Time to Stop Blaming the Turkey

Calm down, it's just a doll

(NEWSER) - Thanksgiving might just be PETA’s least favorite holiday , and to air their disapproval this year, activists served “baby” for Thanksgiving dinner at displays in Philadelphia and Baltimore. They set up a Thanksgiving spread on a sidewalk, the group’s media coordinator explains to the Los Angeles Times , except instead of a turkey there’s a “baby in the middle” of the table, he says. Of course, it’s just a doll. More»

How to thaw your turkey while bathing your kids

(NEWSER) - Nervous about cooking the Thanksgiving bird? Don't be. Butterball employs more than 50 Turkey Talk-Line experts who are ready and waiting to answer your culinary questions. And don't be embarrassed: Your inquiry can't be as embarrassing as these previous ones to be phoned in to 1-800-BUTTERBALL , as reported by Reuters :

• Can I thaw my turkey in my bathtub ... while I give my kids a bath?
• Is it OK to brine my turkey ... in a washing machine?

It's a common ingredient in turkey feed

(NEWSER) - Here's a fun fact to throw around the Thanksgiving table: Lots of turkey farms use arsenic in their feed. Yes, that arsenic, the deadly poison, which can control stomach bugs in turkeys and fatten them up, explains NPR's Shots health blog . It can also show up in the turkey meat on the table in trace amounts. Reason for worry? The FDA says no—based on standards developed in the 1950s. More»

Birds will head to George Washington's estate

(AP) - It's official: President Obama has pardoned the National Thanksgiving Turkey. Continuing a decades-old White House tradition, Obama issued pardons today to a gobbler named "Apple" and its alternate, “Cider.” The two 21-week-old, 45-pound turkeys were raised on a California farm. Obama said it “feels pretty good to stop at least one shellacking this November.” More»

Colbert gives Stewart a cookery lesson

(NEWSER) - The bad news for turkeys meeting Martha Stewart is that she'll kill you with her bare hands. The good news is that she'll get you drunk first. The celebrity cookbook author, appearing on Stephen Colbert's Colbert Report , told the host that she treats the birds to airline-sized mini-bottles of cognac or bourbon before dispatching them. Colbert then taught Stewart how to make a few hors d'oeuvres, including Wonder Bread with mayonnaise spread on it and topped with Kool-Aid mix. More»