Tag Archives | Thanksgiving Recipes

Homemade Cranberry Sauce- Day 6: Toni’s 12 Days of Thanksgiving

By on November 17, 2011 in Survival Guide for Busy Moms

Homemade Cranberry Sauce

Homemade cranberry sauce is probably the easiest recipe to make on your Thanksgiving menu, so don’t be tempted to purchase the canned version!  It’s Day 6 of Toni’s 12 Days of Thanksgiving and the perfect time to make Toni’s Perfect Cranberry Sauce- watch the video below for a cooking demonstration of this simple recipe.

Homemade cranberry sauce can be made and stored well in advance without having to freeze because you’re essentially making a sugared jelly out of the fresh cranberries.  This recipe for cranberry sauce has never let me down which is why I call it “perfect”.

Cranberry sauce recipe

Toni’s Perfect Cranberry Sauce

 

Toni’s Perfect Cranberry Sauce

Ingredients:

This sauce recipe will serve between 6-8 people, so double or triple the recipe if you’re cooking for more people.

  1.  3 cups cranberries (1 12oz. bag)
  2.  1 cup orange juice
  3.  1 cup agave nectar or 1 cup sugar
  4.  Cinnamon sticks- 2

 Directions:

  1.  Combine all ingredients in saucepan; cook over medium heat stirring constantly
  2.  Be amazed at how beautiful the cranberries look when they soften and begin to pop
  3.  Once cranberries are completely softened and have popped (about 10-12 minutes), remove from heat, cool
  4. Remove cinnamon sticks before serving or stick them up in the sauce for decoration


 

cranberrysauce 650x433 Tonis Perfect Cranberry Sauce

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Make-Ahead Mushroom Shallot Sauce: Day 5 Toni’s 12 Days of Thanksgiving

By on November 16, 2011 in Survival Guide for Busy Moms

Making Delicious Memories This Thanksgiving

It’s Day 5 of Toni’s 12 Days of Thanksgiving and the perfect time to make a mushroom sauce to pour over steamed green beans on Thanksgiving Day.  This Thanksgiving green bean recipe can be made well in advance and stored in the freezer.

Thanksgiving green bean recipe

Mushroom White-Wine Shallot Sauce Recipe (wine is optional)

 Ingredients for Mushroom White Wine Sauce: (double this recipe for a large group)

  • Butter-1/2 cup (1 stick or 8 tbspns)
  • Sliced mushrooms- 1 bag
  • Shallots- 2, peeled and minced
  • Flour- 3 tbspns
  • White wine, like cooking wine or a Chardonnay like Mirassou Chardonnay
  • Chicken broth- 1 cup
  • Heavy cream- 1 cup

Directions:

  1. Melt butter in skillet over medium-high heat
  2. Add shallots and mushrooms; saute until tender, approximately 3 minutes
  3. Add flour and saute for 1 more minute
  4. Add wine and stir until flour is dissolved (or skip if not using wine)
  5. Add broth and cream; bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for a few minutes

Store in airtight container until Thanksgiving Day to pour over steamed fresh green beans.

Thanksgiving Day

For fresh steamed green beans, they’re making it really easy for us these days.  I use fresh ready-to-steam green beans that are found in the produce section that are washed and ready to steam in the bag in the microwave.  Also, Bird’s Eye Steamfresh frozen green beans are easy to pull out of the freezer and cook in the microwave.

Or you can buy fresh green beans in bulk from the produce section to wash and trim yourself.

Warm the Mushroom White-Wine Shallot Sauce in the microwave or a slow-cooker to keep warm for serving.

Thanksgiving Green Bean Casserole: Classic or Contemporary?

Many people prefer the classic Green Bean Casserole.  Here is a post I wrote last year about classic versus contemporary green bean recipes for Thanksgiving.

greenbean1 650x433 Steamed Green Beans with Mushroom White Wine Shallot Sauce (wine optional)Classic Green Bean Casserole for Thanksgiving
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Cranberry Ice Ring- Day 4: Toni’s 12 Days of Thanksgiving

By on November 15, 2011 in Survival Guide for Busy Moms

Making Delicious Memories This Thanksgiving

It’s Day 4 of Toni’s 12 Days of Thanksgiving and it’s the perfect time to freeze our Cranberry Ice Ring for our Sparkling-Spiced Cranberry Punch.

Toni’s Freeze-Ahead Cranberry Ice Ring for Sparkling-Spiced Cranberry Punch

To make the ring, I use a plastic chip-and-dip server because it has the hole in the middle, like a bundt cake pan.  But you’ll want to make sure your ice ring will fit into your punch bowl.  So, any type of mold will do, like a simple round plastic storage bowl.

Ingredients:

  1. Frozen cranberry juice cocktail- 1 canister, thawed (you can also use bottled cranberry juice)
  2. Cranberries, fresh- 1 cup
  3. Water

Directions:

  1. Pour thawed juice into mold; add water to about an inch below top; mix well
  2. Add cranberries to float on top
  3. Freeze
cranberrypunch41 650x433 Sparkling Spiced Cranberry Punch with Cranberry Ice Ring

Thanksgiving Day

Take ice ring out of freezer right when guest begin to arrive and place in your punch bowl.

 Black Friday

Don’t forget about our Black Friday special for The Organized Cook Weekly Meal Plan System.  The biggest discount-ever- for this monthly subscription that brings you the most recent meal plans straight to your inbox each week is 70% off for one day only!  Order now.

blackfriday250 Kids Thanksgiving Activities

Suggested Punch Bowls

51yeunbFPjL. SL500 AA300 Sparkling Spiced Cranberry Punch with Cranberry Ice Ring

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Have Your Side Dish Make An Entrance- Escalloped Carrots

By on November 14, 2011 in Survival Guide for Busy Moms

Easy Thanksgiving Side Dish

My Thanksgiving planning guide “Toni’s 12 Days of Thanksgiving” centers around cooking Thanksgiving Dinner for a large group.  But what if you just need to make a side dish?  Do you take the traditional green bean casserole, or sweet potato pie?  Here’s a side dish that’s easy, affordable and delicious.

Escalloped Carrots

Ingredients:

  1. 5-6 large carrots, sliced into 1/2 inch slices
  2. 4 cups seasoned breadcrumbs

    carrots, breadcrumbs, onion, cheese, milk, butter & salt

  3. onion- 1, minced
  4. shredded cheddar cheese- 2 cups
  5. milk- 2 cups
  6. Butter

Directions:

  1. Heat oven to 375 degrees F
  2. Place carrots, breadcrumbs and onion in alternate layers in a buttered casserole dish.
  3. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
  4. Cover with cheese.
  5. Pour milk over the top.
  6. Bake until bubbly and brown, and carrots are tender approximately 1 hour.
easy thanksgiving side dish

melt butter in bottom of casserole baking dish

easy thanksgiving side dish

dice carrots

easy thanksgiving side dish

layer carrots

easy thanksgiving side dish

and breadcrumbs

easy thanksgiving side dish

after layering onion, pour cheese over the top

easy thanksgiving side dish

and repeat

easy thanksgiving side dish

pour hot milk over the top

 

easy thanksgiving side dish

bake at 375 degrees for about an hour, until bubbly hot, tender and brown

 

easy thanksgiving side dish

in case you were wondering where I got the super groovy measuring cups- Anthropology!

 

Toni’s 12 Days of Thanksgiving

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Thanksgiving menu planning

 

 

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