Image Courtesy of MarthaStewart.com
Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays of the year. I love eating with reckless abandon and turkey day is the day to do just this – as far as I am concerned anyways…. Over the years I have come up with my traditional thanksgiving favorite recipes and I wanted to share them with you.
My normal menu consists of turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, corn casserole, pumpkin crisp, gravy and cranberry sauce. In looking at this menu, the first thing I always notice is that there is nothing green – no vegetable or salad and I must say that is just fine with me. So without further ado…
The turkey recipe I use is Martha Stewart’s Turkey 101 which is amazing and turns out perfect every time. I am sure that it has something to do with the bottle of wine and pound of butter used to baste the turkey that makes it so succulent and amazing!
photo courtesy of MarthaStewart.com
As for stuffing…I used to make Martha Stewart’s standard stuffing recipe that can be found here, however about five years ago I was introduced to a stuffing recipe that won a Good Morning America stuffing recipe contest. OMG – this stuff is SOOOOOOOOOO freaking good! It is ridiculously fattening so I only make it once a year, however it is so worth it! The recipe dates back to 2007, however you can still find it online here. I have included the recipe below just so I always have it in the event that page ever gets taken down.
Corn casserole might sound a bit unusual for Thanksgiving but again, I make it once a year and just seems to mesh well with everything on the plate. Think cornbread but more delicate and buttery. The recipe is from AllRecipes and can be found here.
Now Gravy is so easy and I do cheat by using a bottled product, but it is so delicious nobody will ever, ever know and you don’t have to worry about lumps! Williams Sonoma Turkey Gravy Base is a gem! You can thank me later.
I am not a pumpkin pie fan. I think it is part texture and part overall pumpkin taste but I always had a pumpkin pie and an apple pie at Thanksgiving until I stumbled upon Pumpkin Crisp. This dessert is made with boxed yellow cake mix so if you have any nostalgia for a basic yellow cake then this could be one of your new favorites as well. I blogged about this a while ago and you can see the full recipe here.
The cranberry sauce I make is the standard Ocean Spray version that can be found on the back of the fresh cranberry package. Sometimes I will add some fresh orange zest to add an additional flavor element to the sauce but that is optional.
So….that is my run down for what I make for my family on turkey day. I hope you try some of these delicious recipes. They are tried and true for multiple years so I can vouch that they are all super yummy!
Down Home Italian Dressing
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 extra-large yellow onion, chopped
- 7 large celery ribs, chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 6 ounces pancetta, diced&
- 6 cups day-old, finely diced French bread
- 3 cups crumbled unsweetened cornbread
- ½ cup butter, cubed, cold
- 1 tablespoon ground sage
- 1½ tablespoons poultry seasoning
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 cup Parmesan cheese
- 1 cup toasted pine nuts
- 4-5 cups chicken or turkey broth
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage
- large Parmesan shavings
Directions
- Heat oil in large skillet on medium. Sauté pancetta for 2 minutes.
- Add onion and celery and cook until translucent. Add garlic and cook another 3 minutes.
- Mix together breads and ¾ cup toasted pine nuts in a large mixing bowl. Add cheeses and cooked sausage to the breads. Mix together with the dried seasonings.
- Add sautéed veggies with any pan drippings.
- Slowly add broth and stir until mixed thoroughly. The consistency should not be soupy, but very moist. If not, add more broth.
- Test for saltiness and add a dash more if needed.
- Place in an extra deep 9-inch-by-13-inch greased pan.
- Dot the top with the cubed butter and cover with foil. Bake at 375° for 45 minutes.
- Remove foil and bake another 15 minutes or until slightly crusted on the edges.
- Top with remaining toasted pine nuts and chopped fresh sage. Add shaved cheese just before serving.
Years ago I was stuck in a doctors office for what seemed like an eternity. I came across an issue of Food and Wine magazine and inside there was a tip so genius I have been using it for years. As the title states, it is freezing wine.
The wine cubes will be solid, but slightly soft. Each cube is the equivalent to two tablespoons of wine and since you will be freezing the cubes, they will be good to use for about two weeks and still taste great!
Try this tip out and let me know what you think!
I love reading the endless amounts of cool information on the internet and I am fascinated by what people are reading. Below are some links I have stumbled upon this week. Please pass on interesting articles you are reading…
Ten Delicious Ways to Use Rotisserie Chicken: I stumbled on this when looking through my Pinterest boards for some inspiration for dinner one day. There are some refreshing and relish dinner options provided.
Seventeen Ways to Pimp Your Pumpkin Without Carving It: Having two boys that are ages ten and eleven, I can’t wait to try some of these fun techniques. Not having to carve a pumpkin will also cut down on a lot of mess for me also!
Which Wine Pairs With Your Halloween Candy: Halloween is on Friday and I fully plan to have a glass or two of wine to celebrate – while raiding my boys’ candy bags.
How to Detox Every Day: I try to do all things in moderation. I know myself well enough to realize that a long term detox isn’t my thing, but I love these little tricks to help me keep my body as healthy as possible.
10 Snacks That Make You Beautiful: I am a snacker, so any ideas on snacks that are actually good for me is an article I will always want to read.
25 Definitive Style Rules Every Woman Should Follow: While I love a good trend, the classics are always a good reminder. This article outlines some classic trends that can always be incorporated into your daily wardrobe.
You’re Not the Only One: 8 Memoirs To Get Your Through Hard Times: Life isn’t easy all the time or even some of the time. I love reading memoirs from people who have overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles – anything to keep this life in perspective…
I am obsessed with nude lip shades. For years I have snatched almost every nude gloss that crossed my path, however with the new matte lip look I am on the hunt for matte nude shades.
Enter the NYX Simply Nude Lip Cream…I was walking around Ulta and found these little gems on an end cap. There weren’t testers so I grabbed three to see how I liked them, knowing that with Ulta’s return policy I could return any that I absolutely hated. There are six nude shades total, but I only got three. The colors I got were Disrobed, Fairest and Peaches. See below for swatches:
Sooo, how did these work? I really, really like them and would recommend them to anyone that is looking for a good, matte, nude lip. The pros are the shades are stellar – I think they are comparable to department store colors. The packaging is good and they rotate up so you don’t have to worry about sharpening these with a pencil sharpener. The price also can’t be beat (I paid $5.99 each at Ulta) especially when there is a BOGO deal. When wearing these I would definitely recommend wearing a lip balm as a base to make sure that the formula doesn’t feather. My favorites lip balms to use are the Dior Creme de Rose Lip Balm, the Guerlain Kiss Kiss Lip Lift and Carmex. All do a great job, although I am partial to Carmex which I have been using since I was a kid.
Give these lip pencils a try and let me know what you think. Do you have any other good, matte shades you would recommend?
One of the most life changing products I have started using regularly over the past two to three years would have to be dry shampoo. Every single day (even on days I wash my hair) I use this magical spray to give my hair a little extra “oomph” or to sop up some of the oil on my head.
I have super thin, unruly hair that will not grow past my shoulders. I hate it and am so grateful to hair extensions and dry shampoo for giving me the opportunity to not have to wash my thin mane daily. Not only does this cut down on my get ready time drastically, but it also is better for the overall health of my hair in general.
I have been collecting “empties” (products that are all used up) to discuss whether or not I like them and if I would purchase them again. As you can see from the image I had quite the collections and here is my take on several of the most popular dry shampoos out there:
1. Pantene Dry Shampoo: This shampoo is pretty good. There is a pronounced scent which I really like, however if you are sensitive to scents I would pass this one up. I will definitely repurchase this item due to the price, ease of getting it and most importantly it does a really good job on my hair. The one con with this is I find that the ends of my hair seem drier with this product than with others.
2. Eva NYC Dry Shampoo: This is my favorite of all dry shampoos shown here. At $11.99 a bottle, this is a relatively good value and really does a good job of freshening up dirty hair while not weighing it down.
3. Redken Pillow Proof 2-day Extender: I actually liked this dry shampoo, however I seemed to run out of this stuff sooner than any of the other dry shampoos. In terms of quality I think it is comparable to the Eva NYC, but I will not repurchase due to how fast this ran out.
4. Batiste for Blonds: I HATED this stuff. The blond that came out was reminiscent of a lemon – not blond hair. I would not recommend this one at all.
5. Batiste: Original Formula: I thought this was pretty good although this product did seem to weigh my hair down more than the Eva NYC and the Pantene product. For that reason I will not repurchase.
6. Victoria’s Secret Fresh Body Dry Shampoo: This product has a really strong, girly scent which I loved. If you are in any way sensitive to fragrance I would not recommend this item. As for the actual dry shampoo I found this to be just OK. The bottle didn’t last long and it weighed my hair down similarly to the Batiste. This wasn’t cheap and for these reasons I will not be repurchasing.
7. PSSSSST…Dry Shampoo: So this item is not pictured, however I wanted to talk about this item as well. I found that the smell on this shampoo didn’t bother me, however more than any of the other shampoos referenced in this post this one weighed my hair down the most. Whenever using this I always was forced to wash my hair the following day. In addition the white cast that PSSSST left was the worst of all these. In a nutshell, would not repurchase.
Sooooo…do you have any dry shampoos that you like? I would love to hear your thoughts!
