I just thought I would share the few things that we do for Thanksgiving every year. I'm a stickler for tradition when it comes to food!
We of course do:
Turkey
Mashed Potatoes & Gravy
Stuffing
Cranberry Sauce
I also HAVE to have:
Gramma's Green Bean Casserole
(Not the Cream of Mushroom & Onion one)
2 Small Cans or
1 Large Handful of Fresh Mushrooms
1 Medium Onion, chopped
1/2 Cup Margarine
1/4 Cup Flour
1 lb. Jar of Cheese Whiz, or Velveeta
1/4 Cup Milk
1/2 tsp. Salt
1/8 tsp. Tobasco
2 Tbls. Soy Sauce
2 Pkgs. Frozen French Cut Green Beans
1 Can Sliced Water Chestnuts
1 oz. Almonds, slivered
Cook the Green Beans as directed on the pacakge & drain.
Make Sauce:
Saute Mushrooms & Onion in margarine, add Flour & cook until smooth. Add Cheese Whiz, Milk, Salt, Tobasco, & Soy Sauce to mixture. Mix in Green Beans & Water Chestnuts. Place in casserole dish & sprinkle Almonds over top.
Bake @ 350 for 20 minutes.
** I can't have Thanksgiving without this recipe! It's my all time favorite! Just be careful that it's not too hot before you add the flour, or it will separate funny. Add it slow, so it becomes creamy! So so so Good!!! I don't do the Water Chestnuts, I'm just not a huge fan. It's a total preferance thing, it doesn't affect the dish! Yum!!
Pretzel Jello
Crust:
2 2/3 Cup Pretzels, crushed
1 1/2 Sticks Margarine, softened
3 Tbls. Sugar
Mix & press into a 9x13 casserole pan. Bake @ 350 for 10 minutes. Let Cool.
Cream Cheese Filling:
1 - 8 oz. Package Cream Cheese
1 Cup Sugar
8 oz. Cool Whip
Cream together cheese & sugar. Fold in Cool Whip & spread over crust.
Jello:
2 small packages Raspberry Jello
2 - 8 oz. packages frozen Raspberries
Mix jello with 2 Cups boiling water. Add frozen raspberries to jello. Let thicken. When it starts to set up, pour over cream cheese mixture & refrigerate.
**My sister & I both always do this recipe for Thanksgiving! We love it! The only thing you have to be careful of, is to let the jello set up a little. If it's not starting to set up it will run down the sides under the pretzels & the pretzels get mushy. If it's TOO set up, it won't gel right with the rest. Just let it sit, til it's starting to set. Yum!!!! I just CAN'T go with out these two things on Thanksgiving. They are almost as important as the Turkey!!!
I just do the Turkey in an oven bag with onions in with it. We put a little stuffing in the bird, for flavor, but aren't huge on eating that stuffing.
I'm not hugely picky on stuffing. I've been known to just use Stove Top in a pinch. This year I'm just using a recipe I found in a magazine. It's just Pepperidge Farm Stuffing & Swanson Chicken Broth. I hope it's yummy!
For my Mashed Potatoes I just mix in cream cheese, butter & milk in with the potatoes. As far as Gravy I use the drippings from the Turkey & a turkey gravy mix to help out alittle. I thicken it with Corn Starch mixed with a little water. Not too fancy!
This year I'm trying a new roll recipe. I'm getting it from my sister in law & I don't have it yet. But you can do the dough ahead of time, bake the rolls the day before & just warm them up in the microwave for dinner. (I'm trying to do as much ahead of time as possible)
I am a HUGE believer in buying the pies. We have a bakery type sandwhich place here called Kneaders & they make my favorite pies. You just have to order them ahead of time. Fruit & Cream Pies!!
I am a total canned Cranberry Sauce lover. I like to put it on my leftover Turkey Sandwiches too!!
Yum, there you have it The Alger Family Thanksgiving Menu!
I would LOVE to hear all about how you do things at your house. Let me know! or email me at
katealger125@earthlink.net
7 comments:
My mom makes this great Raspberry Cream Cheese Pie. It's the best pie ever. She's made it for the past 20 plus years. We can't even get one of the ingredients in our town anymore but she has my sister buy some when she's in Utah... I have the same pretzel recipe as you and my family loves it also.
Raspberry Cream Cheese Pie
1 (9”) graham cracker crust
1 pkg. raspberry flavor (Danish Dessert)
1 1/2 cup cold water
1 or 2 (4 3/4 oz pkg.) frozen raspberry (drained)
4 oz Cream Cheese
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar
1/2 pint whipped cream
Dissolve one pkg. raspberry flavor Danish Dessert in cold water. Cook according to directions on package. Stir in raspberries. Set in refrigerator to chill only. Soften cream cheese add vanilla and confectioners sugar. Beat with a fork until fluffy. Fold in whipped cream. Spread cheese mixture in bottom of crust. Spoon chilled berry mixture carefully on top. Chill 6 hours.
We can't find the raspberry flavor Danish Dessert or any flavor for that matter. I can't remember where she gets it there either. I just know my mom had her pick up like 24 of them last time she was there! :)
Kate! I love Kneaders!!!! You're so smart to get your pies from there. We're actually big homemade pie people, but this year no one has the energy so we're making Marie Calendar's frozen apple pie. My mom already taste-tested it & said it was deeee-lish.
Your pretzel recipe sounds so good. I'm craving it right now. Crave, crave.
You sound as if you're hosting the feast. And making the entire thing, too. Is that true? Who's helping you???
That pretzel jello sounds so good.
My thanksgiving favorites are:
**turkey (of course) I only like the white meat
**mashed potatoes with gravy (we're fine with instant potatoes too-gasp)
**carrots
**stuffing
**cranberry sauce--I love to slather it on my turkey
**rolls
**sweet potatoes with lots of brown sugar and marshmallows
**green salad--I love green salad with everything
**slushie drink (not neccessary, but still a personal favorite)
**pie--and if there's ice cream with it all the better
We're going to Idaho this year for Thanksgiving, and I'm in charge of taking deviled eggs (what??? Is this a Thanksgiving food? I didn't know that.) and a green salad.
Hope all goes well at your house and that you guys are all feeling better! You need a break! I'm sad we never got to go out last week.
Even though we aren't having Thanksgiving at our house, we'll probably still make it later this week. After it's over, we get the cravings, but don't have the leftovers, so we have to go make our own.
Hee hee--look how long my comment is. It takes up the whole screen. That made me laugh. It wasn't on purpose.
Have fun Wendi! We're the same, when we're not home for Thanksgiving we usually end up doing it ourselves the next week. How funny!!
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