Thanksgiving 2009

Our meal for 4 was greatly lacking presentation, but was highly effective in quick clean/pack up which was needed to get 2 little guys in the bath on schedule :)

I would have loved to have made everything from scratch, but the 4 little feet and hands that are oh so curious and must accompany me in the kitchen, caused me to make the decision to go for convenience in many ways.

Turkey
I cooked a 21 pound turkey!! I stuffed the cavity of the bird with sliced oranges, lemons & onion. I did a butter wash on the bird then added salt & ground pepper. I massaged the big guy and cooked him in a turkey bag. It took about 3 1/2 hours and the result was not necessarily pretty, but so very yummy!!

Sides
Frozen Cranberries
Green Bean Casserole
Sweet Potato Casserole
Mashed Potatoes (instant & never again :)
Stuffing (Stove Top with diced celery, onions & water chestnuts)
Biscuits (Pillsbury Grands, Flaky Layers)
Cranberry Sauce (canned)

Dessert
Pumpkin Roll

Sweet Potato Casserole

From allrecipes.com

5 sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced

1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup low fat margarine
2 tablespoons orange juice
2 pinches ground cinnamon
1 (10.5 ounce) package miniature marshmallows

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Steam sweet potatoes until tender. In a large bowl, blend the potatoes until creamy. Stir in the butter, brown sugar, orange juice to taste and a dash of ground cinnamon. Spread the sweet potato mixture into a 9x13 inch pan. Sprinkle the miniature marshmallows over the top and bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) until golden brown.

Green Bean Casserole

From French's

1 (10 3/4 oz.) can cream of mushroom soup
3/4 cup milk
1/8 tsp. black pepper
2 cans cut green beans
1 1/3 cups fried onions

Mix soup, milk and pepper in a 1 1/2 -qt. baking dish. Stir in beans and 2/3 cup fried onions. Bake at 350°F for 30 min. or until hot. Stir. Top with remaining 2/3 cup onions. Bake 5 min. until onions are golden.

Frozen Cranberries

Adapted from Cooking With Stephanie

8 oz Cream Cheese (softened)
8 oz Cool Whip
1 Can Whole Cranberries
1 Can Crushed Pineapple with juice
2 cups mini-marshmallows

Mix cream cheese and cool whip thoroughly. Stir in cranberries, pineapple and marshmallows and freeze. Take out of the freezer about 1 hour before serving.

Pumpkin Roll

Adapted from allrecipes.com

Cake:
3 eggs
1 cup white sugar
2/3 cup canned pumpkin
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon baking soda
confectioners' sugar for dusting

Filling:
1 cup confectioners' sugar
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons butter, softened
8 ounces cream cheese

Optional:
1/2 cup chopped walnuts* (see below)

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease a 15x10x1 inch baking pan and line with parchment paper. Grease and flour the paper.
2. In a large bowl, beat eggs on high for five minutes. Gradually add white sugar and pumpkin. Add flour, cinnamon, and baking soda. Spread batter evenly in pan.
   
3. Bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for 15 minutes or until cake springs back when lightly touched. Immediately turn out onto a linen towel dusted with confectioners sugar. Peel off paper and roll cake up in the towel, starting with the short end. Cool.
4. To Make Filling: Mix confectioners sugar, vanilla, butter or margarine, and cream cheese together till smooth.
5. Carefully unroll the cake. Spread filling over cake to within 1 inch of edges. Roll up again. Cover and chill until serving. Dust with additional confectioners' sugar, if desired.

* Walnuts can be added 3 different ways. 1) by sprinkling them evenly on top of the cake batter before baking 2) by mixing them by hand as the final step in creating the filling or 3) by sprinkling them over the individual slice of dessert as a garnish/topping

Hot Fudge Sauce

Adapted from allrecipes.com

1 cup butter
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3 cups white sugar
pinch of salt
1 (12 fluid ounce) can evaporated milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Combine butter, cocoa, sugar, salt and evaporated milk in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil and boil for 7 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla. Carefully pour hot mixture into a blender and blend for 2 to 4 minutes. Serve immediately. Store in refrigerator.

Quiche

From: Alicia Lovell

1 unbaked pie crust

4 eggs

1 cup milk

1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp dry mustard (optional)

1 1/2 cup shredded cheese

1 - 1 1/2 cups meat and/or veggies

Whisk together eggs, milk, salt, pepper & mustard. Add cheese and meat/veggies. Place pie crust in pie pan, fill with mixture, bake at 350 for 45-60 minutes. Cover edges only of the crust for first 30-45 mins with foil. Remove foil in time to get to a golden brown crust.

This recipe can be changed any way you like. All meat, all veggie, use several kinds of each, however fits your fancy or what you happen to have on hand.

Monkey Bread

From: Mom's Who Think

Ingredients:

4 cans refrigerated biscuits
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 1/2 sticks butter (3/4 cup)
1/2 cup white sugar
2 tablespoons cinnamon
1/2 cup raisins (these are optional, it's great with or without them)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and grease a 9-10 inch tube pan.

2. Mix white sugar and cinnamon in a medium sized plastic bag. Cut the biscuits into halves or quarters and place six to eight biscuit pieces in the sugar cinnamon mix. Shake well.

3. Arrange pieces in the bottom of the greased pan. Continue layering until all the biscuit pieces are coated and in the pan. If you are using raisins, place them among the biscuit pieces as you are layering.

4. In a small saucepan, melt the butter with the brown sugar over medium heat. Boil for 1 minute. Pour over the layered biscuits.

5. Bake for 35 minutes. Let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a plate. Pull apart and enjoy!

Pesticides in Fruits & Veggies

Here is an interesting link to the fruits & veggies that are more likely than others to retain pesticides -- apples, lettuce, and bell peppers, to name a few. So if you want to choose a few items to go organic with, those are best.

www.foodnews.org