It's been a while, but a holiday that is celebrated with family and food calls for a blog post of my family's Thanksgiving Dinner. Everyone had something to contribute this year, even though my dad and I usually handle most of the food. Here's a quick look at our menu:
Turkey ( of course)
Mashed potatoes with chives
Sourdough stuffing & Mom's traditional stuffing
Savory Stuffed Pumpkin with Gruyere & Bacon
Citrus Green Beans with pine nuts
Orange Coconut Crescent Rolls
Nantucket Cranberry Pie
Pecan Spice Cake with Maple Frosting
Sweet Stuffed Pumpkin with Apples & Golden Raisins
Needless to say we were stuffed! Actually, as of right now we haven't even touched the desserts. I'm sure I'll take a break while writing to sample some! :) The hit of the dinner was the pièce de résistance, David's Savory Stuffed Pumpkin. A few weeks back he heard about this French recipe on NPR one afternoon and thought it would be fun to try. I have a feeling that it might just become a new family tradition for Thanksgiving! So, let's start with the stuffed pumpkin!
Here's the link (I'm too lazy to type the whole recipe)
Stuffed Pumpkin
Hanna preparing the pumpkins
So YUMMY!!!
Hubby is proud of his pumpkins (and his kilt apron!)
My husband and sister, Hanna making their pumpkinsCitrus Green Beans w/ Pine nuts
Ingredients
- 1 lb green beans
- 1 shallot, sliced
- 1 Tbsp oil
- salt & pepper
- 1 tsp grated orange peel
- 1 Tbsp orange juice
- 3 Tbsp. pine nuts
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add green beans and cook for 2 minutes. Drain. In a large skillet, add oil and coat the bottom of the pan. Add shallot, beans, orange peel and juice. Stir to coat. Cook for 2-4 minutes or until desired done-ness of beans. Add toasted pine nuts as a garnish to beans.
Pecan Spice Cake w/ Maple Frosting
Ingredients
- Cake:
- Cooking spray
- 2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
- 9 ounces all-purpose flour (about 2 cups)
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- Dash of ground cloves
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 3 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1/3 cup chopped pecans, toasted
- Frosting:
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon butter
- Dash of salt
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons chopped pecans, toasted
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. To prepare cake, coat 2 (8-inch) round metal cake pans with cooking spray. Line bottoms of pans with wax paper; coat with cooking spray. Dust each pan with 1 teaspoon flour. Weigh or lightly spoon 9 ounces flour (about 2 cups) into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine 9 ounces flour, baking soda, and next 4 ingredients (through cloves), stirring well with a whisk.
3. Place 1 cup brown sugar and 1/2 cup butter in a large mixing bowl; beat with a mixer at medium-high speed until light and fluffy (about 3 minutes). Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in 1 teaspoon vanilla. Add flour mixture and buttermilk alternately to butter mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture and beating just until combined. Fold in 1/3 cup pecans. Divide batter evenly between prepared pans.
4. Bake at 350° for 24 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans 5 minutes on wire racks. Invert cake layers onto racks; cool completely. Discard wax paper.
5. To prepare frosting, place 1/2 cup brown sugar, heavy whipping cream, maple syrup, 1 tablespoon butter, and dash of salt in a heavy saucepan over medium-high heat; bring to a boil, stirring just until sugar dissolves. Cook 3 minutes, without stirring. Scrape brown sugar mixture into a bowl. Add powdered sugar; beat with a mixer at high speed 2 minutes or until slightly cooled and thick. Beat in 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Place 1 cake layer on a plate. Spread about 3/4 cup frosting evenly over 1 layer; top with second layer. Spread remaining frosting over sides and top of cake; sprinkle with 2 tablespoons pecans. Let the cake stand until frosting sets.
As you can see, we focused more on the food than the table decorations. We tend to decorate with the food. :) Maybe next year we'll take some pointers from our friend Mindy. Check out her Interior Design blog: Design Inspiration. Mindy definitely has talent and is a pretty loyal follower of my blog. I do food, she does design...maybe we could start a business? :)
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