I am a newlywed on a budget, just trying to make healthy and inexpensive meals for my husband and I to enjoy. He eats a lot, so cost is a big factor. Though I work 3 jobs, I manage to find time 6 nights a week to cook a full dinner for us both. I am constantly looking for new recipes that are moderately healthy, taste great, and won't break the bank.

On the side, I also own a brownie business called Gersheybars. My passion and love for cooking started when I was just a small child, baking with my mom and grandmother. The brownie recipe has been passed down through 5 generations and I am thrilled to finally have an outlet to share them with everybody else. Friends and family have helped spread the word and made my business as successful as it is today.

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Thanksgiving

This will be the first Thanksgiving in our new house, so of course we're hosting it this year. Justin is taking care of the turkey (see below) by smoking it on the grill, and I'm doing all the sides, except sweet potatoes and white potatoes. Except white potatoes, we don't really have any family recipes for things like stuffing, green beans, cranberries, etc. So off to Allrecipes I went! And here's what I found:


Browning sausage, mushrooms, celery and onions. I don't have a picture of the final stuffing yet since it's still in the oven.



All 3 were incredibly easy to make and from what I've tasted so far, quite delicious!

I also made Turnips Au Gratin, compliments of Peggy. I've never had turnips on Thanksgiving, but she swears that they're awesome, and her insanely picky husband even liked them! So I figured I'd give them a shot, since Justin is definitely a fan of turnips.
Ingredients
  • 1 1/2 lb Turnips, peeled
  • 4T Butter
  • 1 1/2 tsp Marjoram
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 4 eggs, separated
  • 2C milk
  • 1/2 C water
  • 1C cornmeal
  • 2C Parmesan Cheese
Directions
  1. Butter 9" square baking dish
  2. In saucepan, steam turnips over 1" water until very tender
  3. Puree Turnips with butter and marjoram until smooth
  4. Transfer puree to large bowl, and season with salt and pepper
  5. Whisk in the cheese and egg yolks
  6. Over medium heat, bring milk and water to simmer
  7. Slowly pour in the cornmeal, whisking constantly until smooth. Cook
  8. until thick, about 2 minutes
  9. Remove from heat, and let stand 5 minutes. Whisk cornmeal into turnip mixture
  10. Beat egg whites with mixer until soft peaks form. Fold egg whites
  11. into turnip mixture
  12. Spoon batter into prepared baking dish
  13. Bake 45 minutes at 350* until puffed and lightly browned
And finally, I made a pumpkin cheesecake for dessert. Because it's not Thanksgiving without cheesecake!

Ingredients

CRUST
  • 1 1/2 c. graham cracker crumbs
  • 2/3 pound unsalted butter
  • 1/2 T. cinnamon
  • 2 T. sugar
FILLING
  • 2 lbs. cream cheese
  • 1/2 lb. mascarpone
  • 1 1/4 c. sugar
  • 1 T. and 2 tsp. vanilla
  • 2 eggs
  • 3/4 c pumpkin puree
Directions
  1. Blend cheeses and sugar on low til smooth. Do not overmix.
  2. Add eggs and vanilla....blend on low til smooth. Reserve 1 cup of batter. Pour rest into crust. Mix remaining cup of batter with pumpkin puree and pour on top of regular batter. Swirl it together with a knife.
  3. Bake at 300 until almost set, about 45min to an hour.

Update...
Here are a few pictures from Thanksgiving.

Our fabulous smoked turkey. Took about 6 hours, start to finish.
Justin and David carving the turkey by hand.

The turkey on display on the table!

Dining room table

Dining room table before all the food.

Too much Thanksgiving excitement for Jena leaves her shoeless and passed out.
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1 comment:

Anonymous said...

What great idea to smoke the turkey, im sure the flavours are better than the oven cooked turkey. Hope everything went well on your first thanksgiving:-)
X M

November 29, 2008 at 7:28 AM

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