Thanksgiving Part One

First, a few images of my beautiful table. I have been collecting my china since I was a little girl. It is Adrienne by Noritake. It is discontinued so it is hard to find, and when you do find it it is expensive. A few good ebay finds have helped me almost complete my quest for a table setting for 12. I found gold rimed wine and beverage glasses from Ross. Each were a set of 12 for $10!

You can't tell but I bought mini leaf cookie cutters, spray painted them gold and used them for napkin rings. The silver was passed down to me from my grandmother. I had never polished silver before and never want to again! Mini pumpkins and gourds finished off my table decor.

I gave each of my guests a favor box with a home made cinnamon scented candle inside. The favors also doubled as a place card. A friend of mine teased me about this saying it was like I was planning a wedding. Well, I am a wedding planner!

A few more shots of my table. It was so long that we had to eat in the living room!

Ok, and now on to the food. As to not make this the longest post ever I will break it up into several posts. I am going to do the appetizer and salad first. Both were amazing.

Hot Artichoke Dip (from Allrecipes):

2/3 cup Parmesan cheese
2/3 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
1 (14 ounce) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
2 tablespoons thinly sliced green onion
1 tablespoon chopped pimento peppers

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Lightly grease a medium baking dish. Blend together the cheese, mayonnaise and whipping cream. Stir in the artichokes, green onions and pimentos. Mix well, and transfer to the prepared baking dish. Bake 25 minutes in the preheated oven, until lightly browned.

Harvest Salad (from Allrecipes):

1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1 bunch spinach, rinsed and torn into bite-size pieces
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 avocado - peeled, pitted and diced
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons red raspberry jam (with seeds)
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/3 cup walnut oil
freshly ground black pepper to taste
salt to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Arrange walnuts in a single layer on a baking sheet. Toast in oven for 5 minutes, or until nuts begin to brown. In a large bowl, toss together the spinach, walnuts, cranberries, blue cheese, tomatoes, avocado, and red onion. In a small bowl, whisk together jam, vinegar, walnut oil, pepper, and salt. Pour over the salad just before serving, and toss to coat.

Thanksgiving Part Two

Now on to the ham, turkey and dressing. I wanted to stuff the turkey with it but everyone talked me out of it. I think it tastes better that way but didn't want to give my guests food poison. The ham came from Honeybaked Ham and was super tasty. I just wanted to show off my plate!

The boys carved the turkey before I had a chance to take of picture on it. I found a brine recipe on Allrecipes that got rave reviews so I decided to give it a go. Glad I did. It was moist and tasty.

Turkey Brine (from Allrecipes):

1 gallon vegetable broth
1 cup sea salt
1 tablespoon crushed dried rosemary
1 tablespoon dried sage
1 tablespoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon dried savory
1 gallon ice water

In a large stock pot, combine the vegetable broth, sea salt, rosemary, sage, thyme, and savory. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently to be sure salt is dissolved. Remove from heat, and let cool to room temperature. When the broth mixture is cool, pour it into a clean 5 gallon bucket. Stir in the ice water. Wash and dry your turkey. Make sure you have removed the innards. Place the turkey, breast down, into the brine. Make sure that the cavity gets filled. Place the bucket in the refrigerator overnight. Remove the turkey carefully draining off the excess brine and pat dry. Discard excess brine. Cook the turkey as desired reserving the drippings for gravy. Keep in mind that brined turkeys cook 20 to 30 minutes faster so watch the temperature gauge.

I did keep the drippings. I put it in a stock pot over medium high heat and added a packet of gravy mix. I whisked it till it was thick and put it in the gravy boat.

The dressing is a recipe handed down to me from my mother. She found it in a magazine when it was time for her first Thanksgiving. My mom knows it by heart so I am not sure which magazine it came from!

Mom's Stuffing/Dressing (from memory):

2 (6 ounce) packages cornbread stuffing mix
1 pound ground pork sausage
1 onion, chopped
4 stalks celery, chopped
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
1 (14.5 ounce) can chicken broth

Preheat oven to 350. In a large skillet add butter, onion, celery, and seasoning and cook till onions are translucent. Add sausage and brown; drain. In a large bowl mix cornbread stuffing and meat mixture. Add desired amount of chicken broth till mixture is moist. Transfer mixture to a medium baking dish. Cover, and bake 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until lightly browned.

Thanksgiving Part Three

Below are four of the side items I made. I purchased chafing supplies from party city so the food would stay hot. I covered them with aluminum foil till time to serve. There is a picture of my huge plate of food at the bottom of this post!

Broccoli Casserole:

2 eggs
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup condensed cream of mushroom soup
2 (10 ounce) packages frozen chopped broccoli, thawed
2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
3/4 cup crushed buttery round crackers

Preheat an oven to 325. Beat the eggs in a mixing bowl; whisk in the mayonnaise, cream of mushroom soup, broccoli, and cheddar cheese. Spoon into a 2 quart casserole dish; sprinkle with the crushed crackers. Bake in the preheated oven until hot and bubbly, 30 to 40 minutes.
Sweet Potato Souffle (from my grandmother):

4 medium sweet potatoes or 3 cups canned (I use canned)
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup bourbon
3 tbsp flour
1/2 cup butter
1 tsp cinnamon
Mini marshmallows

Mix all ingredients (except marshmallows) thoroughly and pour into greased baking dish. Bake 45 min at 350. Top with marshmallows when done and brown under broiler. *NOTE* I always double the recipe and add an extra splash of bourbon!
Paula Deen's Corn Casserole (recipe here):

1 (15 1/4-ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
1 (14 3/4-ounce) can cream-style corn
1 (8-ounce) package corn muffin mix (recommended: Jiffy)
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
1 to 1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar

Preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl, stir together the 2 cans of corn, corn muffin mix, sour cream, and melted butter. Pour into a greased 9 by 13-inch casserole dish. Bake for 45 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oven and top with Cheddar. Return to oven for 5 to 10 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Let stand for at least 5 minutes and then serve warm.
Chuck's Favorite Mac and Cheese (from Allrecipes):

1 (8 ounce) package elbow macaroni
1 (8 ounce) package shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
1 (12 ounce) container small curd cottage cheese
1 (8 ounce) container sour cream
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup dry bread crumbs
1/4 cup butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil, add pasta, and cook until done; drain. In 9x13 inch baking dish, stir together macaroni, shredded Cheddar cheese, cottage cheese, sour cream, Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. In a small bowl, mix together bread crumbs and melted butter. Sprinkle topping over macaroni mixture. Bake 30 to 35 minutes, or until top is golden.

Yuuuuuuuumy!!!!!!!!!!

Thanksgiving Part Four

The recipes below are your basics. Everyone has their own way of making them and these are mine!

Deviled Eggs:

8 eggs
1/2 teaspoon prepared mustard
1 tablespoon creamy salad dressing (Miracle Whip)
salt and pepper to taste
1 pinch paprika

Place eggs in saucepan and cover with water. Bring to boil. Cover, remove from heat, and let eggs sit in hot water for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from hot water and cool.Peel and cut in half lengthwise. Remove yolks and combine with mustard, salad dressing and salt and pepper. Mix together until smooth.Refill each egg half with the yolk mixture and sprinkle with paprika.
Mashed Potatoes:

6 medium potatoes
2 chicken bullion cubes
Milk
Butter

Peel and cube potatoes. Add to pot of water (enough water to cover potatoes) and bring to a boil. Boil uncovered till potatoes pierce easily with a fork (10-15 min). Drain and return to pot. In a microwave safe dish add i/2 cup water and 2 bullion cubes. Heat one minute and stir till cubes are dissolved. Add to potatoes and mash. Add a splash of milk and a pat of butter and continue to mash till creamy. Can use more milk and butter if needed to reach desired consistency.
Country Green Beans (from Allrecipes):

1 pound fresh green beans, trimmed
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped cooked ham (I used a ham hock)
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1/4 cup water
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

In a saucepan, combine all ingredients. Cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until beans are tender.
Collard Greens (from Allrecipes):

3 slices bacon, coarsely chopped
1 red onion, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons minced garlic, or to taste
5 cups collard greens, stems and center ribs discarded and leaves chopped
3/4 cup water, or as needed1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 teaspoons cider vinegar
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste
salt and black pepper to taste
1 (15 ounce) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed (I omitted)

Place the bacon in a large, deep pan with a lid, and cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until evenly browned, about 10 minutes. Remove the bacon pieces from the pan, and set aside.

Reduce the heat to medium-low, and stir the sliced onion into the hot bacon fat. Cook and stir the onion until it begins to brown, scraping the bits off the bottom of the pan, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic, and cook and stir 4 more minutes. Return the bacon to the pan, stir in the collard greens, and toss gently until the greens are wilted, about 3 minutes.

Pour in the water to almost cover the collard greens, and stir in the brown sugar, vinegar, crushed red pepper, and salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer the collard greens until very tender, 1 to 2 hours.

About 1/2 hour before serving, stir the cannellini beans into the collard greens, and return to a simmer.

Thanksgiving Pie

I am such a slacker! I didn't realize it had been 10 months since I last updated this blog. I have been so busy with my wedding planning business that my food blog has suffered. So I am going to try and catch up by blogging about my first Thanksgiving feast. It was pretty good, if I do say so myself!

I made my signature chocolate bourbon pecan pie. It is sooooo good!

My newest addition was a pumpkin cheesecake. I found the recipe on Allrecipes.com.

Please excuse the styrofoam plate. I was so over everything by the time it came to dessert that I just wanted to eat it and not fuss over the nice china.

Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pie:

1 (9 inch) deep dish pie shell
1 cup white sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup butter
4 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup bourbon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 325. In a small saucepan combine sugar, corn syrup, and butter or margarine. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until butter or margarine melts and sugar dissolves. Cool slightly. In a large bowl combine eggs, bourbon, vanilla, and salt. Mix well. Slowly pour sugar mixture into egg mixture, whisking constantly. Stir in chocolate chips and pecans. Pour mixture into pie shell. Bake in preheated oven for 50 to 55 minutes, or until set and golden. May be served warm or chilled.


Pumpkin Cheesecake:

2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 (9 inch) prepared graham cracker crust
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 pinch ground cloves
1 pinch ground nutmeg
1/2 cup frozen whipped topping, thawed

Preheat oven to 325. In a large bowl, combine cream cheese, sugar and vanilla. Beat until smooth. Blend in eggs one at a time. Remove 1 cup of batter and spread into bottom of crust; set aside. Add pumpkin, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg to the remaining batter and stir gently until well blended. Carefully spread over the batter in the crust. Bake in preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes, or until center is almost set. Allow to cool, then refrigerate for 3 hours or overnight. Cover with whipped topping before serving.