Thanksgiving menu & recipes

This is the start of the Thanksgiving week! I'm going to share our menu and recipes.



*Turkey with Custer's Turkey Rub
Mashed potatoes
Gravy
Squash
Stuffing
*Whole wheat rolls
*Green Bean casserole
*Pea salad OR Seven layer salad (kids' choice)
*Pumpkin pie
*Cranberry swirl cheesecake pie
*Upside down apple gingerbread cake

* - recipes are given



Turkey with Custer's Turkey Rub: this recipe comes from www.recipezaar.com, courtesy of Chef Shadows

• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 2 teaspoons seasoning salt
• 1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon basil
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger (optional)
  

Mix all ingredients together and rub UNDER and ON the turkey's skin. Bake as desired. I prefer to use an oven baking bag to keep the turkey moist.



Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls

• 1 1/2 c. whole wheat flour
• 1/4 c. plus 2 Tbsp. sugar
• 2 1/4 tsp (1 pkt) active dry yeast
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/2 c. milk
• 1/2 c. water
• 1/4 c. butter or margarine
• 1 egg
• 2 to 2 1/4 c. all purpose flour

In a mixing bowl combine whole wheat flour, sugar, yeast and salt. In a saucepan, heat milk, water and butter to 120 - 130 degrees (very warm). Add to flour mixture. Beat in egg. Beat on low speed for 1 minute, then 1 minute on medium speed. Gradually stir in enough all purpose flour to form a soft dough. Turn onto a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 6 - 8 minutes. (Sorry, I prefer to let my bread machine or KitchenAid do all the mixing & kneading for me) Place in a greased bowl and let rise, covered, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours until doubled. Punch down, shape into 9 to 12 balls and place in greased 9 inch square pan. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 45 to 60 minutes. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes. If desired, cover the rolls with foil during the last 5 minutes to prevent extra browning. Remove from oven and pan, let cool on wire rack.



Green Bean Casserole - from the French's French Fried Onions can

• 4 cups (32 oz.) regular cut green beans, cooked
• 1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup
• 3/4 c. milk
• 1/8 tsp. black pepper
• 1 2.8 oz. can french fried onions, divided

In 1 1/2 qt. casserole dish mix soup, milk, pepper and 2/3 c. (1/2 can) french fried onions. Stir in beans. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. Top with rest of french fried onions and bake an additional 5 minutes.



Pea Salad

• 1 16 oz. pkg frozen peas, thawed
  
• 1 cup Miracle Whip or mayonnaise
• 1 small white or red onion, diced
• 1 cup finely shredded Cheddar cheese
• 1/4 lb. bacon, cooked and crumbled
• Salt and pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients except veggies in a bowl. Stir in veggies. Store in refrigerator.



Seven Layer Salad

The layer salad is made up of a layer of shredded/torn lettuce leaves (about 1/2 to 3/4 head of lettuce), 2 stalks of celery diced, tablespoon of minced dried onion, 16 oz. bag frozen peas (thawed), layer of thinned mayonnaise or Miracle whip (thinned with milk to make spreading easy), 8 oz. shredded cheddar, bacon bits, sunflower seeds.



Pumpkin Pie

• 3 slightly beaten eggs
• 1/4 c. brown sugar
• 1/2 c. white sugar
• 2 to 3 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 1/2 c. cooked or canned pumpkin
• 1 c. evaporated milk

Mix the ingredients together in order given. Pour into 9 inch unbaked pie shell and bake in 400 degree oven 45 to 50 minutes or until set.



Cranberry Swirl Cheesecake Pie (from All You magazine, November 20, 2009 edition)

• 1 9 inch graham cracker pie crust
• 12 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
• 2/3 c. sugar
• 1 large egg plus yolk from one large egg, at room temperature
• 6 Tbsp. sour cream, at room temperature
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2 c. whole berry cranberry sauce, pureed and strained (about 5 Tbsp. after straining)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat cream cheese and sugar until fluffy. Add egg and yolk and beat until incorporated. Stir in sour cream and vanilla. Scrape down sides of bowl and stir until combined. Scrape half of filling into prepared crust. Dollop half of cranberry puree on top of filling. Top with remaining filling and then remaining puree. Use a knife to swirl puree through filling, creating a marbled design, taking care not to drab crumbs from the crust into filling. Place pie on baking sheet and bake until set around the edges but still slightly jiggly in center, about 35 minutes. Transfer to rack to cool completely, then loosely cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.



Upside Down Apple Gingerbread Cake (another one taken from the All You magazine listed above)

• 8 Tbsp. butter or margarine, divided
• 3 peeled, cored & thickly sliced Golden Delicious apples
• 2 Tbsp. packed brown sugar
• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 3/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 tsp. ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp. ground cloves
• 1/3 c. sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 c. molasses
• 1 1/2 c. hot water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8 inch round cake pan.
In a skillet over medium heat, melt 2 Tbsp. butter or margarine. Add apple slices and sprinkle with brown sugar. Saute' 5 minutes until apples are softened. Pour liquid into cake pan and arrange apple slices in a single layer on top of the liquid.
Beat remaining 6 Tbsp. of butter or margarine with sugar until fluffy. Beat in egg and molasses. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture and 1/2 c. hot water alternately until smooth, repeat twice. Pour batter into pan; spread evenly over apples. Bake for about 45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean. Let cool on a rack for about 10 minutes. Run a knife around edge of pan to loosen the cake, then invert onto a serving plate. Let cool to room temperature before serving.

NOTE: I have not made this yet and the directions from All You magazine seemed a bit vague about the amount of water. I did look through my other cookbooks and the amount of liquid seems correct, but I'm making no claims until I make this one myself.

2nd NOTE: This turned out okay in looks (some of the apples are buried in the cake instead of being on top) but SMELLED and TASTES GREAT!! I think I forgot some of the water but it still turned out well.