Thanksgiving 2015: My Menu

The first time I hosted a Thanksgiving dinner was five years ago for my in-laws. It was our first time to use our china, though not my first time meal planning for a crowd (I had previously planned and shopped for 35+ people for weekend family reunions). So I guess you can say I have a little experience in this arena.

Five years ago I felt rushed and somewhat stressed – probably because I planned too many dishes and had trouble allowing others to fully help me. Daniel's family all stepped in as wonderful sous chefs, but my own character flaws made it more stressful than it had to be.

This time around, I am older and hopefully wiser. I planned out my menu the week before. Knocked out the shopping on the Sunday before Thanksgiving (by myself!) and felt ready to go.

Along with my recipes, I had a plan of how long items took to cook and at what temps. This made it tremendously easy to get everything done without being stressed. Though the last 30 minutes of prep was a mad dash, but it all came off without a hitch!

Another thing we did differently this time was baking most of the pies the night before. While the pies baked, I took the opportunity to also bake my sweet potatoes for our sweet potato casserole.

Here are my thoughts on each dish on my menu:

Maple Roasted Turkey with Smoked Bacon  
[recipe from Tyler Florence on The Food Network]
This was my third turkey to do with bacon and it did not disappoint. Each time I have tried a different recipe or variation, but this one was by far the simplest to make, and perhaps most flavorful. My 20lb turkey took exactly 3.5 hours to bake. The maple syrup gave it a slight sweetness that I enjoyed and that meshed well with the other dishes that incorporated maple syrup. My mom thought the maple syrup made her gravy a bit sweet, but I thought it was all delicious.

Stuffing 
My mom made her usual stuffing (she even pre-cooked the cornbread and brought it with her from Arkansas). In the future I might consider making another pan of stuffing for such a large crowd.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts, Cinnamon Butternut Squash, Pecans and Cranberries 
[recipe floating around Facebook]
The week before Thanksgiving I saw this recipe on Facebook and thought that it would be a good addition to our spread. It had maple syrup as an ingredient and that tied in wonderfully with the turkey. I accidentally bought fresh cranberries instead of dried, so at the last minute I ended up adding dried apples (found in my pantry) to the dish instead. The flavors all worked well together. 

Green Bean Casserole
[recipe from French's]
We had the traditional green bean casserole recipe found on the French's French Fried Onion can. I had the wrong kind of green beans (flat, wide ones instead of skinny french cut). I don't think my sister was a fan, and while I agree I like the skinny green beans better, this dish was still tasty and there were no leftovers.

Mashed Potatoes 
[recipe from Pioneer Woman]
The Pioneer Woman NEVER lets me down with her recipes. These mashed potatoes were decadent in a savory kind of way. You could eat them without gravy, they were that good. They were also good cold and I even threw them in broccoli-potato soup at the end of the week. Five pounds of potatoes really went a long way and they were amazing!

Soul Sweet Taters 
[recipe from Pioneer Woman]
Another score for The Pioneer Woman. I baked the sweet potatoes the night before. The only negative was that one of my potatoes didn't fully cook and so it didn't mash up completely in the casserole. It was still good though! Also, I need to buy one more 9x13 dish. I ended up making this casserole in a shorter, deeper dish and the ratio of topping to potatoes was off.

PW Dinner Rolls 
[recipe from Pioneer Woman]
These rolls were a bit finicky – though I always have trouble with bread. The dough was SUPER moist and I couldn't seem to make it dry enough. I more than doubled the recipes stated 4 cups of flour! I literally kept stirring in flour until I could work with it. And even then, I ended up pouring the batter directly into the muffin tins. So basically we had muffin rolls. They still tasted good though!

5 Cup Salad 
[oranges, pineapple, marshmallows, sour cream and coconut]
This is one of my favorite family recipes. We have been making this dish for Thanksgiving as long as I can remember. Daniel doesn't care for sour cream or coconut, but that just leaves more for me!

Cherry Yum Yum
[recipe found on Pinterest]
Daniel's family makes this dessert for every holiday and I have really come to love it. I don't think this particular recipe is the same one as what his family makes, but I have had a hard time getting Daniel's Great Aunt Thula or his Grandmother to write down the exact recipe. I need to bug them some more!

Pecan and Pumpkin Pie
My mom made the pecan and pumpkin pies that she has been making forever. I especially love her pecan pie. My parents always gather pecans from the trees around town and share their spoils with us. I think we all agreed we need to make homemade crusts next year.

 
Apple Pie 
[cousin Moriah]
My cousin Moriah made an apple pie with the help of my niece, Izzy. They did an excellent job. I didn't have any shortening on hand for her crust, so she made it with butter and it was SO GOOD. I want her to make all of our crusts with butter in the future!

So that was our meal in a nutshell. It was delicious and decadent and made with loving hands. I didn't feel stressed and everyone had more than their fill of good food (plus lots of good leftovers!).

Banana Baked French Toast

There are not a whole lot of recipes that I make more than once. But on occasion, I come across one that I keep in my back pocket as a "go to" for special occasions. One of my all-time favorites to make for breakfast when we have company is Pioneer Woman's Blueberry Baked French Toast. It is seriously amazing.

Since I don't like to repeat recipes, I got it in my head that I could experiment with the flavor of PWs recipe. I think it would be great with different kinds of fruit {like bananas, apples, peaches or blackberries}.

I had some very ripe bananas in my freezer, so I decided to branch out and make the PW recipe with a twist. It was delicious. Next time: peaches.

Banana Baked French Toast
Ingredients

1 Bag Stacy's Pita Chips {Simply Naked} 

7 large eggs

2 3/4 cups milk
1/4 cup Vanilla CoffeeMate
1/2 cup sugar
3 ripe bananas
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter

Directions

Grease 9 x 13 inch baking pan with butter (or cooking spray). Pour in bag of pita chips and arrange evenly. 

In a bowl mix together eggs, milk, cream, sugar and bananas.

Pour egg mixture over pita chips. Cover pan tightly with foil {or lid} and place in refrigerator overnight {minimum six hours}.
 
Preheat oven to 350º degrees. Remove pan from refrigerator.  

Mix together flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Slice butter and add to bowl, then use pastry cutter to cut the butter into the flour mixture. 

Sprinkle flour mixture on top of the casserole, making sure that it is evenly distributed. 

Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until bubbly and golden brown. Serve plain or with syrup and/or whipped cream if you are want to be decadent.

Menu Monday

I am a very laid-back, go with the flow, kind of gal. But I am also a notorious planner and list maker. Always have been, always will be. 92% of the time, I stick to my menu plan {we break the plan for impromptu social outings with friends or if I am not feeling up to cooking}. As for my grocery list, if it's not on the list, I'm not buying it. This drives my husband crazy when he happens to shop with me – he inevitably finds something not on the list and I will put my foot down {unless it is a need and not a want}. I try not to be too much of a dictator, but the meal planning and grocery list making has helped us to be consistent with our spending for nearly a decade now.

Monday: Toasted Sesame Ginger Salmon {recipe from How Sweet It Is} with Rice and Asparagus
 

Tuesday: Homemade Sausage, Bell Pepper and Olive Pizza {using the Garlic Bread Crust recipe from How Sweet It Is}
 

Wednesday: Barbacoa Burrito Bowls {recipe from Gina's Skinny Recipes}
 

Thursday: Date Night
 

Friday-Sunday: Hubby is on his own {probably leftovers} as me and the baby head to the city to hang out with my sister and her family {and to do a little consignment sale shopping}.

My parents will be in town for the next couple of days, so I am also planning on making Pioneer Woman's Blueberry Baked French Toast but with a twist... I think I am going to use bananas instead of blueberries. This one of my favorite recipes, so I hope the bananas don't ruin it.

I will also be making my favorite Peach Cobbler for dessert tonight {recipe from Pink Parsley}. Hopefully the leftovers will last us a couple of nights.

Sweet Tooth

I don't know if it is pregnancy or the fact that it is summer, but I have seriously been craving sweets. Especially recipes that utilize fresh fruit. Over the past several weeks I have been incorporating homemade desserts into our weekly menu and I haven't been disappointed. They may not be great for our waistlines, but they sure are yummy.

Blackberry Cobbler

Daniel gave it 4.86/5 stars
We ate it with Vanilla Frozen Yogurt and it was delish.

Recipe from Pioneer Woman {via Three Many Cooks}

Peach Cobbler with Vanilla Frozen Yogurt

Daniel gave it 4.96/5 stars

I loved this and think it was even better as leftovers.
Recipe from Pink Parsley

Homemade Strawberry Gelato

 Daniel gave it 4.63/5 stars
Excellent use of my ice cream maker. 
Would be great with any kind of berry.
Recipe adapted from Apple A Day

 

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Daniel gave it 4.45/5 stars

Unfortunately a lot of the pineapple juice was lost when I flipped it. 

I also think I needed to cook it a bit longer. 

It was good, but could have been better.
Recipes from the Pioneer Woman

Red, White and Blueberry Trifle

Daniel gave it 4.91/5 stars

I was going to use this recipe from Gina's Skinny Recipes. 

Sadly my internet was down, so I winged it.

White chocolate pudding layered with berries, angel food cake and cool whip = yummmm.

This dish was excellent for breakfast as well as dessert.

 

Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies with Vanilla Frozen Yogurt
Daniel gave it 4.95/5 stars

So this was a non-fruit recipe, but sometimes you just crave chocolate. 

The cookies were ginormous. 

The first batch was really running... I think the batter needed to sit first. 

Overall, definitely excellent cookies.
Recipe adapted from Nutmeg Nanny

Father's Day

Daniel and I were blessed to be able to see both of our dad's on Father's Day. 
Sadly, no one took pictures...

Daniel also used this weekend to take advantage of a Father's Day Sale at Lowe's and bought himself {err, us} a grill. Now we can FINALLY throw dinner on the grill instead of heating up the oven in the middle of a hot summer.

Daniel grilled steaks last night for our steak salad {recipe based off of Pioneer Woman's Big Steak Salad}. It was delish and grilling really made a big difference in taste. 

Can't wait to have people over for a cookout :)

Pizza and Games

When we have people over, I am most likely going to try out some new recipes and tonight was no exception. As the "social chair" of this household {Daniel's words} I had Daniel invite several of his co-workers over for a small dinner party. I thought homemade pizza and games would be a great way to end the week.

When planning the menu, I decided on spinach dip and bacon-wrapped jalapenos for appetizers.
 

Spinach Dip
Recipe from SkinnyTaste.com

Bacon-Wrapped Jalapenos
Recipe from The Pioneer Woman

Then I decided on BBQ Chicken, Supreme and Chicken Florentine pizza. All turned out great {even my store-bought crusts}. 

BBQ Chicken Pizza
Recipe from All Recipes 
 

Supreme Pizza
Recipe from All Recipes

 Chicken Flortentine Pizza
Recipe from Yummy Mummy

Finally there was the dessert: I tested a S'mores Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe. These cookies were quite the mess to make, but tasted amazing. 

Gigantic S'mores Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies
Recipe from Picky Palate

In addition, we had chocolate cupcakes with home-made butter cream {thanks Anna} and pretzel-rolo-pecan bites {thanks Laura}. 

After dinner we played Cranium and the boys beat the girls {barely}. Then the girls dominated at Catch Phrase. Finally we played partner Nerts until we were all silly from exhaustion. It was a fun night overall.

I am tired and still need to pack as I am headed to Searcy for the week on a girls road trip with my sister and niece to visit my parents.

My Cooking Dilemma/52 Books: Book 3

I have a problem. I really like to cook {and bake}. I like to try new things {as in there are very few recipes that I make more than once} and most of the recipes I want to try are not exactly healthy. Daniel and I both need to be healthier... therein lies my dilemma.

In addition, I just purchased my copy of Pioneer Woman's cookbook. I know that it has been out for a while, but I don't generally purchase books {especially cookbooks} when I have access to the ENTIRE internet as a resource. But I gave in. I love PW and decided it was worth supporting her by purchasing her book. I just read the entire cookbook front to back. It is filled with pictures and stories from her blog. As a cook, I can't wait to try many of the recipes. As a graphic designer, I have a hard time not cringing at the layout. But I still love PW and I don't regret buying her cookbook.

In addition to my new cookbook, I have recently discovered several new cooking blogs and have bookmarked recipes to try. But when do I try them? These recipes are not exactly healthy...

There's Confections of a Foodie Bride and her recipes like Dulce De Choco-Leche Cake.

Or this Mocha Crunch Oatmeal from Erin's Food Files.

Or these Thanksgiving Two-Fer Bars from Beantown Baker. It doesn't matter that Thanksgiving is passed... pumpkin and pecan is delicious any time of year.

I'm really struggling here. Even the recipes that would constitute a meal are not exactly healthy. I guess that the best plan of attack is to stick with the healthy meals as much as possible and occasionally splurge on a not-so-healthy recipe {and send the leftovers to work with Daniel to share with his co-workers}.

My First 5K

Laura and I, freezing in the parking lot before running the Jingle Bell Jog 5K

 

As I mentioned earlier this week I spent the last five days training with a friend for my first 5K. Somehow we managed to get in enough training to actually run the race. Our goal was to complete it in under 40 minutes and I ended up finishing in 38 minutes and 47 seconds, while Laura finished in 36 minutes and some change.

At the starting line

 

The course was hillier than I expected and a blister that plagued me all week started to bother me again in the last mile {which was incidentally a long climb uphill}. I succumbed and walked part of that last mile, but still managed to finish in under 40 minutes, so I am proud of that. 

Eating Pioneer Woman's Blueberry Baked French Toast post race.

I wouldn't recommend training in five days for a 3-mile run, but Laura and I are proof that it can be done. Next time, I plan to train longer and finish without walking.

What race is complete without a T-shirt?

Thanksgiving Grub

{via}

Daniel and I are hosting his family for Thanksgiving this year. So I guess I can mark #21 off my life list. Technically, we hosted Thanksgiving for my family about 3 {or 4} years ago in Charlotte. My parents, Grandma and brother were there. We used our china for the first time {in 5 years of marriage}. The reason I am not counting that towards my life list is that my mom was there and while we planned together and it was my house, she was the one who orchestrated the cooking of the turkey and told me how to make things like mashed potatoes.

I would say this time is different because I am the one planning {and my cooking experience has increased significantly}. I have been in touch with Daniel's mom, grandmother and sister about what they are bringing. So it is more of a "true hosting."

Anyways, the hardest thing for me has been trying to narrow down what recipes I want to cook. I LOVE TO COOK so this was a bit of a challenge. My other concern is that I don't want to have so many leftovers that Daniel and I are stuck eating turkey and the accompanying food until New Years...

My mom taught me long ago that whatever you cook will be enough {even if you think it is not enough, it will be}. I have also had the opportunity on multiple occassions to work with my mom planning four days worth of meals for 30+ adults, so I think I have a pretty good grasp of what is necessary {without going overboard}. All of that said, I still like to cook and trying to determine only one {or two} favorite desserts has been a bit of a challenge.

For the turkey, I narrowed my recipes down to Real Simple's Basic Roast Turkey, Pioneer Woman's Brined Turkey or Cook's Country Bard Turkey. While I love PW, I decided against using a brine because I plan on using the drippings for gravy and I didn't want it to be too salty. I saw the Bard Turkey on PBS over the weekend and I am very tempted to try it. But I think I am going to stick with the Real Simple Roast Turkey and Gravy.

While I am not making PWs turkey, I am using her recipes for stuffing and dinner rolls – she never lets me down.

Mashed potatoes are pretty basic and I am not using an actual recipe for these guys. And I will be making my Grandma's 5-cup salad.

As for dessert, I am giving into my own desires and making two desserts courtesy of Annie's Eats: Pumpkin Spice Cheesecake and Double Chocolate Pecan Pie {I made this last year and it was ridiculously good – I get my pecan pie and Daniel gets his chocolate, a total win win}.

Daniel's sister is bringing pumpkin pie and sweet potato casserole. His mom is making fried okra, additional turkey breast and cocktail weenies and his grandmother is providing the green bean casserole, cranberry salad and her amazing sweet tea.

I think we have all of our bases covered and should have a fabulous spread. 

And most likely there will be plenty of leftovers. 

Back in the saddle

After a cooking hiatus for most of the last 3 months and a good portion of this year {after all it is no fun to cook for one and cooking in camper was a bit difficult} I am back in a real kitchen and cooking again. Daniel is thankful to not be eating out for a majority of our meals :)

Last night I made Chili and Skillet Cornbread. It was a great meal to have on a chilly evening.

Chili Recipe {recipe adapted from Aggie's Kitchen}

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1/2 lb Italian sausage
• 1/2 red pepper, chopped
• 1 green pepper, chopped
• 1 jalapenos, chopped {I remove the seeds}
• 1 cup of corn kernels {I used a can}
• 1 can chili beans, drained but not rinsed
• 1 can kidney beans, drained but not rinsed
• 2 tbsp chili powder 
• 1 tbsp paprika
• 1 tbsp cumin
• 1 tbsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• salt {to taste} 
• 1 cup of chicken broth {the recipe called for Sam Adams Octoberfest or a substitution of red wine, chicken broth or water}
• 14.5  oz can of diced tomatoes
• 14.5  oz can of diced chili tomatoes
• 4 squares dark chocolate (about 1 oz), rough chopped

 Preparation Instructions

• Heat 1 tbsp olive oil.
• Add onions and garlic and cook for 3-4 minutes until softened.
• Add sausage and crumble.
• Cook through, then add chopped peppers.
• Cook for about 10 minutes until peppers begin to soften.
• Add chili powder, spices, salt and stir.
• Once all the spices have combined with veggies and meat, pour in chicken broth to deglaze bottom of pot.
• Cook for 1-2 minutes then add in tomatoes and beans and stir.
• Bring chili up to a boil then simmer for about 20-30 minutes.
• Add chocolate to chili and stir.
• Continue to cook for another 10-15 minutes on low heat.
• Taste for salt.
• Serve with your favorite toppings: shredded cheese, sour cream or Greek yogurt, grilled corn kernels, chopped cilantro, green onions {I used whole kernel corn from a can}.

We loved the smoky flavor of this recipe. The cinnamon and chocolate additions were a nice surprise, but really added to the flavor.

Skillet Cornbread {recipe adapted from Pioneer Woman}

Ingredients

• 8.5 oz Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix {from Walmart}
• 1 cup Buttermilk
• ½ cups Milk
• 1 whole Egg
• ¼ cups Shortening
• 2 Tablespoons Shortening

Preparation Instructions

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
• Place corn muffin mix in a bowl.
• Add buttermilk, milk and egg to the dry ingredients. Stir until combined.
• In a small bowl, melt 1/4 shortening. Slowly add melted shortening to the batter, stirring until just combined.
• In an iron skillet, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons shortening over medium heat.
• Pour the batter into the hot skillet. Spread to even out the surface.
• Cook on stovetop for 1 minute, then bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.
• Edges should be crispy!

We really liked this cornbread. Next time I would double the recipe because my cast iron skillet is so huge and we ended up with really thin slices of cornbread. Also, I ended up turning the over down to 350 due to the thinner cornbread. I was worried that I had burned it because the edges were so crisp, but it turned out perfect.

Project 52 Date Nights - Change of Plans

Saturday we decided to go see Shakespeare in the Park. It is a FREE 2-week long event in Uptown Charlotte. The play was Comedy of Errors. It was something I really wanted to do. Daniel could take it or leave it, but since he loves me, he was willing to attend a free play for a date night.

The play didn't start until 8PM, so I decided to cook dinner at home. The recipe was Pioneer Woman's CPK's BBQ Chicken Pizza. I love PW and we love California Pizza Kitchen, so I figured I couldn't go wrong. I followed the PW recipe, only adding baby portabello mushrooms because I love them. Well, I must have made my crust too thick because it took 40 minutes {instead of 17} to get the crust to brown. While we waited {and waited}, Daniel decided to take care of some yard work.

By the time we {finally} ate, wrapped up our yard work and took showers, it was almost 8PM. It is a 20-minute drive Uptown, but Daniel said we should go anyways. I complied, though I really didn't like the idea of being late to a play. We got to Cotswald and Daniel said he needed to stop and get a Gatorade. While we were there, he filled up my tank with gas since it was basically empty.

I sat in the car and tried not to stew. We were going to be really late. When he got back in, I asked him how he would feel about being 20 minutes late for a movie. We agreed that it probably wasn't the best plan to go to the play. I tried to not be annoyed. I really wanted to go. But I also knew that Daniel was exhausted. And the yard work really did need to be taken care of before he went back to Chattanooga.

I suggested that we run to Harris Teeter for the Gatorade and pick up a Red Box selection instead. Even though I really wanted to see the play, it was for the best that we went home. Daniel needed to crash - especially since he had a 6-hour drive to make the next day.

Maybe we can catch Othello in August. In the meantime, I am going to see Macbeth with a friend from work next week.

A Few of My Favorite Things

err... I mean blogs.

On this snowy, cold Saturday, I thought I would share some of my favorite blogs. Just so you know on top of reading lots of books, I read a ridiculous number of blogs {I subscribe to 178 in my Google Reader}. To be completely truthful, I browse rather than read all of them - I probably only read a handful. The others, I look at to get inspiration for work, remodeling, do-it-yourself projects and new recipes.

Some of my favorite blogs {that I actually read} are as follows...

Five blogs written by real-life friends:  

Life As We Know It With Izzy Bug is written by my sister about life with her new baby, Izzy. Since I live in a different state, this blog allows me to keep up with what is going on in their day-to-day lives. Not to mention, my little niece is ridiculously cute {but I'm not biased}.

 

The Cutest Thing

My friend, Sally Loftis, writes a blog where she gives a "Girls Movie Review" of secular movies. She does an amazing job of giving a Christian perspective to things that are of this world. I truly appreciate her insight. She also has an ongoing commentary of Grey's Anatomy. 

A college friend of mine writes a hysterically funny blog called Mabel's House. I highly recommend checking out this blog if A) you want a good laugh; B) you are looking for design inspiration or C) you want to look at beautiful photography or read witty commentaries about life. Mabel's House has been featured on Apartment Therapy and Design Sponge.

I also read two different cooking blogs by friends... 

My college friend, Eralda, writes a blog called The Split Pea. It is full of her spectacular photography and offers recipes from around the world, including some from growing up in Albania. She tells beautiful stories that go along with her recipes. 

Deanna, a friend from high school, writes What's For Dinner?. Her recipes reflect her southern roots and how to juggle cooking for a young family.

Five blogs written by people I wish that I was friends with in real life:

Ashley Anne Photography - she has 4 little {sweet} kids to wrangle and still manages to offer amazing ideas for do-it-yourself projects that I adore. She is also an AMAZING photographer. She has been featured on Apartment Therapy here and here.

Smitten Kitchen - a cooking blog that I love. She never cooks the same thing twice {something I strive for} and her recipes are ridiculously good. Seriously. If you love to cook. Check out her blog. NOW. I'm not kidding.

Design Mom - this woman has 5 kids with one on the way. And she still manages to be an Art Director and plan things like the Alt Design Summit. Since becoming pregnant {again}, she has shared a series of posts by other bloggers about their experiences becoming mothers. It is a touching series that I have enjoyed reading. I enjoy this blog for its design aspects as well.

The Pioneer Woman - I know. I know. Everyone knows about PW, but if you haven't checked out her blog yet... be sure to read it for her {amazing} recipes, gorgeous photography, stories of life on a ranch; and ESPECIALLY take the time to read her love story {Black Heels to Tractor Wheels} of how she met and married Marlboro Man.

NieNie Dialogues - this is a blog about surviving. About hope. About raising your family, especially when things are hard. I highly recommend this blog to everyone. If you haven't read Stephanie and Christian Nielson's story about surviving a plane crash, you must live under a rock. You can read it here if you don't have the time to read her entire blog. Be prepared to cry...

There are so many other blogs I love dearly. But I am going to limit this post to 10. What are your favorite blogs?