It's not too soon to start planning your own old-fashioned Cuban Christmas celebration. We invite you to visit our sister site, Cuban-Christmas.com to find out everything you need to know about celebrating a traditional Cuban Christmas and New Years!

We share some Cuban Christmas memories. We give you complete instructions on how to roast a pig. And we provide a comprehensive Cuban Christmas Eve Party Menu -- complete with recipes and cooking instructions.

See our complete Noche Buena party on the Food Network!

Watch "Christmas in America" with Rachel Ray on the Food Network:

AIR TIMES:

December 01, 2006 9:00 PM ET/PT

December 02, 2006 12:00 AM ET/PT

December 12, 2006 9:00 PM ET/PT

December 13, 2006 12:00 AM ET/PT

December 23, 2006 5:00 PM ET/PT

The Food Network will be re-broadcasting our Noche Buena segment on "Christmas in America with Rachel Ray" again this year. Tune in to see our pigroast from start to finish. A great way to get some new ideas for your own Christmas celebration with some recipes from our Cuban cookbooks "Three Guys From Miami Cook Cuban" and "Three Guys From Miami Celebrate Cuban."

1. Remove the neck and giblet packets from the turkey. You may use these to make your own turkey stock: place in a 3-quart saucepan. Cover with about 2 quarts lightly salted water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer, uncovered, for about 45 minutes to 1 hour.

2. Refrigerate overnight.

3. Mix together all of the marinade ingredients. Rub the turkey inside and out with the marinade. Place the turkey in a very large plastic bag. We use a clean white kitchen trash bag. It’s important to keep the marinade away from any metallic surface -- like your turkey roasting pan. Place the (bagged) turkey in a roasting pan and marinate in the refrigerator overnight.

4. Cover the dry beans with about 4 cups water in a 2-quart saucepan. Don’t add any salt yet. Bring to a boil, and boil for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and let it stand, covered overnight.

5. The next morning, drain and rinse the beans. Add enough water to cover once again and bring to a boil; reduce heat to low, cover and cook until tender, about 35 to 50 minutes. Drain.

6. Rinse the rice with cold water until the water runs clear.

7. Use a large, 8-quart covered stockpot. Sauté the bacon, onion, and green pepper in the olive oil until tender.

8. Add the garlic and sauté another minute or two. Add the tomato paste, black beans, oregano, cumin, bay leaf, and vinegar. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring gently.

9. Add the turkey stock and the rinsed rice. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and cook for about 30 to 40 minutes, or until rice is fully cooked.

10. Finally, adjust the seasonings by adding salt and pepper to taste. Remove the bay leaf.

11. Stuff the turkey with the moros -- the rice and beans you made in the previous step. Cover the turkey with bacon slices and pour wine over the top of the turkey.

12. For best results, follow the cooking instructions that come with the turkey. In general, roast the turkey at 325 degrees F until fully cooked. (Check with a meat thermometer -- poultry setting). Do not overcook.

13. Remove the bacon during the last 30 minutes to allow the skin to brown.

Serves: That’s a good question. The experts tell you to allow 1/3 pound of turkey per person. These “experts” have obviously never heard of the concept of leftovers. Our thinking? A 12-pound bird is going to serve no more than 10 people!

Thanksgiving is just around the corner and now is the time to start planning your Cuban feast.

In Miami, a “Cubanized” version of the traditional American turkey is a very popular choice for Thanksgiving. Just like many Cuban food favorites, everybody has their own special recipe for Cuban turkey.

The secret to a great Cuban turkey? Start with a good, premium brand turkey. If you can get a fresh turkey from your butcher, great. If you do end up with a frozen bird, make sure you allow plenty of time to thaw it according to the package directions. It can take several days to thaw a frozen turkey in the refrigerator.

1 (12- to 14-pound) turkey

8 cloves garlic, mashed with 1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon ground oregano

1/2 cup sour orange juice (or substitute 1/3 cup sweet orange juice with 1 tablespoon white vinegar added)

1/2 cup olive oil

1 cup chopped white onion

Pavo Relleno con Moros

Marinade

Stuffing

2 cups dried black beans

4 cups water

3 cups parboiled rice

6 strips bacon, chopped

2 1/2 cups diced white onion

2 1/2 cups chopped green bell peppers

1/4 cup olive oil for sautéing

4 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped

1/4 cup tomato paste

1 1/2 teaspoons oregano

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 bay leaf

3 tablespoons white vinegar

5 cups turkey stock (see step 1 below)

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

On the Bird

1/2 pound thick-sliced bacon

1/2 cup white wine

Take a look at some highlights from our TV appearances:

Three Guys Clip Reel*

*Requires Real Player. Larger file suitable for high-speed connections only.

Order "Three Guys From Miami Cook Cuban" Now!

Order "Three Guys From Miami Celebrate Cuban" Now!

More Cuban Cookbook information is available here.

Our new Cuban cookbook!

Our latest Cuban cookbook, "Three Guys From Miami Celebrate Cuban," continues the tradition with 100 great Cuban recipes that will make every day a party at your house. These are wonderful recipes for everything from a small family meal to a large gathering.

The original Cuban cookbook, still great!

Our first Cuban cookbook, "Three Guys From Miami Cook Cuban," is on its way to becoming a classic. With more than 100 great Cuban and Latin recipes, this book makes a great gift for the holidays.

Happier times on both sides of the counter at Rancho Los Cocos in West Miami.

A part of Miami died recently out on Coral Way and although we don't know how it happened, or exactly when, we all mourn the passing of Rancho Los Cocos Fruteria and Cafeteria.

Los Cocos, where the highest and the lowest echelons of Miami society mingled in pursuit of fresh juices, Cuban lunch snacks, and complete Cuban meals to take home is boarded up and shuttered tight. And with it, another part of what makes Miami unique and vibrant has died.

Los Cocos had all the feel and flavor of a roadside produce stand that you might have found in pre-Castro Cuba or on any of several Caribbean islands. With a large selection of fresh fruits and vegetables under a simple outdoor awning, Los Cocos was the place to go for al fresco shopping.

The walk up window was always popular here, an informal meeting spot where complete strangers might share a cafecito and a conversation.

The juices were always the star attraction here, everything from fresh coconut juice and guarapo to freshly squeezed orange, mango, and grapefruit.

Many of the locals queued up on sunny Miami mornings for the Los Cocos desayuno, or breakfast. Others raved about the great tropical batidos, or milkshakes that were well known for being packed with the freshest fruits.

Los Cocos was also a place to pick up chicharrones, croquetas, tropical fruit cocktails, and even a brazo Gitano to take home to the kids.

The walk-up window at Rancho los Cocos.

We can only guess that the Los Cocos site will soon be the home of another fast food chain or gas station. It's a phenomenon that is not unique to Miami.

All over the country the quaint little places that define the heart and soul of a unique destination are being eaten alive by developers and national chains.

Through this forced homogenization of American culture, a trip to one city is becoming pretty much like a trip to any other city.

Whether we are visiting Dallas or Cleveland, we Americans shop at malls filled with the same stores we have back home. We eat at the same popular chains that can be found in Any City USA. And it becomes increasingly more difficult to experience something, anything different. Travel, which used to broaden the mind, is now a mere exercise in "discovering" more of the same.

And little by little the Miami we know and love continues to fade away...