Giving Thanks

Thanksgiving is my Favorite.Day.of.the.Year. Food, Football, Family...perfection!
This year I did not make the whole dinner, but decided to do one fabulous dish.
I knew as soon as I saw the recipe for Pumpkin Bread Pudding in the new Bobby Flay Cookbook, Bar American that it would be the one I would make. For those not in the know, I love all things pumpkin: pies, cupcakes, whoopee pies, risotto, ravioli, you name it, I'll try it! Combine anything pumpkin with Bobby Flay and you know I'm in! Of course, Bobby did not disappoint!

{Pumpkin deliciousness}

The spicy caramel sauce was a little too "spicy" for me (and by spicy I mean cloves, ginger, etc.) but the bread pudding itself was to die for. If you love pumpkin pie, you will adore this recipe. It was a complete hit all around, and I was told that I must make this every year now. My pleasure!

Hope you all had a Happy Thanksgiving.

I am thankful for all of you.

xoxo,

H

Strike two, Big Daddy

In the spirit of watching approximately 300 hours of Thanksgiving recipes on Food Network these past two weeks, and since I made a very traditional Thanksgiving feast, I thought I'd try at least one of the recipes I saw on the day after. Of all the recipes I saw, only one really caught my attention. It was on one of the Dear Food Network, prepared by Aaron McCargo Jr.  His recipe was 2 in 1 Sausage Stuffed Stuffing. I thought I'd give Big Daddy another try, since the last time I tried a recipe of his it didn't work out so well for me. Well, Can't say this one was any better. The concept sounded delicious... stuffing wrapped around a ball of sausage sitting in a bowl of gravy. What could be bad about that?  Well, here's how it broke down:

First I browned up the sausage balls

Then, you use the same pan to make the gravy:

Easy pan gravy, but he called for oil, instead of butter to make the rue, so quite frankly it tasted, well, oily to me. Disappointment #1.

Then, I covered the sausage in (gasp!) box stuffing....still can't figure out why a 'chef' recipe calls for box stuffing, but anyways. Then, dip in flour and fry up.

This is where Disappointment #2 comes in. The stuffing balls proceeded to fall apart right there in the pan and it got worse from there.

Not only did they fall apart, but they tasted like oil. FAIL.

So I tried just browning them in a dry pan.

Those came out only slightly better. They looked better, but still fell apart the second you touched one.

So I tried to do it the way Big Daddy had showed it, floating in a bowl of the gravy. I figured there must have been a reason he did that instead of dipping in the gravy...

Only slightly better, I have to say. Still tasted like a bowl of oil.

 

Sorry, Big Daddy, but overall, today was a HUGE disappointment. How could something that sounded so good come out so wrong?! I guess next time I'll just stick with my girl Sunny Anderson and her Fried Stuffing with Cranberry Pesto I made last year.

 



I give thanks

There are many reasons I love Bobby Flay, but one of them is the fact that he and I both count Thanksgiving as our favorite day of the year. Food, family, and football....how does it get any better? I look forward to it all year! I have actually already cooked and devoured my Thanksgiving meal. Tomorrow is just the bonus round for being a good girl all year! ;)

I don't get why people stress about making the big meal each year though. Really, the turkey just sits in the oven for a few hours, when it comes out to rest, all the other sides go in. As long as you have a good sous chef and dishwasher, (thanks mom!) it's really an easy meal! My menu this year was standard, no fuss no flash. My sister made a bet that at least one dish would have chipotles in it, but (sorry Jan!) I went old school this year. Take a look at my line-up:

It may not be the prettiest bird I have ever made, but it was THE.JUICIEST.BIRD.EVER! Don't know why the skin didn't crisp up (ideas?) but lord have mercy was it moist!

Green Bean Casserole.
Yes, the kind from the can, no judging I HAVE to have it!

Sweet Potato Casserole.

Classic recipe, but what you can't see is the ration of potato to marshmallow. (I'd say it's 50/50!)

White Potatoes.
Notice I didn't say mashed, because I went a step further and used a ricer to make them light, fluffy and creamy.

Turkey Pan Gravy

I could drink this by itself, honestly.

 Add mamas stuffing and some rolls, and you get one perfect meal!

Oh, and of course there was pie! I always make two, even if I know it's just gonna be me tackling the leftovers. It's a tradition to have pumpkin pie for breakfast following Thanksgiving. My mama says pumpkin is a vegetable, so it's OK! :)

This picture right here says comfort to me. Isn't Thanksgiving GREAT?!

Well, I hope you all enjoy your day as much as I will! And I'd like to take this opportunity to thank you all for following me and supporting my little blog. I love all of you and wish nothing but the best for you!

XOXO,

Heather



Lusting for more Leftovers!

Anyone who knows me, knows that I do not eat leftovers. period. They never taste the same and I HATE eating the same thing a few nights in a row......except for Thanksgiving leftovers! I could eat that meal over and over for a week...and usually do! This year I decided to use those leftovers and make new dishes with them....and boy am I glad I did! Check out these tasty treats, all courtesy of Sunny Anderson:

First up: Second Day Turkey and String Bean Pot Pies: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sunny-anderson/second-day-turkey-and-string-bean-pot-pies-recipe/index.html This were simple and so delicious! The crust was a little mushy on the bottom of the pies, so maybe a refrigerator pie crust would be better, but it was very good as is!

Next up was the Second Day Fried Stuffing with Cranberry Pesto: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sunny-anderson/second-day-fried-stuffing-bites-with-cranberry-sauce-pesto-recipe/index.html. These were to die for! Simple, delicious and just goodness in a bite! Don't tell anyone, but Mom and I ate the whole pan of them...and nothing else...for dinner last night! The pesto itself was so fabulous, that I made an extra batch to just have on hand to use for sandwiches or on toast another day!!

Lastly was Cream of Asparagus Soup: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/cream-of-asparagus-soup-recipe/index.html I tried this one to use up all the pieces of asparagus that I didn't use for my bacon-wrapped asparagus on Turkey Day. It was so simple, but it had SO much flavor! I did have to strain it because my blender didn't break down all of the strings, but regardless, this one will definitely be used again!

Thanks again to Sunny Anderson for her inspiration on these recipes... She is quickly becoming one of my favorite Food Network chefs! Case in point...these leftover recipes! It made me look forward to leftovers....not an easy feat! Hope you enjoy trying these for yourselves!

Many Thanks!

Thanksgiving is my FAVORITE day of the year....Family, friends, favorite foods (pumpkin pie!) and football. Things I am grateful for this year: a job, a roof over my head, money to have a great Thanksgiving feast, my new Kitchen Aid Mixer, and a great sous chef to help me in the kitchen---thanks Mom!

This year's food spread included all the normal favorites: Turkey, gravy, stuffing, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, green bean casserole, bacon-wrapped asparagus, cranberries, rolls and, of course, pumpkin and apple pies. To kick it up a notch, my gravy was a Chipotle Gravy:http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/rachael-ray/pressed-herbs-and-spices-turkey-breast-pumpkin-zucchini-muffin-stuffin-with-chipotle-gravy-recipe/index.html and a new Sweet Potato recipe that tasted more like a sweet potato pie! http://www.parade.com/food/recipes/parade/11152009-best-chefs-perfect-thanksgiving.html?index=2 Both received rave reviews!

I hope everyone had a lovely Turkey Day with their families. Check out my photo of the spread....don't I look like I am posing for a cookbook cover?? Stay tuned for recipes on how to use all those leftovers! Enjoy!