Thanksgiving

This year was Thanksgiving with my husband's family. Usually, I bring only one dish that is traditional for my New England family, such as my mom's manicotti, that doesn't go over well with my husband's Midwestern family. This year, I changed tactics and brought 4 dishes from a variety of traditions, all of which went over well with someone. It was the first year I felt my culinary efforts were really appreciated by this clan. I was particularly proud because everything was my own recipe, made up on the fly. My contribution consisted of: Southern style mixed greens, butternut squash soup, cranberry sauce and an apple pie. I used mostly organic/locally grown ingredients from Farm Fresh Delivery, a grocery delivery service here in Indianapolis that specializes in local/organic foods. (They are this busy localvore's dream come true.) All of these dishes already do or could easily be adapted to accommodate any vegetarian or vegan members of your Thanksgiving gathering, as noted below. Here are the recipes, though, as you'll notice, the measurements are generally estimated, because I rarely measure when I'm cooking:

Southern Style Mixed Greens:
This is the only recipe I made the day of. I came down early to help my mother-in-law and cousin-in-law finish getting everything ready. Usually I come down and help them the night before, but it didn't work out this year. So, as we were prepping the dressing and making the gravy, I simmered my greens on the stove really quick. This dish was my biggest hit, overall. I believe "kicks ass" was the phrase my husband used. There wasn't much left when we were packing up leftovers. I think it's going to become a permanent part of my Thanksgiving contribution. While there's always a lot of good food at my in-laws Thanksgiving, there are never enough vegetable dishes, in my opinion. This could be made with vegetable broth and without the bacon to accommodate vegans/vegetarians.

-3 bunches of greens (I used one bunch each of collard, kale and spinach, but you could use whatever.)
-1 onion, roughly chopped
-3-4 pieces of bacon cooked and crumbled (I used some jowl bacon that was in my grandmother-in-law's fridge because I forgot to get it myself, but whatever sort of bacon would work.)
-2 cups of chicken or vegetable stock
-water (enough to finish covering the greens in the pot)
-a couple tablespoons of red pepper flakes

1. Wash and chop the greens, removing any thick stems.
2. Throw everything into a big pot.
3. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer for about an hour until greens and onion are tender.
4. Serve warm.
(This recipe could easily be made in a crock-pot, but it will probably take a little longer for the vegetables to get nice and tender.)


Butternut Squash Soup:
This one wasn't to every one's taste, but several people really enjoyed it. Missy, my BFF/cousin-in-law and her oldest son/my god-son, Isaac, were particular fans of this soup. And, I really like it, so I didn't mind bringing home a little extra leftovers of this. I made it the night before and we had it for dinner with grilled cheese sandwiches, which made a nice easy pre-Thanksgiving gluttony meal at the end of a long day of cooking. I then divided it into containers and brought about 2/3 with me to the get-together and re-heated it in a crock pot. I freezed the other 1/3 for a quick, easy meal later in the month. Though I used my homemade chicken stock, because that's what I had, this could be easily made with vegetable stock without changing the flavor to accommodate any vegetarians or vegans.

-5 or 6 small butternut squashes, peeled, seeds removed and chopped into chunks. (Enough to fill a large soup pot about 2/3 full of squash)
-2-3 carrots, peeled and chopped into chunks (I used a few handfuls of the baby carrots)
-1 onion, roughly chopped
-3 celery stalks, chopped into chunks
-Enough chicken or vegetable stock to cover all the vegetables in a large pot
-2 cans of coconut milk
-nutmeg, cardamon and ginger to taste (probably 1/2-1 teaspoon of each)
-salt to taste
-a tablespoon or two of sugar (optional, I left this out this time because Missy was just diagnosed with diabetes and the soup is fine without it. If you would like it a little sweeter, you can add sugar to taste at the end.)

1. Place all the vegetables in a large soup pot and cover with chicken broth.
2. Boil vegetables in the broth until they are tender.
3. Spoon vegetables, in batches, into a blender with some of the broth and blend until smooth.
4. Pour blended veggies and broth back into pot and whisk in the rest of the ingredients.
5. Let it come to a boil one more time.
6. Serve warm.

Cranberry Sauce:
I love cranberry sauce, but I hate the stuff that comes in a can. So, I made my own. I added apples to help the finished product thicken, as apples are high in pectin, and also to stretch the recipe. At the last minute, I decided to throw in some packages of slivered almonds I had in the pantry, and I'm glad I did. The slight crunch was a nice texture in this dish. I was very pleased that my husband, in particular, really liked this sauce.

-2 cartons of cranberries
-2 oranges
-2 Winesap (or whatever firm, sweeter type you like) apples, peeled and chopped fine
-2 small packages of slivered almonds (about a cup or so, could substitute any nuts you like)
-1-2 cups of sugar
-about a cup of water
-a dash of salt

1. place the cranberries in a sauce pot.
2. Zest both oranges completely and add zest to pot. (I just zest it straight into the pot)
3. Juice the oranges and add juice to pot.
4. Add sugar and enough water to cover the cranberries. In this step, you may want to use less sugar than the full 2 cups. You can always add more later if it's too tart.
5. Bring to a boil and let boil until cranberries pop open (about 5 minutes)
6. Turn off heat and add apples and nuts. Check flavor and add salt and any extra sugar to taste.
7. Let cool and chill, Serve cold or at room temp.


Apple Pie:
Apple has always been my favorite pie. When I was a kid, I always asked for apple pie for my birthday instead of cake. Earlier in the fall, I invested in three large bags of some hearty winter apple that keep for several months in the fridge. Among the varieties I choose, Idas are my favorite for making pies. They keep their shape amazingly well when cooked. I use these for the majority of my pie apples, but I mix in some of the other varieties for depth of flavor and variety of texture. I got several compliments from my husband's uncle Junior on my pie, which meant a lot, because he is something of a pie connoisseur and his wife is by far the best pie maker I know. She always brings a pecan pie to Thanksgiving and, it is always perfect. To know that my apple pie even deserved to be on the same dessert table as hers, let alone won compliments from her husband, was an honor.

-About 8-10 apples, depending on their size, peeled and chopped (I used 4 Idas, 1 mutsu and 3 small Winesap, because that's what I had.)
-1/2-1 cup sugar
-2-3 tablespoons of cinnamon (I like a lot of cinnamon)
-1/2-1 teaspoon each of cardamon, nutmeg, cloves, allspice, depending on your tastes
-dash of salt
-3-4 tablespoons of quick cook tapioca (This is my secret fruit pie ingredient. It really makes the filling set up well and absorbs a lot of the moisture from the fruit, keeping the crust relatively dry, even on the bottom.)
-pie crust for top and bottom crust. I use either the all butter or all butter with almond flour recipes found here. (For vegans, use a vegetable shortening pie crust recipe instead.)
-One egg and an amount of water roughly equal to the amount of egg, beaten to make an egg wash. (optional, leave out if cooking for vegans.)

1. Prep your pie crust according to whatever recipe you like.
2. Mix rest of the ingredients in a large bowl.
3. Roll out bottom crust and place in pie pan.
4. Put filling into crust and spread to form an even layer.
5. Roll out top crust, lay over fruit, cut excess off with scissors, crimp and seal edges.
6. Brush top with egg wash (I actually use paper towel instead of a pastry brush and blot it on more than brush it, which I find to be easier.)
7. Cut 6 vent slits in the center of top crust and bake in pre-heated 450 degree oven for 20 minutes.
8. Reduce heat to 350 and bake until crust is golden (about 30-40 minutes more).
9. Serve warm or at room temperature. Do not refrigerate if serving the next day, as it causes the crust to get soggy. (Don't worry, it will get eaten well before it even thinks about spoiling.)