Rascally Pilgrims

"Here we are again Ma"

"Yes, here we are....(sigh)"

"How long you think until the vittles start arriving before us?"

"Not long Pa, not long...I can smell something cooking"

"Mmmm, I knew it was nearing time....the Cranberry Relish is always first to the table."

"Smells so good ma...(snnnifff) aaahhhh"

"Pa did you just stick your nose in the relish? You have relish on your nose....."

"I couldn't control myself, I did a tipper right on in the sauce"

"I wouldn't mind getting my nose in the sauce Pa.....I can't seem to tip..... maybe if I hop up on this fork....um, no not workin' for me. Pa help your bride wouldja!"

"Uuphf"

"Ma, they must've filled you mighty full with salt this year....oooooumph...hang on"

"Pa where is your face....for heavens sakes!"

"Hang on....just trying to get some leverage...there we go...it's all in the hat..."

"rrGah...I'm ther...umph...e"

"Ma....?"

"Me boosums er in da sauce..."

"backer up Pa"

"Uh oh....you're a mess...she's gonna know somethin goin on."

"Maybe she'll never notice...maybe she'll think it's from last year...how humiliaten' Pa, I'm covered in cranberries, and my boosums are sticky"

"Scooch in close, maybe she'll think it spilled out on us"

"Is this punishment? A brief frisking with a damp cloth..."

"Think she knows?"

"Ma? is my nose clear of cranberry?"

"Yes Dear.....Why does she always stand us face to face and giggle?"

"This better Ma?"

"Ahhh yes, the view outside is lovely."

Happy Thanksgiving! Blessings to you all!

Cranberry Relish

As a kid I never touched the cranberry sauce. It was always plopped out on a plate and laid sideways to do a jelly dance. I must have been forced to try it at some point because I have the memory of my eyeballs rolling back in my head and my tongue shrinking inside my mouth from the bitter tart taste of the jellyfied excuse for cranberry sauce.

At some point early on in my marriage, when I was just in the beginnings of developing my Thanksgiving Day menu, I came across a recipe for Cranberry Relish in my Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook. I gave it a try and it turned me into a believer! I have made it ever since, with a few minor adjustments.

One being that I zest an orange and squeeze the juice from it adding enough additional water to make 3/4 of a cup of liquid. The original just calls for 3/4 cup orange juice. I also use brown sugar, and walnuts instead of pecans....but have been known to use pecans depending on my mood.

Cranberry Relish

printable recipe

1 12 ounce package fresh cranberries

1 whole orange zested and juiced + enough water to make 3/4 cup liquid

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon ground clove

1/2 cup golden raisins

1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts or pecans

1. Add the cranberries to a sauce pan with orange zest, liquid, and brown sugar. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook for 2-3 minutes until cranberries start to pop and burst open.

2. Add remaining ingredients: nuts, raisins, cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove, stir to combine. Turn heat down to low, continue to cook for another 5-10 minutes until relish has cooked down and becomes thick.

The best thing about this recipe is you can do it up to a week in advance. Check it right off your list. If you do make it ahead of time be sure to store it in an airtight container, pull it out an hour or so before dinner, relish should be room temperature when served.

These are my Pilgrim friends. They are guest at my table every year. My sister has some Pilgrim friends too, that make an appearance when Thanksgiving is celebrated at her house. Mine usually come out a few days in advance and just hang around....these two got themselves in a bit of a pickle with the Cranberry Relish. They didn't know I was watching and taking pictures of them as they......well I don't want to ruin it for you....you're just going to have to come back and see for yourselves.

Rascally Pilgrims.

Two more days until I get to hear my father say, "bring on the second Turkey!", five minutes into the meal. He cracks himself up every year with that one.

Ya'll come back now ya hear!

THANKSgiving EarlY

Aren't the lil' Pilgrims cute? My sister and I both have a set. I love um, I usually have to give um a little hug, and pinch their cheekies. Then I play with them a lot during the meal. Make them kiss, lay them down (they passed out from to much tryptophan), and they even dance sometimes (that depends on how much holiday cheer I have had before sitting down for the Thanksgiving meal).

So, we decided to be daring and try something new for Thanksgiving this year. Daring for us over this holiday is going to Chicago and not having our dinner with my sister her husband, my dad, and my sisters in laws, at my sisters house. We have some pretty strong traditions over the Holidays and going to Chicago breaks three of them. #1 Having the traditional Thanksgiving turkey dinner. #2 Creating our gingerbread houses the day after Thanksgiving. #3 Decorating for Christmas. Oh Heck! For one year we can messed things up and do something different. And my sister was very accommodating and said she would do Thanksgiving the Sunday before.

So what do "the sisters" put on the table for Thanksgiving dinner? Many things from the Pioneer Woman's website, so if it says PW after the name you can go to www.thepioneerwoman.com and get the recipe for your self. Otherwise, I will hand over the goods.
THE MEAL
-Brined and Butter basted Crestwick Farms turkey PW (Crestwick Farms is a local farm, awesome! google them)
-Mashed Potatoes PW
-gravy PW
-Stuffing
-Rice and Corn Casserole PW ****YOU MUST TRY THIS ONE! IT'S AMAZING.****
-Sweet Potatoes with pecan crumble (to DIE 4)PW
-home made Cranberry Sauce
-Carlas Green Bean Casserole
-rolls
BEFORE THE MEAL
-deviled eggs
-cheese and crackers
-chips and Amish corm salsa
-hot artichoke and spinach dip
AFTER THE MEAL
-Pumpkin Pie
-Larry's Apple Pie in a Bag
-Whipped topping NOT cool whip

CRANBERRY SAUCE- 1bag(12oz)fresh cranberries, 1/2cup brown sugar, 1/2cup orange juice, 1/4 cup water, 1/2tsp cinnamon, dash of clove, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, 1/2cup light raisins, 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans(optional). mix everything together in a sauce pan EXCEPT nuts. cook on medium for about half an hour until all the cranberries pop and the sauce thickens. Let cool. You can make this a couple days ahead. It will make you house smell fabulous!

CARLAS GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE- you will never want to make your old GBC again, unless of course you already make this one! EASY its so EASY! 6cans of green beans drained, 3cans of mushroom soup, 1/2 of a block of Velveeta cube it up, Frenches onions. Mix the first three ingredients together and add 1/2 cup Frenches onions. Dump it in a greased 9x13 dish then put as many Frenches onions on the top as you can stand and bake at 350degrees for 30 minutes or until hot and bubbly and the onions are browned.

ROLLS- easy peasy chicken squeezy! Love these rolls! You do need a BREAD MACHINE though.... 1cup warm water (not hot just warm), 3Tbl softened butter, 1egg, 3 1/4 cup bread flour, 1/4 cup white sugar, 1tsp salt, 3tsp yeast. Put water in bread machine then butter, egg, sugar, salt, then add flour, make a little hole in the flour for the yeast, add yeast. Then set your machine on dough mode. Check it if it looks too dry add a Tbl of water at a time until it looks like its good. Then when dough mode is done, take it out and cut into 16 rolls. (I half it then half it again, and again and well you got it until I have 16 cute lil rolls) put on Pam sprayed cookie sheets cover with a clean dish towel and let rise for 1hr. preheat oven to 375. bake rolls for 12-15 minutes. brush GENEROUSLY with butter right when you take them out of the oven. Try not to eat them all before you get them to your destination.

STUFFING-this is one of those recipes I feel my way through. I just make it, and see how it turns out. So I will try to convey my recipe from my head. You cant really ruin it, unless you over salt it. We don't stuff our turkey we just bake it in a pan on the side so it gets those crunchy edges. YUMMY! 2 bags of herbed bread cubes, 4cans chicken stock (maybe 5), 2eggs, 1med onion, 1 bunch of celery(cleaned up outside banged up stalks taken off ends cut off, but leave the middle leafs in), 1small hand full of poultry seasoning, 2sticks of butter. Saute your chopped onion, and celery (yes leaves and all) with one stick of butter, saute until its translucent, not browned. When done throw in 2nd stick of butter let melt. Mix stock with eggs whisk together. Pour this over bread cubes, then add sauteed vegis and butter, mix well, add spices, some salt a pepper to taste. Add extra stock if it seems dry should be kinda wet. Then butter a big ol' dish and smash it all in there bake at 350 for 1 1/2 hours or until brown and crunchy edges form. Savory bread pudding is what it is!

There are a couple more recipes that I would like to share with you like Larry's Apple Pie(need to get permission to post the recipe from Big Lar) and the Artichoke Dip, maybe even the deviled eggs. But right now I gotta go I am starving. I pray you all have an AMAZING and BLESSED Thanksgiving with your families!