Sweet Red Grapefruit Recipes You Should Try This Thanksgiving
Gobble, Gobble, Gobble! Turkey Day is fast approaching, and we are all getting ready to indulge in mashed potatoes, gravy, green bean casserole, sweet potatoes, and the pièce de résistance, turkey.
But have you ever wanted to try something different?
Why not add some sweet red grapefruit this year to your Thanksgiving spread? From the appetizer to dessert, we got you covered.
First up, an appetizer. Something light and refreshing is always something everyone can enjoy!
1. Texas Red Grapefruit and Toasted Walnut Salad
With this recipe, you are sure to impress your guests. Sweet red grapefruit and walnuts are a great choice when looking to spice up your Thanksgiving.
Grab These for Your Salad:
1 Texas Rio Red grapefruit
1 bag mixed green beans
1 to 2 avocados
½ cup walnuts, toasted
½ white onion, sliced
¼ cup of pomegranate arils
Brown sugar (to taste)
You’ll Need This for the Dressing:
1 ½ tsp kosher salt
¾ tbsp dijon mustard
Fresh ground black pepper to taste
1 tbsp maple syrup
1/3 cup olive oil
1 medium lemon, juiced
Then Do This:
1. Get your oven hot beforehand, about 375 degrees.
2. Slice avocados and onions.
3. Segment your grapefruit.
4. Toast all of your walnuts in the oven for around 10 minutes. Be sure not to burn them.
5. Take the pomegranate and harvest all of the arils from it.
6. Next, with the sliced onion, drizzle some olive oil over them.
7. Dash some brown sugar and then place it in the oven to caramelize for 20 minutes. We need to get some nice browning going on here.
8. Open up a big bag of mixed greens and pour it into a large salad bowl.
9. Grab the mustard, maple syrup, salt, pepper, and lemon juice and mix it all in a small mixing bowl. Whisk in some olive oil and make sure it emulsifies.
10. Drizzle the contents over your mixed greens, lightly toss again to make sure dressing is spread well.
11. Garnish with your arils and enjoy!
No Thanksgiving is complete without turkey! We got something for you and the kids to enjoy.
2. Roasted Turkey with a Grapefruit and Chile-Spiced Chocolate Glaze
First Grab These:
1 Texas Rio Red Grapefruit (Obviously)
2 oz Texas bittersweet chocolate (your choice of chocolate)
1 tbsp chile powder
4 tbsp butter
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp cinnamon
Salt and pepper
For the Bird, Grab:
1 turkey (10-12 pounds)
4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
Don’t Forget the Turkey Cream Sauce:
1 tbsp sweet red grapefruit and spiced chocolate glaze
1 tsp salt
¼ tsp black pepper
1 tsp fresh lime juice
2 cups heavy cream
Here’s What to Do: (A little prewarn! It may take around 4 hours to prepare and bake a turkey depending on its size and weight. Always follow the instructions on the label.)
1. Get your oven to 425 degrees.
2. Grate 1 tbsp of zest from our sweet red grapefruit.
3. Slice the grapefruit in half and squeeze its sweet, sweet juice into a saucepan.
4. Then, toss in your zest into the saucepan.
5. Bring the grapefruit mixture to a boil until it reduces, leaving about 1 tbsp worth of liquid. Then lower the heat to simmer.
6. Now the other really good stuff! Add butter and let it melt in a pan, then add in the chocolate and stir until silky smooth!
7. Then sprinkle in the chile powder, cinnamon, honey, salt, and pepper.
8. Stir all ingredients.
9. Keep the mixture warm, and take a basting brush and apply glaze to the turkey.
10. Roast turkey for 5 minutes at 425 degrees, and then lower the temperature to 350 degrees after.
11. Melt some butter and rub it on the turkey, and don’t forget to add ¼ cup of turkey stock or chicken broth to the bottom of the roasting pan to avoid burning the drippings.
12. Bake the turkey for 1 and half hours or as directed on the label.
13. After that, lower you oven’s temperature to 250 degrees, take the turkey out, and add a splash of stock to the roasting pan.
14. You know what time it is: more melted butter on your turkey!
15. Bake for 1 and half hours more.
16. When baking is done, take the turkey out and place it on a cutting board. It needs a brief rest.
17. Place those delicious juices from the roasting pan into a saucepan and set the burner to high heat. Then you’re going to want to add in remaining stock and bring to a boil, reducing the amount of liquid to about a cup’s worth.
18. Add cream, 2 tablespoons of turkey glaze, lime juice, salt, and pepper. lAll that good stuff!
19. Bring to a simmer and stir until velvety smooth.
20. Pour the gravy into a serving dish, carve that bad boy, and enjoy!
Now for the grand finale: Dessert!
This is one dish you absolutely will knock out of the park! No meal is complete without dessert. Many enjoy pie for dessert for Thanksgiving, but have you ever tried a cake?
3. Grapefruit-Pecan Sheet Cake
Stuff You’ll Need:
Cake:
1 Texas Rio Red Grapefruit
1 cup of butter, melted
2 cups of all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon of baking soda
2 cups of granulated sugar
½ teaspoon of kosher salt
½ of a teaspoon of ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup of pecans, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup of buttermilk
2 large eggs, beaten lightly
Shortening of your choice
Frosting:
¼ cup softened butter
1 (16 ounces) powdered sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1 (8 ounces) package of softened cream cheese
Here’s the Directions:
1. Zest up about 3 tablespoons of, well, grapefruit zest.
2. Cut the grapefruit in half and squeeze enough sweet red grapefruit juice to get 10 tablespoons.
3. Get that oven to 375 degrees.
4. Melt that butter and stir it in the grapefruit juice and water mixture in a small mixing bowl.
5. Stir in flour and rest of ingredients until mixture is smooth as silk.
6. Get a 13/9-inch pan and spray with non-sticking spray. Or you can grease the bottom of the pan, we won’t judge.
7. Pour batter in the baking pan and place in your hot oven for 20-25 minutes.
8. Prepare the best part next: the frosting! Beat the cream with softened butter at medium speed with an electric mixer for 1 to 2 minutes until the mixture is creamy.
9. Add vanilla and 2 tbsp of grapefruit juice plus zest and mix until well evenly blended.
10. Add powdered sugar at a low speed until everything is blending
11. Spread that delightful frosting over the top of the cake once it is cooled and enjoy!
With all these options to choose from, grapefruit will definitely make your Thanksgiving sweeter! So go ahead and try any one of these recipes! Grapefruit is a great addition to any meal and any holiday, so why not try it out this year!