Thanksgiving: The Round-up of Recipes

So before I forget and suddenly it's next year and I'm going "what was that sweet potato recipe that turned out so well?" and "was it this pumpkin pie recipe or that one that didn't turn out great?" I'm going to write them down now (or link to them, as the case may be).

Orange-Nut Sweet Potatoes

Source: Healthy Cooking Magazine
6 Servings

INGREDIENTS
2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
2/3 cup sugar
4 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup orange juice
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1/2 teaspoon grated orange peel
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
DIRECTIONS
Place the sweet potatoes in a large saucepan; cover with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 6-8 minutes or until tender.

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, combine the sugar, cornstarch and salt. Gradually stir in orange juice. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Add butter and orange peel; stir until butter is melted.

Drain sweet potatoes; place in a serving dish. Add orange juice mixture and gently stir to coat. Sprinkle with walnuts.

Comments: I love this! It's not overly sweet and the orange gives it some awesome flavor. I think I found it and made it a couple of years ago and then lost it, but I think this is now my go-to recipe. I cooked it up the night before and warmed it up in the oven and it was delish.


Green Bean Casserole, Pioneer Woman-style (ie it includes bacon and cream). Also major yum. I had some smoked bacon gouda on hand that I tossed in as well, and our crunchy topping was corn flakes mixed with breadcrumbs.

Pecan Pie - also a hat tip to Pioneer Woman - this pie was awesome.

Pumpkin pie - full disclosure: I'm not a big fan of pumpkin pie. So I was not overly impressed by the pie. The pumpkin pie aficionado in our house said he wasn't a fan of the streusel topping, but the rest was good.

Ham - I made a glaze with apple cider vinegar, dark brown sugar, cloves, allspice, orange zest, nutmeg, and cardamom. Hmm...that sounds good still, I think I'm going to go grab another piece of that.

Stuffing - I cooked up some sausage with celery and onions, used turkey broth (made from the innards/neck simmered with onion and celery), and added chopped craisins, just to a regular box mix of stuffing. Ever since I had sausage stuffing at a potluck, I've been hooked. I think it's way better than regular stuffing.

I didn't do anything spiffy with the turkey or mashed potatoes, and I'll leave it to nutmeg to post her oatmeal/whole wheat rolls recipe.

-Thyme

Yummy, yummy dip

There are two versions of this dip. There is the recipe as it was given to me (which is really good). And then there is the version I made, which was also quite yummy. It also seems pretty versatile - you can toss in whatever other add-ins you like.

Version 1:

1 8oz package cream cheese
1 c. sour cream
1 small can diced green chiles
8 oz. sharp cheddar, shredded

Beat cream cheese and sour cream together until creamy, mix in other ingredients. Bake in bread bowl or casserole-type dish at 300 (or 320 depending on how hot your oven runs) until warm and slightly melted. Eat with crackers, bread, veggies, whatever floats your boat.

Version 2: (or how I actually made it)

1 8 oz package neufchatel (1/3 less fat cream cheese)
1 c. sour cream (the "lite" kind)
5 small roma tomatoes, seeded and finely diced
4 oz sharp cheddar
3 oz mild cheddar
1 oz smoked bacon gouda (totally optional)
1/8 tsp cayenne
1/4 tsp chili powder
black pepper to taste

Follow the rest of the directions. Obviously I added a few extra/different things to compensate for the fact that I didn't have enough sharp cheddar or any diced chiles (do you know how expensive those suckers are out here! it's insane!)

I took the dip to work and ate it with triscuits. Yum.


-Thyme