Thanksgiving!

After several years of not cooking for Thanksgiving, it’s my turn this year.  I’ve asked guests to bring something that says Thanksgiving to them, something from their childhood perhaps. I’m making the usual turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, gravy, etc. but I'm mixing up some things and using some new recipes for some things.

Appetizers are phyllo-based.  The first recipe uses less than half a box of phyllo dough so I made two different fillings.  I made these ahead and froze them so all I need to do for the big day is heat them up.

Mushroom and goat cheese triangles which got big thumbs up from testers and spinach pesto bundles for which I have no recipe because I didn’t measure anything.  It was basically pesto I’d made and froze, a bunch of frozen chopped spinach cooked to remove the moisture, and a 4 oz of cream cheese to hold everything together. 

My other make and freeze item were the rolls.  I used a Bernard Clayton “New Complete Book of Breads” recipe for potato bread and instead used the dough to make knots, similar to garlic knots but obviously not garlicy. 

Potato Rolls

24 rolls

2 small to medium size potatoes

2 c water

5 c bread flour

2 pkg dry yeast (4 ½ tsp)

1 T salt

2 T sugar

¼ stick butter

Poppy seeds and sesame seeds for topping and a beaten egg with a little water in it to hold the seed in place, if desired.

Boil the potatoes in the water until they’re soft.  Pour off the liquid and save it – the recipe says to add water to bring it back up to 1 ¾ c water total but that seemed like more than needed.  Mash the potatoes.  Mix them back together and add the butter so it melts.

Blend 3 c of flour, the yeast, salt, and sugar.  Add the liquid, which should be about 120 F.  Mix with the paddle (I used a mixer) and add flour, ¼ c at a time.  Switch to the dough hook and knead for 10 minutes, adding bits of flour to keep it from sticking to the bowl (I didn’t measure what I added but I bet it was at least another cup) until the dough is developed – I ended up hand kneading it for a bit afterward to get a  nice smooth, easy to work with dough.

Place dough in a greased bowl, cover and let rise until doubled.  It took only about 45 minutes but the recipe calls for 1.5 hours.   Punch down and form the rolls – I rolled them into a log about 6-7” long and tied them in a knot, and place them on parchment-lined sheets.   Let rise, covered, to double.  Preheat oven to 375F.   Brush with egg and sprinkle with seeds if desired.   Bake for approximately 30 minutes.

I’m trying a recipe for Sweet Potato Salad With Orange-Maple Dressing from the Washington Post but I’m copying it here because not everyone has access.  I made a couple of changes…I used dried cherries in place of the raisins, added extra pecans, and skipped the parsley.    It’s served cold or at room temperature which is awesome, one thing that doesn’t need to be done at the last minute. 

Sweet Potato Salad with Orange-Maple Dressing

3 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch cubes

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, or more as needed

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons maple syrup

1/4 cup fresh orange juice (from 1 orange)

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground of freshly grated nutmeg

1/2 cup chopped scallions (about 3)

1/2 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1/4 cup coarsely chopped toasted pecans

1/4 cup golden raisins

1/4 cup dark raisins

Freshly ground black pepper

In a large pot, combine the sweet potatoes and enough lightly salted water to cover. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and cook until just tender, about 10 minutes. Drain and allow the potatoes to cool to room temperature, then transfer to a large bowl.

In a small bowl, whisk together the oil, maple syrup, orange juice, vinegar, ginger, nutmeg and the 1/4 teaspoon of salt.

Add the scallions, parsley, pecans and raisins to the sweet potatoes and toss to combine. Gently stir in the dressing, tossing just until combined. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

The stuffing I make is based on what my mom made and measures are very approximate.  It’s done by taste, even though I know I’m risking salmonella.  I found that using whole wheat bread of any type makes it too sweet and heavy so I stick with basic white bread.  It’s just a carrier and no one ever said that stuffing was good for you.  It’s mainly a carrier for butter and herbs, right? 

Stuffing

It’s important to prep the bread days ahead so it’s nice and stale by the time you actually make the stuffing.

2 loaves of bread, cut or torn into ½- ¾ inch pieces

About two onions per loaf - diced

An equal amount of celery - diced

Butter, enough to cook the onions and celery - don’t think about how much

Chicken stock

2-3 peeled apples

2-3 beaten eggs

Fresh rosemary, thyme, and sage, chopped finely

Salt

Pepper

Slowly sauté the onions and celery in the butter until soft.  Slowly pour the mix over the bread, stirring to mix it in evenly.   I find it’s best to use my hands for mixing to keep things as light as possible, basically tossing it like a salad, because it also helps me judge if it’s moist enough.   Dice the apples into very tiny pieces, less than ¼”, and add to the mix.  Add the eggs slowly, mixing as they’re added for thorough distribution.  Then add stock until it’s the right texture – not too wet, not too dry.  It should hold together nicely but not be soggy.  Then add the flavors, the rosemary, thyme, sage, salt, and pepper until it tastes how it’s supposed to taste.  Yes, that’s not specific but you should enjoy the flavor!  Remember that rosemary is a pretty strong flavor so don’t add too much. 

Stuff the turkey and anything left can go into a pan, to be heated and served with dinner. 

I’ve got three kinds of cranberry this year.  The standard off-the-back-of-the-package sauce that’s decent.  The canned stuff that appeals to people who grew up with it and I don’t think anyone else, and a cranberry relish that I love.  It’s very simple.

Cranberry Relish

1 pkg of cranberries

2 oranges and their zest,

1 granny smith apple

1 c sugar

Chop all the fruit in the food processor until it's your desired consistency.  Stir the sugar in and let sit for 45 minutes until the sugar dissolves.

I’m not a huge fan of pumpkin pie but it’s tradition and must be included.  Typically, I just use the Libby’s recipe and people generally seem to like it just fine.  Libby’s has apparently come up with an updated recipe this year and I haven’t decided which way I’m going to go with it yet but I got a recipe for a press in crust from my friend Caroline that uses oil in place of shortening or butter and I’m going for ease this year and using that.  It’s nice and tender and flaky or I’d have never asked for the recipe.

Pat in Pie Crust

1 ½ c flour plus 3 T

1 ½ t sugar

½ t salt

½ c vegetable oil

3 T cold milk

Place dry ingredients in the pie pan and mix with your fingers.  Combine the oil and milk in a cup and beat with a fork until creamy.   Pour all at once over the flour mixture and mix with a fork until the flour is completely moistened.  Pat into the plate, first up the sides, then the bottom.  Flute the edges.  If you need to prebake the crust, preheat over to 425F, prick the surface with a fork and bake 15 minutes.  Check often and prick as needed.