Mary Clingman really can talk turkey. She's been doing it for 25 years with Butterball's popular Turkey Talk-Line, handling callers' questions during the holiday season.

Harried hosts, home cooks, concerned consumers, they all call with food safety concerns, cooking questions and sometimes desperate last-minute requests to help rescue dinner disasters.

When the Turkey Talk-Line opened about 30 years ago as toll-free numbers came into vogue, the question was whether consumers would even call in.

"It really grew from 11,000 calls the first year," said Clingman, who is director of the Chicago-based help line. "We'll take well over 100,000 calls every year."

"It makes such a great meal," she said of turkey's enduring appeal. "People love to serve it for a big dinner kind of event. And they have lots of questions, so that's why we're here."

The questions change with food fads and cooking trends. As microwave ovens became all the rage in the kitchen, Clingman recalls a recipe for, yes, cooking an entire turkey in a microwave. In recent years, questions involve deep-frying, barbecuing and convection oven cooking.

The Turkey Talk-Line remains open for the holidays in Canada and the U.S., with more than 50 professionally trained home economists and nutritionists answering calls through the fall. This week, the help line is open from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. today and Thursday, and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Christmas Day. The toll-free number is 1-800-288-8372.

Butterball's website, butterball.com,also offers information, including tips and recipes. Click on the link for calculators to help determine portion sizes and thawing and roasting times.

Clingman recalls her most memorable question came from a home cook in Colorado who kept her frozen turkey in the snowbank but forgot which one.

Even with the Internet and information just a mouse click away, the Turkey Talk-Line remains popular and helpful Clingman, said.

It's one thing to find a gazillion food facts, but quite another to discover that one item that fits your situation, question or concern.

Even the best cooks call in. Their best-laid plans can go awry at the last minute due to delayed travel plans, snowstorms and power outages, Clingman said.

Food safety remains a top concern for many callers, she said.

"So what we can do with them, which is really kind of cool, is that we can share certain guidelines. And then you can just plan your day and you realize, 'Yeah, I can do that.'"

Canadians remain among the best callers, she said. "We find the Canadian callers -- I really shouldn't say this -- but they really are nice. I mean, they listen to what we say, they're not argumentative. They believe what we tell them.

"We really have a great time talking to you guys. We're really looking forward to it."

The most common question? Thawing, she said. Read on, as Clingman offers tips and local experts provide their handy holiday suggestions.

COOKING, CARVING TIPS

Ted Farron, a popular South Windsor butcher who's operated from his Dougall and Cabana store for 26 years, offers his best tips.

Stuff: Take the stuffing and put in a cheesecloth bag inside the turkey, he advises. This makes it easier to remove and also avoids picking up any bits from inside the turkey.

Carving: Remove the entire breast, which makes it easier to carve by cutting it across the grain which runs from the front to the back. Avoid tendons in the drumsticks by cutting the drumsticks separately. Turn the drumsticks upside down the with the wide part at the bottom and peel off the meat with a chef's fork or a large fork.

Value: Turkey doesn't give value for the amount of meat it provides, what with its large carcass and bones, Farron said. So he likes to use as much as he can, boiling the giblets, heart and neck in a pan of water and using the liquid for a gravy base that provides an extra depth of flavour.

THREE TS FOR SUCCESS

Mary Clingman with Butterball's Turkey Talk-Line offers her three Ts for success.

Thaw correctly: The easiest method is in the fridge, one day for every four pounds, Clingman said. You don't have to cook it right away when thawed in fridge, but leave it in fridge and cook within four days, she said. "Throw it in cold water, that takes a half-hour per pound," she said of the method for turkeys thawing in a kitchen sink with cold water.

Thermometer: Use a meat thermometer to check done-ness, which is 175F to 180F or 79.4C to 82.2C in the thigh and in the breast 165F to 170F or 73.8C to 76.6C.

Two hours: "That's the two-hour rule. Two hours after the turkey comes out of the oven, you should really be thinking about everything being cut up and back in your fridge getting cold," Clingman said. "Everyone wants to wrap up entire carcass and stuff it in the fridge. It just takes so long for that big, hot object to get cold that it's really a good idea to cut it up."

THE SEASON TO TALK TURKEY

DINNER PLANNING

Mary Clingman, with Butterball's Turkey Talk-Line offers her best advice for turkey dinner:

Meal planning: "I plan on having that turkey done at least an hour ahead of time," Clingman said. That provides enough time for the juices to settle and for making gravy and finishing side dishes. "So, what I do is take the turkey out, I put it on a platter, I wrap it up in foil. I put a big bath towel over that so it really keeps the heat in nice.

"So in the meantime, I have all the casserole dishes in the oven. So, by the time the hour has gone by then they start carving the turkey, I've made the gravy, the dishes are done."

Roasting pan: Whatever pan is used, make sure air can circulate and help cook the turkey evenly. Use a wire rack with pans with taller sides. If you don't have a rack, put the turkey on a doughnut of foil or use whole carrots in the bottom of the pan, Clingman advises.

Leftovers: "I'll keep out in the fridge what I'm going to use up within three days," Clingman said. The rest goes into the freezer and is used up within a month. Left longer, the eating quality and flavour decrease, she said.

Breast meat: "What you want to protect in a turkey is the breast meat," Clingman said. "So what we recommend is that you take a piece of foil about the size of a piece of paper and about two-thirds of the way through the cooking time, you are going to put that on the breast meat. And that slows down how the heat can get to the breast meat. It's not going to overcook that while the thigh gets up to temperature."

Source: Ted Whipp

OFFER RIDE

ENTERTAINING

Set the tone with a positive attitude and be the responsible host, George Marar, co-owner of the downtown Windsor Loft night club, 20 Chatham St. E., said of his best tips for holiday entertaining.

Provide options like a taxi or service that can offer guests a ride home. And have someone oversee the bar area, he said.

Prepare a house drink, a specialty for the night, such as sangria served with decorative fruit on top, a spiced rum and eggnog. Make sure there's a variety of appetizers for different appetites. And serve non-alcohol drinks. Marar said the President's Choice-brand mocktails especially can offer appeal and make guests feel part of the party fun.

Source: Ted Whipp

HAVE A HEALTHY HOLIDAY

Holidays and nutrition can go together, says Chris Wellington, dietitian with the Jackson Park Health Centre's family health team.

Just beware the pitfalls "Whereve r you go there's food. And often it's the holiday party kind of food that's high in fat."

The fat content can be deceptive. Even a mini appetizer like a quiche or a spring roll can be a tiny fat bomb with more than five grams of fat alone.

As well, when you're in a social setting, you're relaxed and not even paying attention to what you're putting in your mouth, Wellington said.

"So socialize away from the food table. Put the drink in your dominant hand, so you're not picking away at food."

Volunteer to be a designated driver, to help avoid calories from holiday beverages, containing fat and calories as well as alcohol.

"It's easy to drink your calories," Wellington said, adding the alcohol alone contains seven calories per gram.

Wellington advises home cooks to chew gum, to avoid tasting dishes and piling up the calories before the meal is even on the table.

"A lot of women tell me they taste everything and will have eaten the equivalent of a whole meal," before it's even served, she said.

She advises guests to avoid bringing still more food and offering instead gifts, such as decorative items like plants or candles.

And guests on restricted or special health diets can consider bringing along something safe for their own dietary requirements, she said.

Her best advice? Browse the buffet or food spread beforehand to plan your choices. And make exercise part of the holiday schedule.

"Now's not the time to forget to exercise on a regular basis, she said. Besides, she adds, exercise can help ease the stress.

Source: Ted Whipp

HANDLE IMPORTANT TASKS AT THE START

ADVICE

Jonathan Reaume, chef-restaurateur at South Windsor's Toscana and an experienced caterer and cook, has suggestions for those in a rush.

Best ad-vice: "Having all the things done that can be done ahead of time."

Second best tip: "The things that are the biggest, most important or most difficult, deal with them first." Getting a handle on them helps ease the mind and the burden, he explains.

Timing: Prepare items in advance so they can be finished as needed to serve dinner.

Direction: "You have to delegate." If Aunt Mary has a reputation for a scrumptious pumpkin pie, why reinvent the wheel?

More timing: "Leave yourself enough time."

Advance: "Do it the day before," Reaume says of preparation such as chopping, cutting and slicing. Put the items in sealed containers.

Source: Ted Whipp