Thanksgiving Go-to Recipes

i always make homemade cranberry sauce as well, like betty i use orange juice and i also stir a little cinnamon stick in. a few years ago we tried paula deen's green bean casserole http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/green-bean-.... delish BUT not healthy. on thanksgiving, who cares, right? we do my MIL's stuffing, which is from scratch, no recipe but the basic stuffing, onions, celery, sausage meat, stale bread seasonings, egg, broth and a little mashed potato in the stuffing. so good. my mouth is watering already. MY FAVORITE HOLIDAY!! also, always have a pumpkin pie from scratch, libby label.

Real cranberries!

So easy and a big hit!

Bring 1 cup sugar + 1 cup water to a boil
Add 16oz fresh cranberries
Boil w/out stirring till berries pop and thicken
Remove from heat and stir in 1/2 cup Apricot preserves
*optional: add 1 tsp. Lemon juice

Serve warm over turkey or chilled over a brick of cream cheese w/crackers yum!

we have sweet and sour green beans. I do not have a real recipe because it is all "by taste" I use the french cut green beans and due to the fact that they cook down and also that I want leftovers and I am feeding so many I use anywhere from 3 or more cans. I drain the cans but then add water, so I suppose you could just not drain them, we add apple cider vinegar and also sugar ( the sweet and sour) it also is not good unless you have actual bacon grease and real pieces of crumbled cooked bacon. This has to simmer a long time.

We also have two salads that we always make one is simply called Pink stuff and it is made using strawberry jello set to soft set, then you blend in a container of small curd cottage cheese, a container of cool whip and also a drained can of crushed pineapple then returned to refrigerate until set.
The second is Purple stuff ( aren't we creative? LOL) it is made with a can of ocean spray whole berry cranberries, a container of cool whip, chopped pecans and also a can of drained crushed pineapple. I do not know why we always make the same things, tradition? Habit? Or it is just what we love. I love when my mom makes the classic Waldorf salad, but I can not seem to get mine to taste as good as hers. Also from being in WI we became accustomed to eating something called taffy apple salad that is so yummy even though it sounds kind of gross just reading the ingredients. : 10-12 Servings Prep: 20 min. + chilling
20
20
Ingredients
1 can (20 ounces) crushed pineapple
4 cups miniature marshmallows
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
4-1/2 teaspoons cider vinegar
1 carton (8 ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed
3 cups diced unpeeled apples
1-1/2 cups lightly salted peanuts, coarsely chopped
Directions
Drain pineapple, reserving juice. In a large bowl, combine pineapple and marshmallows; cover and refrigerate for several hours.
In a saucepan, combine the egg, sugars, flour, vinegar and reserved pineapple juice; cook and stir until mixture thickens and reaches 160°. Remove from the heat; cool. Cover and refrigerate.
Fold whipped topping into the chilled dressing. Add the apples and peanuts to the pineapple and marshmallows. Fold dressing into fruit mixture. Refrigerate leftovers. Yield: 10-12 servings.
Great, now I am hungry = )

I have a real simple salad recipe it's Brocoli, Cauliflower, Mushrooms and Onion with Italian or Balsalmic Vinegar dressing.

You simply break up the Brocoli and Cauliflower into flowerets, slice the mushrooms and onion, mix well and poor in the dressing. It's good cold, or at room temperature.

You can even add nuts, sunflower seeds, raisins, or cranberries to spice it up.

Use your imagination. Happy eating!

S.

I have a lovely recipe for a jello salad that had become a yearly favorite. Unfortunatly, we haven't been able to have it for a few years. Reason? it uses canned gooseberries, and I can't find those anywhere now. I was getting them at one store for a while, and even though they cost $4 for a 1 lb. can, it was worth it for that once a year treat. Now I can't even find them at all. So, if anyone knows of a store that carries them in the Sacramento area, I'd be happy to hear from you.
Also, someone else mentioned the 'real' cranberries. I have a little different version on those. The recipe calls for a cup of sugar and a cup of water to a pound of cranberries. Instead, I use orange juice for the liquid and cut back on the sugar. I even cut up an orange and put in it sometimes because we like that bit of variety. Am thinking of trying it this year with a bit of chopped apple as well. I also put in just a pinch of salt to enhance all the flavors. We prefer to eat it warm right from the pan, but it can also be chilled if you prefer it that way. This is a recipe that we tend to have often during the year, not only at Thanksgiving time. It's a hit with the children as well as the adults.

My mashed potatoes. Whether we host Thanksgiving or not I always make my mashed potatoes in using a 5 pound bag of russet potatoes.
The trick to perfectly fluffy taters is to heat the milk (1+ cups) and melt the butter (1 stick) until they are nice and warm then put them in with the potatoes. Also add a tsp of salt (no it doesn't make them too salty). The secret ingredient? Nutmeg! Add it (1/4 tsp or so) right at the end of mixing. It's funny because people can never quite figure out what the flavor is even though it's familiar to them.
Anyhow these potatoes reheat wonderfully and taste just as good without gravy as they do with.

Oh yeah....ALWAYS use real butter....they aren't as good with the other stuff

It may seem simplistic, but for it to be a "real" Holiday all I need is green bean casserole, scalloped corn, turkey and/or ham, and pumpkin pie. All the rest is just yummy (and OPTIONAL) extras.....

I always make my 7 layer salad and my homemade bread, just to name a couple!

We make these "Smoky Link" sausages for appetizers. Basically you cut up a ready made sausage and simmer it in Worcestier (SP) sauce, ketchup and other yummy things.
I used to think this was some kind of secret family recipe. Ummm no....it came from the back of a ketchup bottle or something.
Whatever! It still rocks!

canned green beans wrapped in bacon and then baked. you to pre-cook the bacon a little before so that it gets crispy. Cut the bacon in half and wrap it around a bunch of green beans and secure with a toothpick. They are done when the bacon is done.

Yes! Every year for the past 6 years I have made Jack Daniels pecan pie for my husband. I personally hate pecan pie so I've never tried it but he loves it and looks forward to his once a year treat

My mom always made a jello with 3 layers. The bottom layer has cranberries in it and is darker. There's a red layer (maybe made with the same jello + a bit of whip cream) on the top and a thin layer of cream cheese in the middle. It's very good. I'll try to get the recipe and post it.
Last year, the thing I enjoyed the most was a type of goat cheese that someone brought with crackers for an appetizer. I didn't even know I liked it.

Ruth's Chris sweet potato casserole! I've never been a fan of sweet potatoes but several years ago hubby and I had dinner at Ruth's Chris restaurant. He ordered the sweet potato casserole and I had to try it. It was unbelievable! It's so smooth and rich, I love it. My family loves it and requests it every year. Below is a link to a website (or you can Google it) with the recipe and a video from one of Ruth's Chris' chefs showing how he makes it. Scrum dil!

http://blog.nola.com/dining/2007/11/cooking_new_orleans_s...

its all about moms stuffing in my house. It's semi-homemade with love! stouffers herb recipe - the blue bag. We saute Sage sausage, add onions, mushrooms, celery, walnuts and butter, just until the veggies and nuts soften a little bit. You still want crunch, but you dont want to chip a tooth! Then stir in the stuffing, cover and that's it. It's simple, but all comes together so wonderfully. In all the circles I travel, thay always ask me to bring the stuffing, people always ask for the recipe, and it's like moms in the room when we serve it.