Where good food and great ideas are always found
Here’s the Thanksgiving Menu planner or ‘cheat sheet’ that you’ll need for your meal. This is everything, a shopping list and a recipe guide. One stop shop, it couldn’t be easier than this!!!
Click here to print Thanksgiving Helper ‘cheat sheet’
Don’t forget to print you coupon for a Butterball Turkey
The Thanksgiving table needs to be elegant, but simple. This tablescape is easy to do and very affordable. The centerpiece is made from acorns that I picked up from my yard. The mason jars are full of herbs from my garden. Simple and gorgeous.
These are quart sized mason jars. All I did with them is wrap a ribbon around the middle and hot glue it to the jar. I choose a wired ribbon so it stays where I want it. I wanted a little bit of shimmer to it so it matches the chargers.
This was the easiest centerpiece imaginable. I took a plain cylinder with a separate candle holder on top. I filled the base with acorns. Yes, acorns that I gathered from my yard. I then put the cylinder on a platter and filled the bottom with more acorns. The final touch was a band of ribbon where the candle holder ends inside the cylinder. I did add the bows on each side, but you can leave them off if you prefer. It looks really nice without them.
This is a votive candle holder that I glued a piece of open wire ribbon around the top. So simple, but look how nice it looks. The light from the candle shimmers through.
This is a small terra cotta flower pot that I spray painted with gold glitter paint. I use this for a votive candle and also a taper candle. Either way it looks great on the table. It’s just the right size to put one at each place setting.
I used a tapestry table runner that has all earthy colors. It ties together the off white, brown, gold and green to give the table a. It really brings everything together.
The tablecloth is a piece of fabric that I picked up at my local Walmart for $2.00 per yard. I trimmed the edges with pinking sheers so it wouldn’t fray. (You can pick the pinking sheers up in the sewing department)
Here is all the Thanksgiving help you’ll need. A Thanksgiving ‘Cheat Sheet’. All the recipes for your meal and pies for dessert. Just print it, make out your shopping list and you’re done.
The Mashed Sweet Potatoes are delicious. They are sweet, but not to sweet. If you are used to making the traditional sweet potatoes with mini marshmallows on top, this will be a welcome change.
Uncle Paul’s Broccoli Casserole is a staple in my family. There isn’t a holiday that we don’t have this dish. This can be made ahead of time and kept in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. There are a lot of broccoli casserole recipes on the internet that are made with soup. This one is far better. All good ingredients make this a fantastic addition to any meal.
This recipe for mashed potatoes is so good. Mashed potatoes are a big part of the Thanksgiving meal. Like everyone else, I have been making them for years, but they were never perfect. Sometimes they were too sticky, other times to runny. Once I started adding the cream cheese along with the butter and milk, it was a real winner. These potatoes come out perfect every time. Smooth and silky….yum!!
Making the gravy this way is a lifesaver on Thanksgiving. You can make this ahead of time and just warm it up while you are carving the turkey. Starting with the roux makes all the difference in the world. Once you master this, you’ll want to have fresh gravy to go with all your meat dishes. You may want to double or triple this recipe. It makes 2 cups of gravy.
Sausage stuffing is my favorite. I like cornbread stuffing and stuffing with nuts and fruit, but the sausage stuffing is my go-to whenever I am serving guests. I like to use Italian sausage instead of the sausage roll so I can manage the amount of spiciness in the dish. The fresh bread cubes are delicious. The trick for this stuffing is to make sure you moisten the bread cubes enough before you bake it. Even if you think they are moist enough, add a little more broth to make it delicious.
As you can see, this Turkey recipe is not for brining the turkey. There are so many ways to prepare the turkey these days. Brine, Bake and Fry. I don’t brine the turkey, however I have fried one and it comes out great. This recipe is for a basic baked turkey. The one thing that you must do with this turkey is baste it. Every 30-45 minutes. Your turkey will be moist and delicious. Also, don’t forget to let it rest before you carve it.
Now for dessert. This apple pie is soooo good. The crust is flaky and light and the filling has just the right amount of sweetness. But best of all, it’s easy to make. I always recommend mixing up the apples. Use some sweet and some tart. Make this pie a few days ahead of time and put it in the oven to warm while you are eating your Thanksgiving dinner.
Both of these pie recipes are from my Grandmother. She was an awesome cook. This pumpkin pie is crustless. It takes approximately 10 minutes to mix everything together. After you make this pumpkin pie, you will never buy a store bought one again. Economical, easy and irresistible!!
Print Thanksgiving Cheat Sheet
Who doesn’t love a good Halloween spider. This one is easy to make and adorable. They look great on my Halloween table. They also make great toys for the kids to play with.
My Grandchildren and I were at the beach and picked up a bunch of large white rocks. I had something else in mind when I was collecting them, but this worked out perfectly.
I made pretty simple spiders. You could get much more elaborate with these and paint the spider’s body, but I preferred to just keep them black.
Here’s how I made them:
Here’s what you will need. Rocks, black paint, eyes, pipe cleaners and glue. I thought I was going to use the hot glue gun, but it wouldn’t stick to the rocks.
This is the glue that I used to adhere the pipe cleaners to the rocks. I don’t recommend letting children use this glue. It is very strong and you have to be careful that it doesn’t get on everything. I also used it to glue the eyes on the front of the spider.
I painted the rocks black. I only painted the top and sides. I left the bottom white. I didn’t want to take the chance of having black paint get on my table.
After I glued the pipe cleaners to the rocks, I pressed a piece of paper over the glue so there wouldn’t be a chance of glue getting on my table or anywhere else.
The only thing left to do was put the eyes on and shape the legs, and there you have it. A quick, inexpensive spider. The kids love these things. They are big enough that they can take them outside, or just play on the floor inside.
You could also use them as place cards for your party. Paint your guest’s name on the body of the spider so they can take them home. What a great party favor!!
This is the perfect meal for ‘Meatless Mondays’. It is easy to prepare and packs a whopping 12 grams of protein for one cup of chickpeas. Have it tonight with a slice of crusty Italian bread and a glass of your favorite white wine. You will be satisfied and you won’t miss the meat at all.
Ingredients
1 Can Chick Peas – 15 oz
1 Lb Pasta
2 TBSP Olive Oil
½ Cup Onion, chopped
2 Cloves Garlic, minced
½ Cup White Wine
½ Cup Chicken Stock
¼ Cup Fresh Parsley, chopped
½ Cup Parmesan Cheese, plus more for the table
Salt
pepper
Instructions
Heat olive oil in a large sauté pan. Add the onions, cook on medium heat for 2 minutes. Add the garlic to the pan and cook 1 minute. Cook just until the garlic becomes fragrant. Drain and rinse the chickpeas. Add them to the pan and cook for 1 minute, stirring occasionally.
Add the wine and stock to the sauté pan and bring to a boil.
Add salt and pepper. Simmer for 3 minutes.
In a large stockpot, cook the pasta according to the manufacturers directions. Salt the water with 1 tablespoon of salt. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water.
When the pasta is al-dente, drain and add the pasta to the sauté pan with the chickpeas. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water.
Gently stir the pasta together with the chickpeas. Add the parsley and ½ of the pasta water. Continue cooking for 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Remove from the heat and add the Parmesan cheese. If the past is dry, add the additional ½ cup of hot pasta water and gently mix.
Serve immediately with extra Parmesan cheese and black pepper.
Print recipe here: chickpeas-and-macaroni