doing, it's fine. It works both ways. All of the suggestions that I give in Turkey 101 are nuances. It'll make it a little better if you can get under the skin. It'll make it a little better if you can add spices or lemon or garlic to your brine. But the turkey is still going to be incredibly good if you buy a good turkey, and we can talk about how to buy a turkey.
And you salt it ahead. Those are the ... and then you don't overcook it. I guess there are three things I would say, and you defrost it ahead. Okay, there are four things.
Kerry Diamond:
Four. All right, everybody, I hope you're taking notes. I hear what you're saying with the putting your hands under the skin, but I'm going to guess most of our listeners have had their hands in worse places.
Melissa Clark:
It's really, you just have to go slow and separate it, and it really does help get the seasoning under there.
Kerry Diamond:
What's next?
Melissa Clark:
Okay, so then you've got your turkey on Thanksgiving morning. If you have time to take it out of the fridge an hour before, it does help it cook evenly. But again, we're talking nuance here, so don't stress it. And then when you roast your turkey, you always want a little bit of liquid in the bottom of the pan so it doesn't burn. So what I like to do is I throw some aromatics in there. You can use garlic, you can use onion, you could use herbs or none of those things, just a little bit of water. If you have a little wine, that's the best because wine has acidity and that is going to really help flavor the drippings.
And I'm a big believer in making your gravy ahead of time. I do not stand there. On Thanksgiving, really, you're going to stand there and make gravy with the drippings in the pan with a household of people while you're trying to do everything out. I mean-
Kerry Diamond:
That is a time-honored tradition, though in some households.
Melissa Clark:
Well, if you love to do it, you should do the things you love. I mean, Thanksgiving is a holiday about joy and love and food. So if it's working for you, you keep doing it, but it does not work for me, I will tell you that.
Kerry Diamond:
So what do you do?
Melissa Clark:
I make it ahead. I make a really clear-
Kerry Diamond:
But you have no drippings.
Melissa Clark:
Right and then, what I do is at the end, I take my drippings, my turkey drippings with the wine and the aromatics and I just put a little sieve over the top of my gravy boat and I pour it right in and I just mix it in and it adds richness, it adds flavor, it adds fat, it adds all the good things that you want. It's just so much easier than trying to whisk the flour in and make a roux and then add the stock. If you buy your turkey ahead while I'm there, usually what I do is I'll buy an extra, at the supermarket or the butcher or whatever.
I'll buy an extra thigh or an extra neck and then I'll make a turkey stock. So I'm making stock, a good, rich stock to make the gravy. And that also makes a big difference.
Kerry Diamond:
And you can do that days ahead.
Melissa Clark:
Yeah, I do it. That's the first thing I do, that will live in your fridge for five days.
Kerry Diamond:
I was talking to my girlfriends about the fact that you were coming on the show because it's like getting to hang out with Beyoncé for an hour. One of them said the key to a good Thanksgiving is not necessarily being a good cook on the day. It's knowing how to pace everything.
Melissa Clark:
That is exactly right. It's knowing ... I mean those timelines, we haven't done one of those. We used to do all these Thanksgiving timelines and I know that they are available online. The things you can make ahead, you can make the gravy ahead, you can make the cranberries ahead. You can actually make a lot of the veg ahead to a certain point. I love a mashed potato casserole. We have a really good mashed potato casserole recipe, at least one.
Kerry Diamond:
What makes it a casserole?
Melissa Clark:
You can make that. You mash the potatoes, you add cheese, you add herbs.
Kerry Diamond:
I ask all the tough questions so everybody else doesn't have to.
Melissa Clark:
It's a really good question. And so, it enables you to bake it ahead and then you just have to throw it in the oven. It is ready for you and then it comes out and it's cheesy and yummy.
Kerry Diamond:
Okay, and what kind of cheese do you like to put in it?
Melissa Clark:
Cheddar. It's a crowd pleaser.
Kerry Diamond:
Yeah.
Melissa Clark:
Yeah, but you can do parm. You could do both. You could do a little bit of Manchego.
Kerry Diamond:
Yum. Okay. I love that. We talked about spatchcocking a little bit. They spatchcock to make it cook faster. When you cut the chicken or the turkey and flatten it out-
Melissa Clark:
Yes. Yeah, and it's really hard to do with the turkey because turkeys have very, very thick bones. I discovered this. I personally do not have the strength to spatchcock a turkey by myself unless it's a very small turkey, but if you-
Kerry Diamond:
Am I making that up? Do people spatchcock turkeys?
Melissa Clark:
Yes, but you ask your butcher to do it. So wherever you're getting your turkey, unless you have really strong hand strength or really, really sharp shears, maybe I just don't have sharp enough shears, I find it difficult to spatchcock a turkey by myself. Chickens are easy, but turkeys have thicker bones.
Kerry Diamond:
I didn't think about asking your butcher to do that. That's great.
Melissa Clark:
Yeah, you can have your butcher do it for you and then, that will cook more quick ... I mean, I love a spatchcock turkey. It cooks really quickly. This is a great way, if you want to get a turkey roasted in two hours, plan ahead and get yourself a spatchcock turkey.
Kerry Diamond:
But the downside is the presentation is lacking.
Melissa Clark:
Yeah, I don't know. I think they look cool.
Kerry Diamond:
The spatchcock turkey-
Melissa Clark:
I think they look very cool. I mean, okay, it doesn't look like Norman Rockwell.
Kerry Diamond:
You know what I was just going to say, maybe I have too much Norman Rockwell.
Melissa Clark:
I mean it doesn't look like that, but it does look at its own golden brown beauty.
Kerry Diamond:
All right, so you're putting it in hole, it cooks faster with no stuffing.
Melissa Clark:
Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
I grew up in a family that shoved all that stuffing into that turkey cavity. That's kind of a no-no today, right?
Melissa Clark:
It is because especially if you use egg, your turkey is done, USDA, it's 165 is the number you're looking for. So in order to get that number, you need to take your turkey out of the oven at about 155. And then as it sits, the internal temperature raises, but you want your stuffing to also be 165 and that takes a lot longer. So when your stuffing is 165, your turkey is probably 180, which means very, very dry white meat. So if you don't stuff it, the bird cooks faster also because stuffing ... think of stuffing like insulation for the stuffing to get hot because the inside of the bird needs to cook.
So it's just slowing everything down. I read this one article that was like, "Oh, heat up your stuffing before you put it in the turkey and it'll help make it faster." I'm like, just put your stuffing in a casserole dish and do it on the side. And then, you get the crispy bits on top. You do not get crispy bits, if you stuff the turkey, you get stuffed bits.
Kerry Diamond:
My mama, we shoved in the turkey and then a separate-
Melissa Clark:
She did a separate dressing.
Kerry Diamond:
... dish with it. Yeah. We called it stuffing growing up. Did you call it dressing growing up?
Melissa Clark:
No, because I think dressing is more of a southern thing, but then there's some people who say that stuffing is the thing that you stuff in the turkey and dressing is the same mixture when you bake it on the side. I don't know.
Kerry Diamond:
Huh? Okay.
Melissa Clark:
I think it depends on your family.
Kerry Diamond:
Call it what you want.
Melissa Clark:
Call it what you want. It's yummy. Use really good bread.
Kerry Diamond:
Have you stuck to the same stuffing recipe over the years? I know in a lot of families the stuffing recipe is very traditional.
Melissa Clark:
It's funny because when I was growing up, my parents went rogue with the stuffing every year. You never know, one year it could have bagels in it. In fact, one year it definitely had bagels in it.
Kerry Diamond:
Stop.
Melissa Clark:
Yes. My mother would freeze all the little ends of the challah, the bagel, whatever, little ends of bread in the freezer and then, that was the stuffing. It was like, what is this pumpernickel doing in the stuffing? My family really, really likes a very simple, just like white bread or brioche, super simple. We don't do bacon in or anything. We just do really like shallots or leek stock. Also, that good turkey stock that you make ahead and tons of herbs. Really simple.
Kerry Diamond:
I love stuffing.
Melissa Clark:
And also a ton of butter.
Kerry Diamond:
Yes.
Melissa Clark:
And it's true, you don't eat stuffing. Why don't we eat it more often? I want it all year long. I just don't think of it.
Kerry Diamond:
You know what we used to make when I had the coffee shop in Carroll Gardens, we would take the leftover croissants and make bread pudding and I'm wondering, can you do a stuffing out of leftover croissants?
Melissa Clark:
Why not?
Kerry Diamond:
Yeah.
Melissa Clark:
I bet that'd be ... I did a breakfast casserole with leftover croissants. It was so good. Cheese, and it was really, really good. So I think stuffing would work.
Kerry Diamond:
My mom's secret is dried sage.
Melissa Clark:
Yes. That's good.
Kerry Diamond:
Yeah, it's such a nostalgic dish for me. It's not Thanksgiving without the stuffing.
Melissa Clark:
What else-
Kerry Diamond:
I can live without the turkey, but nothing else.
Melissa Clark:
What else is non-negotiable in your table?
Kerry Diamond:
My cranberry sauce.
Melissa Clark:
Okay.
Kerry Diamond:
My mom loves the ... Sorry, mom. Hopefully you're not listening. My mom loves the cranberry sauce in the can, but leaves it in the can shape when she served it.
Melissa Clark:
That is a thing that people do. Yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
Yes, which makes me bananas. Also, it's so easy to make cranberry sauce.
Melissa Clark:
Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
And I don't even make it with sugar now, I just make it with orange juice and grated orange stuff.
Melissa Clark:
No sugar? I'm going to try that because orange juice is really sweet, so that should work-
Kerry Diamond:
I love that cranberry taste, but I just find the canned stuff in the shape of the can, too sweet.
Melissa Clark:
It is very sweet. But I usually add sugar to my cranberry sauce, but I'm going to try it without sugar. Maybe I don't need to.
Kerry Diamond:
I'll send you my recipe, Melissa Clark.
Melissa Clark:
Send your recipe please, Kerry.
Kerry Diamond:
I never thought-
Melissa Clark:
And then we're going to put in the times next year and then, I'm going to be like, okay, I got this from Kerry Diamond.
Kerry Diamond:
Never thought I would say those words, people. I can retire now. So we've cooked the turkey. That's so interesting that you take it out at 155 because the temperature will continue to go up.
Melissa Clark:
Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
I bet a lot of people wait until it hits 165 in the oven.
Melissa Clark:
Yes, many people do. People are nervous and I understand why. Food safety, it's an important thing to keep track of. It's an important thing to think about and pay attention to. You have to feel comfortable doing that. That's how we've always done it. And I have taken the temperature 30 minutes later and it really does rise. So it works, but if you're uncomfortable, then don't do it.
Kerry Diamond:
Is there a kind of spirited debate at the times when you're trying to decide what the turkey of the year is going to be?
Melissa Clark:
Yeah. Yeah. So we all gather in a big conference room, but we start even before. So we get an email from Emily Weinstein, our editor-in-chief, and she sends out this big email saying, okay, everybody, here we are. Thanksgiving in the summer, please put your ideas down. And we have a Google Doc that we all share, as we all put down our ideas. And then when we finally meet, we can go over everything and we can discuss it and then the editors go away. And it's funny because those ideas, they'll change shape, they'll morph a bunch of small ideas that people had became this really cool feature that we're doing this year called Hot Takes. It's our Thanksgiving hot takes. And these are just radical ideas for your Thanksgiving table and they're really fun.
Kerry Diamond:
They need to get you on Subway Takes.
Melissa Clark:
My gosh, yes.
Kerry Diamond:
Do you know Subway Takes?
Melissa Clark:
Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
That's my favorite show.
Melissa Clark:
I love it.
Kerry Diamond:
All I want to do is be on Subway Takes. But Melissa Clark should 100% be on Subway Takes. Kareem, if you are listening to the show.
Melissa Clark:
I would love that.
Kerry Diamond:
A lot of people want crispy skin.
Melissa Clark:
I want crispy skin.
Kerry Diamond:
How do you get crispy skin?
Melissa Clark:
Well, so you dry it out, which is important. And if you don't have time to dry out your turkey in the fridge for a few days before, just take a paper towel and just really pat it dry. Take some time, go slow, pat it dry, and then that's going to help the skin crisp. Another thing is you need fat on that skin. Turkeys have some fat, but not a ton. So you can use melted butter. You could use olive oil.
Kerry Diamond:
Okay, so you've dry brined it, but you still have to do more once it's in the oven.
Melissa Clark:
Yeah, not that much more. If you've let it dry out in your fridge, then it's going to be dry, but then you need to oil it up. So a little bit of melted butter or a little bit of ... or a lot of melted butter or olive oil, something to help encourage browning and crisping in the oven, so you need to do that. I usually just drizzle it right on top right before I pop it in, but I don't baste. Basting isn't necessary, and it actually interferes with crispy skin because you're pouring liquid onto the skin that you want to get crispy.
Kerry Diamond:
My gosh. No basting.
Melissa Clark:
I mean, here's the thing, I'm like, "Gee, is it easier and is it better? Let's go with easier and better. How about that?"
Kerry Diamond:
You oil it up or butter it up before you shove it in to the oven.
Melissa Clark:
Yep.
Kerry Diamond:
And then you don't touch it after that?
Melissa Clark:
No, I mean you bring the heat down, so you want to start it high and you let it develop a nice brown, gorgeous skin.
Kerry Diamond:
So no basting, no second oiling, no nothing.
Melissa Clark:
No, but you have to keep your eye on the liquid in the bottom of the pan though, because sometimes it'll dry out. So I mean, you don't even need to open the oven, if you have an oven light. Just peek in, make sure that ... or use your nose. If you smell caramelization, check on your turkey and make sure that there's liquid and then just splash a little bit of extra wine or a few tablespoons of water in there. But otherwise, yeah, just let it do its thing. It's doing its thing, keep track of the time. We have a nice chart of how big your turkey is, how long you need to roast it, and also how much salt to use because it's all about the ratio of getting that right.
You don't want a really salty turkey. You want to make sure that that's right. So we have a chart for you in Turkey 101 so you can look it up and you can decide exactly the right timing and the right amount of salt.
Kerry Diamond:
I can't wait to see Turkey 101. I'm very excited for this. Let's talk about carving.
Melissa Clark:
Yes, let's talk about carving.
Kerry Diamond:
So many people are intimidated by carving.
Melissa Clark:
Yeah. You know why? Because they think that they have to carve it a la Norman Rockwell on a platter with a two-pronged fork and a carving knife. I've tried to do that, the turkey will slip. You know what? turkeys are not stable. They are slippery things, especially if you've oiled it up. You put it on the plate and you try to cut it and it is probably going to go like a football just ... it's going to rock back and forth for sure. So you want to stabilize your turkey. The way we did it in my house when I was growing up is how I do it now. We didn't parade the turkey into the dining room.
We paraded the people into the kitchen. We're like, "All right, people come and view the turkey." And we had a turkey viewing and everyone came and went, “What a beautiful turkey.” And my dad, who was the turkey guru there, he would suck up the praise, he'd loved it. And then, we would shoo everybody out. And this is important, get everyone out before you start carving the turkey, because it's not pretty. It is not meant to be pretty. It shouldn't be pretty. What you need to do is you need to cut it into pieces and carve the smaller pieces.
The small pieces are stable, they're much easier to carve, and it'll just be less anxiety for you. It's not going to look majestic, but it's going to give you a faster, better, easier result. And then make sure to have your warmed platters. I believe in warm platters, which I do by just, you need to take the turkey out. You're probably putting other things in the oven. Maybe you're heating something or your mashed potato casserole. So I usually just put the platter on top of the stove and it's like, that's enough. You don't have to do anything fancy, just stick it on top of the stove and it's going to get warm enough.
Just take the chill off of it. And so, you're putting the meat onto something that's not cold, it's a nice warm platter. And then send it out as quickly as you can.
Kerry Diamond:
Do you have a carving guide in Turkey 101?
Melissa Clark:
We do. We will have a link to a carving guide.
Kerry Diamond:
Any tips for avoiding a turkey massacre? I guess a lot of it has to do with either not looking at the carving guide or YouTube video or something in advance. Most people are only doing this once a year, but also dull knives.
Melissa Clark:
Yes, dull knives. Sharpen your knives. That's actually something to do the week before. So another thing on your to-do list, aside from defrosting the turkey, sharpen your knives or get them sharpened or maybe buy yourself a new stainless steel knife. They're not expensive. The ones with the stainless steel blades, they tend to stay sharp, especially when you get them out of the box. They're super sharp.
Kerry Diamond:
Do you know anything about how expensive turkey is this year?
Melissa Clark:
Everything is more expensive this year. Everything is so much more expensive this year, and a good turkey. So let's talk about what a good turkey is. So a good turkey is going to cost you more. There's so much labeling with poultry and it gets really confusing of what to buy. So I just want to give you a little rundown to help people. And this is all in Turkey 101, but just a little rundown. A kosher turkey has been pre-brined for you, so you do want to dry it out, the skin, and you do want to add a little bit of salt, but have the amount of salt. If you buy a kosher turkey, have the amount of salt.
So a free-range pasture-raised bird means that they have some access to outside. Yes. Okay, that could be good, organic. It means they've been fed organic, feed and that they have not been given any antibiotics. Turkeys have never given hormones. So if it says hormone-free, that's just marketing, but antibiotic uses. If it says the turkey has never been given antibiotics, you'll see that on the label. Sometimes they are given a little bit, depending. But really what you're looking for and what I tell people to buy is an all-natural bird. It won't have any salt solution in it.
Sometimes turkeys are injected with a preservative salt solution and those are the ones, they tend to be the big supermarket, least expensive ones. Try to avoid those because they do it to try to keep the meat moist and juicy, but what happens is they exude liquid as they roast. It's really hard to get a good crispy skin on those. So look for all-natural. And if you buy an all-natural turkey, you know that it's going to be without any preservatives. It's not going to have any salt added. And then you can really have more control over the end result.
Kerry Diamond:
If you need to save a little bit of money for Thanksgiving, can you just buy a turkey breast?
Melissa Clark:
Yes.
Kerry Diamond:
Is that an option?
Melissa Clark:
Yeah, if you're a white meat person, especially. So if you could try to find one on the bone that's better. Anytime you roast meat on the bone, you're going to get more flavor. So try to find one with the skin on with the ... and then you get the turkey skin, if you can find. Skin on, bone-in turkey breast, and that roasts really quickly, but still brine it, still do the dry brine, if you can. Just do it a day before, and that's going to be ready in under an hour, which is really nice. For dark meat lovers, you can buy yourself some turkey thighs, which is ... My hack for Thanksgiving is I like to buy a small turkey and then, I'll buy some extra thighs because we're dark meat lovers.
And we like to have the extra dark meat, and then, we'll just roast the thighs on a sheet pan right underneath the turkey. And it's just that you have the extra meat. And then, it's also easier to maneuver a smaller turkey, fits better in the fridge. It's just all around easier. So I always recommend buy a 10 to 12 pound turkey and then, if you want extra meat, buy an extra breast or extra thighs or extra both. And that way, you just have it, and it's just easier all around.
Kerry Diamond:
Let's talk about leftover turkey. What's your favorite thing to do with leftover turkey?
Melissa Clark:
I mean sandwiches, right? I mean, yes, soup is great. Enchiladas are fabulous. But a turkey, there's nothing like the day after Thanksgiving sandwich.
Kerry Diamond:
But I love it with cranberry stuffing, great white bread, and a little bit of arugula.
Melissa Clark:
Yes, and mayonnaise.
Kerry Diamond:
And mayo. Yeah.
Melissa Clark:
Perfect.
Kerry Diamond:
A hundred percent.
Melissa Clark:
Perfect.
Kerry Diamond:
I should give a shout-out to Provisions in Nantucket because they make what is, I think one of the best sandwiches in America, the Turkey Terrific. And it's exactly that, the stuffing, the turkey, the cranberry, great bread, and I order some arugula on it-
Melissa Clark:
And do they do that all year long?
Kerry Diamond:
I don't know if they're open all year long.
Melissa Clark:
Right, but when they're open, they have it.
Kerry Diamond:
Yes.
Melissa Clark:
Nice.
Kerry Diamond:
I think it's their most popular sandwich. You mentioned some other things. You said soup, enchilada. We should talk about making stock from the turkey bones.
Melissa Clark:
Yeah, you have to do that. I mean, it would just be a shame, I know so many people are so tired after Thanksgiving. I mean, we're all exhausted. We are so tired. The last thing we want to do ... I mean so many turkeys get thrown in the garbage because we're tired. I've done it. We've all done it. We've all done it. We've been like, I can't deal, let's just clean up and throw it away. But if you can, just ... this is what you should do. This is what I've been doing anyway. And this works for me. I get some of those really big Ziploc bags, the two-gallon ones, they're giant, and I get a package of those.
In fact, I think I have the same package from last year because I only really use them for Thanksgiving. And then at the end of the night, instead of throwing that turkey into the trash, I just put it into the big plastic bag. I put it in the fridge, or it's usually cold out in New York, so sometimes I'll just stick it out on the deck and it just sits there until I'm ready to make stock. It can sit in the fridge for three, four, five days.
Kerry Diamond:
The bones-
Melissa Clark:
Yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
And the Ziploc. Can you put them in the freezer?
Melissa Clark:
Or you can put them in the freezer and then deal with them when you have a moment. Don't think about trying to make stock the next day. Don't think about trying to make stock that night. I know people who are like, "Oh, just have the stock pot and just throw them." Yeah. No, throw them into a plastic bag and throw them in the fridge. And then on Monday, Thanksgiving is a Thursday. On Monday, you're good. If you do them on Monday, don't do them past Monday. But even Monday ... Sunday or Monday, make your stock.
Kerry Diamond:
And talk about saving money today. Stock is just such a magic elixir to have in your fridge or your freezer.
Melissa Clark:
I paid $10 for a thing of stock the other day.
Kerry Diamond:
I've seen it more in some stores.
Melissa Clark:
What is going on?
Kerry Diamond:
And you'll get a lot of stock from really whatever size turkey. It's amazing how much stock you get even just from a regular-sized chicken.
Melissa Clark:
Yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
But this goes back to turkey for dummies. So, New York Times, when you want to do turkey for dummies next year, you have to call me, but eyes to someone ... but who has a pot large enough to make stock with all those turkey bones. And they were like, you don't have to use all the bones at once, dummy.
Melissa Clark:
Yeah. You don't have to do all the bones at once.
Kerry Diamond:
Yes.
Melissa Clark:
Exactly. Which is why you've got your Ziploc bags. You can freeze some of them. They break down. I mean, after you've carved the turkey, they compact really well. And so, they all fit in my biggest stock pot, which isn't huge. It's not a lobster pot, it's just a big old stock pot. And they all fit.
Kerry Diamond:
But you don't have to cook them all up.
Melissa Clark:
You do not.
Kerry Diamond:
You don't have to use them all at once, people.
Melissa Clark:
No, you also don't have to use them all. Even just one pot of turkey stock, if you use some of them, you'll be happy.
Kerry Diamond:
Yeah, but throw the bones in the freezer.
Melissa Clark:
Yeah. If you have freezer space, you'll be making-
Kerry Diamond:
If you have freezer space. Yeah.
Melissa Clark:
If you have freezer space, you'll be making stock into January. And then, soup season, you're going to be set up.
Kerry Diamond:
What are your favorite sides?
Melissa Clark:
Okay, so this is a little controversial, but I like a salad. I like-
Kerry Diamond:
That is so funny because you are the queen of salad. You love nothing more than washing your lettuce a bunch of times-
Melissa Clark:
I do. I do. In fact, I did it this morning before I came here. I'm like, "Oh, got to wash the lettuce." I love salad. I love the crisp freshness of it. The lemony dressing next to the rich ... I mean, everything on your plate is so rich. And I just love the brightness and the crisp texture of salad. We always do a salad. I know it's controversial. You were saying arugula. An arugula salad with a lemon dressing on Thanksgiving. It's the best, so we do that every year, but more traditionally, we do green beans. We are a green bean family. And I love Brussels sprouts.
So that's enough aside from your mashed potatoes, your sweet potatoes, your stuffing. But as far as fresh green things, salad, Brussels sprouts, green beans. We're good.
Kerry Diamond:
I did crowdsource some questions, and one came in from our friend Janet Ozzard, who's a Cherry Bombe contributor. She said, “Melissa Clark, make my string beans less boring.”
Melissa Clark:
Well, can I pass the baton to Julia Moskin? Make my string beans less boring because Julia has-
Kerry Diamond:
From The Times team.
Melissa Clark:
Yes. Julia has a fantastic recipe that has ginger and garlic, and it's like a fast saute, and it's really, really good. I've actually made that several times. And here's another one, so take Julia's recipe and throw some everything bagel seasoning on it. I mean, yum, those little crunchy oniony bits, so good.
Kerry Diamond:
I go through so much everything bagel seasoning from Trader Joe's.
Melissa Clark:
That and for a cocky, right?
Kerry Diamond:
Do you make your own or do you buy somebody's?
Melissa Clark:
No, I buy it.
Kerry Diamond:
Do buy the Trader Joe's one.
Melissa Clark:
You know what I like, Jacobson's Salt has one. It's salty, salty. It's so good.
Kerry Diamond:
We love Jacobson's. Another question from our friends out there. “Melissa, give me an idea for a Thanksgiving dessert that isn't pumpkin,” and that person added, “I hate pumpkin spice.” So we don't want anything pumpkin.
Melissa Clark:
Here's a hot take for Thanksgiving. Have a chocolate. Guess what? Everybody really likes chocolate. Why don't we do chocolate for Thanksgiving? I don't know, maybe we're saving up for Christmas, but I say if you don't like pumpkin, just go for the big guns and do a chocolate torte. Do some kind of like flourless chocolate cake that you can make ahead. They're so easy. Genevieve Ko has a fantastic chocolate torte. It's basically like a giant brownie. It's so good with a simple frosting. I think it's a one-bowl cake. You can make it ahead. It has everything you want. Everyone loves it. Or if you want to go for pie, do a pecan pie. I love a chocolate pecan pie.
Kerry Diamond:
Doesn't Four & Twenty Blackbirds do a pecan chocolate pie where they have a layer of chocolate at the bottom of the-
Melissa Clark:
Yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
It's so good.
Melissa Clark:
It's so good.
Kerry Diamond:
Speaking of pie, another question was about gluten-free pie crust. Any advice?
Melissa Clark:
Yeah, that is a hard one. It's hard to get the exact same texture, but you can get a really good one. So there's a couple of options. The first thing is to buy the gluten-free cup for cup or another gluten-free flour brand. King Arthur makes one That's really good. And just substitute it. It really does work. It's just going to give you a slightly different texture. But you know what I love to do, is to buy gluten-free graham crackers, which are really easy to find and they're so good. And just make a graham cracker crust, especially for a pumpkin pie. A pumpkin pie with a graham cracker crust is so good, or a pumpkin cheesecake with a graham cracker crust, so that's my go-to.
Kerry Diamond:
Next question. Side dishes that travel well by car.
Melissa Clark:
Any side dish travels well by car. The big problem with making ahead the sides is reheating them. So you just have to make sure if you are bringing them somewhere ... Well first of all, make sure the kitchen is going to have space for you to reheat. Plan ahead, am I going to reheat in the microwave? Am I going to reheat on the stove or do I need the oven? Bring it in the container that you can reheat in. So for me, I like to do things ahead in a casserole dish and put them in the oven. That works really well, and then you have that half an hour while the turkey is resting, the oven is free, that's when I reheat all my side, or the microwave, in which case I actually really like glass containers. I have these great-
Kerry Diamond:
Pyrex.
Melissa Clark:
Pyrex, with the little lids. And so, I will pack it into that and then, you can just reheat it right in that and then, put it into a serving dish. So just think about your method of reheating and then anything is going to travel well.
Kerry Diamond:
And then once Thanksgiving dinner is over, what's your philosophy on sharing the leftovers? Because it's controversial, sometimes
Melissa Clark:
Some people, yes, I have people bring their own containers or sometimes I'll have containers ready.
Kerry Diamond:
Not that sharing is controversial. The container situation is controversial, because some people-
Melissa Clark:
You don't want to give away your best containers.
Kerry Diamond:
Some people want their containers back.
Melissa Clark:
Yes, and you don't really want to deal with that. So what I like-
Kerry Diamond:
Even Oprah wants her containers back.
Melissa Clark:
And she should have them back if she wants them. Everybody should have their containers back. So we have a lot of glass Pyrex containers. So I want those back. I do, I want them back. Sorry. You've come to my house for Thanksgiving and you're taking my containers. But I also have Ziploc bags. I always have a lot of Ziplocs. And so container-less people will get a Ziploc full of turkey and whatever else.
Kerry Diamond:
All right, let's do a little speed round and then you can head back to NYT Cooking and say hello to all of our friends.
Melissa Clark:
I will.
Kerry Diamond:
And tell them thank you for this public service that they do every year for us.
Melissa Clark:
Well, it's always a delight to come here. And we love Thanksgiving and NYT Cooking. It's the best.
Kerry Diamond:
All right, what beverage do you start your day with?
Melissa Clark:
Tea.
Kerry Diamond:
Tea. What kind?
Melissa Clark:
Assam.
Kerry Diamond:
With milk.
Melissa Clark:
No sugar.
Kerry Diamond:
Whole milk.
Melissa Clark:
Whole milk. Four cups.
Kerry Diamond:
Four cups of what?
Melissa Clark:
Of tea.
Kerry Diamond:
You drink four cups of tea in the morning or a day?
Melissa Clark:
A day, all day long.
Kerry Diamond:
Okay. You get to see every cookbook in the world. You also have written so many cookbooks. What is one cookbook you're loving right now?
Melissa Clark:
“Dorie Greenspan's Anytime Cakes.” Sorry. I did an event with her and she's of course, the loveliest, but also, I love the idea of an anytime cake. You want a cake, just make a cake. And she has so many one bowls in there. And I love a one-bowl cake because they're so fast.
Kerry Diamond:
So many of those recipes would be great for Thanksgiving.
Melissa Clark:
Yep.
Kerry Diamond:
And just to give a shout-out to our other podcast that you have been on, Melissa, She's My Cherry Pie, it's our baking podcast hosted by Jessie Sheehan. Dorie was just on the show and it was the nicest interview I've ever listened to. I mean, it just was so soothing. You just were like, "Oh, thank you, Dorie," at the end of-
Melissa Clark:
Yes, and that's how the book is. It's soothing and it's delicious, and I want to make all the cakes.
Kerry Diamond:
Yeah. So if you're having a rough day, go listen to that episode. What's your favorite kitchen tool?
Melissa Clark:
Zester. I love a zester.
Kerry Diamond:
Microplane.
Melissa Clark:
A Microplane.
Kerry Diamond:
And what do you use it for?
Melissa Clark:
Garlic, ginger, lemon zest. Mostly just those.
Kerry Diamond:
What's always in your fridge?
Melissa Clark:
Anchovies, lemons.
Kerry Diamond:
I feel like the answer for you is everything.
Melissa Clark:
Yeah. I mean, my fridge is so stuffed. It is really scary.
Kerry Diamond:
What's your favorite snack food?
Melissa Clark:
Parmesan crisps. You know those little Parmesan crisps?
Kerry Diamond:
No.
Melissa Clark:
You buy them. They're like basically Frico's, so they're just melted Parmesan. And I spend $9 for a teeny little package, and I love them so much. But I also love popcorn. I love popcorn with nutritional yeast.
Kerry Diamond:
And you make your own?
Melissa Clark:
Yeah, usually. I mean, I'll buy it if I need to, but I try to make my own. I love a Cheeto. I love an extra crunchy Cheeto.
Kerry Diamond:
Give us a quick tip for making popcorn at home, because I have a bag of Rancho Gordo kernels.
Melissa Clark:
Good. Those would be good.
Kerry Diamond:
Yeah. Big pot.
Melissa Clark:
Big pot. Lots of oil. People don't put enough oil. You need to really put as much oil. I'll take my Dutch oven. You heat your pot first, and I'll do equal parts oil and popcorn. I know it sounds crazy, but it's so good. And use a good oil. Don't use canola oil. Use coconut oil or something really good.
Kerry Diamond:
Do you ever use olive oil?
Melissa Clark:
Olive oil is good too.
Kerry Diamond:
How do you season it?
Melissa Clark:
This is important. When it's hot, you put it into a bowl ... I mix the seasoning in the bowl first so that the second the popcorn is done, I can mix it together. So nutritional yeast, which is really important.
Kerry Diamond:
I have my Bragg's nutritional yeast.
Melissa Clark:
So much nutritional yeast. Seaweed. Like a-
Kerry Diamond:
Furikake?
Melissa Clark:
Yeah. Well, a furikake is great, or just plain seaweed. Just like a little ... I have kelp. You can buy it powdered. And I put that in there. Salt, of course. The thing is, if you add enough oil, you actually don't even need to butter it. It's going to be kind of crunchy and oily as it is. So you just toss it with the dry seasonings and you can add a little more butter too, which is great. But the important thing is the nutritional yeast, the seaweed is really good in it. And then whatever spices, I'm like, "Oh, let's throw some cumin in here. Let's throw some cayenne and make it spicy."
Kerry Diamond:
Okay. You need to get a little adventurous, because I have some great avocado oil from west~bourne. I've got all those spices. I've got some Bragg's nutritional yeast just waiting to be used.
Melissa Clark:
Yeah. Yeah. Another popcorn tip I have for you is don't close the pot all the way. Leave a teeny bit open just so that some of the steam can escape. It'll give you crunchier popcorn, not enough so that the popcorn can escape. I have a Dutch oven that's an oval, and I kind of make the cover a little bit askew.
Kerry Diamond:
Is it time to have a recipe?
Melissa Clark:
I've done a lot of popcorn reporting myself, so yes.
Kerry Diamond:
You're on the popcorn beat.
Melissa Clark:
I love that stuff.
Kerry Diamond:
What was your favorite food as a kid?
Melissa Clark:
My God. Well, cookies. Cookies. My first word was cookie, apparently.
Kerry Diamond:
That's cute. What are you streaming right now?
Melissa Clark:
Okay. We like comfort watching, “All Creatures Great and Small.”
Kerry Diamond:
The original?
Melissa Clark:
No, the new one.
Kerry Diamond:
The remake. That's right they've remade it.
Melissa Clark:
They remade it, and it comes out. It's coming out again soon. We love it because nothing bad ever happens except sometimes a horse will get sick and then you feel bad. But then it will get better.
Kerry Diamond:
I watched the original when I was a kid. Did you?
Melissa Clark:
No, I read the books. I read all the books.
Kerry Diamond:
I remember the original. Yeah, and I think it was part of why when you're a kid, you want to grow up and be a veterinarian.
Melissa Clark:
Yes, exactly. And plus, it's just beautiful shots of the Yorkshire countryside. You just want to be absorbed into the green.
Kerry Diamond:
These are all good tips. Listen to Dorie Greenspan-
Melissa Clark:
Yeah. These are all soothing things. If you're noticing a through line-
Kerry Diamond:
I am.
Melissa Clark:
This is going to help you during the holidays.
Kerry Diamond:
What is your favorite food film?
Melissa Clark:
I like “Tampopo.” It's a classic and it's a great one.
Kerry Diamond:
Dream travel destination.
Melissa Clark:
Vietnam. I've never been to Vietnam, and I'm dying to go.
Kerry Diamond:
That's one of my favorite places in the world, and the food.
Melissa Clark:
The food.
Kerry Diamond:
And the people. The people are so lovely.
Melissa Clark:
It's very high up on my list.
Kerry Diamond:
Yeah. Okay. If you had to be trapped on a desert island with one food celebrity, who would it be?
Melissa Clark:
You, of course, you.
Kerry Diamond:
No.
Melissa Clark:
Yes, we have the best time.
Kerry Diamond:
We would have fun. But no, you pick someone else.
Melissa Clark:
I can't say you. Okay. Fine.
Kerry Diamond:
You'd get stuck doing all the cooking.
Melissa Clark:
Yeah, but you'd make us so comfortable. Everything would look so nice. You have such amazing style-
Kerry Diamond:
I would clean up. My dishwasher is broken. Well, it's been broken forever, but my dishwasher is broken so I'd become quite the dishwashing expert. So I would do all the cleaning. You could do all the cooking-
Melissa Clark:
We'd be a great pair.
Kerry Diamond:
Pick someone else. You could pick someone.
Melissa Clark:
I know there are so many.
Kerry Diamond:
You know so many people. No one's going to hold it-
Melissa Clark:
I have all my friends.
Kerry Diamond:
No one will hold it against you.
Melissa Clark:
I mean, probably ... I mean, honestly, the first person popping into my mind was Samin because I was reading her book this morning.
Kerry Diamond:
Samin Nosrat.
Melissa Clark:
Samin Nosrat.
Kerry Diamond:
That would be fun.
Melissa Clark:
Samin, would you go on a desert island with me? I was just reading her fantastic book.
Kerry Diamond:
You would laugh a lot.
Melissa Clark:
We would laugh a lot.
Kerry Diamond:
Absolutely.
Melissa Clark:
Can her dog come too?
Kerry Diamond:
Yeah, her dog is so cute.
Melissa Clark:
Yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
I think that's okay.
Melissa Clark:
Yeah.
Kerry Diamond:
Wait, I forgot. The most important question.
Melissa Clark:
What?
Kerry Diamond:
What are you most thankful for this year?
Melissa Clark:
Every year it's the same, my family. My family, they are everything. And I'm going to cry, but I'm so thankful for them, all the time, every day of the year, not just on Thanksgiving.
Kerry Diamond:
Melissa Clark, you are the bombe. Thank you so much for being on the show and for helping everybody have a better, more delicious Thanksgiving.
Melissa Clark:
Well, thank you for having me, and happy Thanksgiving everybody.
Kerry Diamond:
That's it for today's show. Thank you to Melissa Clark for joining me. I love Melissa so much. Be sure to check out her Turkey 101 video on YouTube, and all the great recipes over at NYT Cooking. Also, this week, if you're in New York, we would love to see you at our Bobbi Brown Jones Road event on Wednesday evening, and at our working lunch on Thursday at Markette restaurant. For ticket information, visit cherrybombe.com. Our theme song is by the band Tralala. Joseph Hazan is a studio engineer at Newsstand Studio. Our producers are Catherine Baker and Jenna Sadhu. Our executive assistant is Brigid Pittman, and her head of partnerships is Rachel Close. Thanks for listening, everybody. You are the Bombe.