Big time party planning going on around your home? Will you be enjoy a holiday meal next week with friends and family or going solo? I've done both and can list the reasons why each experience can be appealing!

Regardless of where you live and how you express gratitude in your life - this American holiday is a good reason for all of us to gather round a table of good food and be thankful for what we do have in our lives. Hopefully at the top of your list are the people with whom you share most of your days. I am thankful for you and all of the readers who take time to open up these little missives, read the posts and check out the recipes. I'm especially thankful for everyone who sends me a note to share their thoughts and experiences.

This week I've assembled some tips to assist you with cooking your turkey, regardless of how you plan on preparing it - oven, grill, cooker, rotisserie, smoker or infrared fryer. And just for you who are tired of reading about turkey I've included a classic preparation method for a meal that I truly enjoy: Lamb Chops grilled over charcoal..

I hope this letter finds you enjoying good times and great tasting food with friends and family.

Happy Grilling!

What with all the turkey recipes I've been reading and writing of late the headline in the story really caught my attention: Mark Bittman's 45-Minute Turkey. I couldn't resist reading it. So what is his secret method?

When everything gets too busy and I need to take a break, I find grilling the meat for my meal over charcoal really slows me down. Not only does this deliberate process of tending to the fire and grilling on it do a great job of clearing my head of noisy distractions - the tasty result is also a reward!