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LibConnect: Thanksgiving Recipes

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Thanksgiving Recipe Swap🦃🧺🌽🍽️🥧

Share your favorite Thanksgiving recipes below!

Recipes

I had these the other day, and I think they would make a great Thanksgiving day breakfast!

Pumpkin Spice Scones

Scones:

  • 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

  • 3/4 cup white sugar

  • 1 tablespoon baking powder

  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

  • 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

  • 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

  • 3 tablespoons cold unsalted butter

  • 3 tablespoons shortening

  • 3/4 cup canned pumpkin

  • 1 large egg

  • 2 tablespoons half-and-half

Glaze:

  • 2 cup confectioners' sugar

  • 4 tablespoons milk

  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (Optional)

  • 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (Optional)

 

  1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Grease a baking sheet.

  2. Mix flour, white sugar, baking powder, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, cloves, and ginger together in a large bowl. Cut in butter and shortening using a pastry cutter or 2 knives until mixture is crumbly.

  3. Mix pumpkin, egg, and half-and-half together in a separate bowl. Stir into flour mixture until just combined. Turn dough onto a floured work surface and shape into a 1/2-inch-thick square. Cut dough into pizza-shaped wedges and arrange on the prepared baking sheet.

  4. Bake in the preheated oven until lightly browned, 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer scones to a wire rack to cool.

  5. Whisk confectioners' sugar, milk, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice together in a bowl. Drizzle over scones. Let set.

Awesome and Easy Creamy Corn Casserole

  • 1 (15 ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained

  • 1 (14.75 ounce) can creamed corn

  • 1 (8.5 ounce) package dry cornbread mix

  • 1 cup sour cream

  • 1/2 cup butter, melted

  • 2 large eggs, beaten

Directions

  • Gather all ingredients and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x9-inch baking dish.

  • Stir whole and creamed corn, cornbread mix, sour cream, melted butter, and eggs together in a medium bowl until well combined.

  • Spoon mixture into the prepared dish.

  • Bake in the preheated oven until the top is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 45 minutes.

Pecan Pie Bars - My mom makes something similar - they are so good. 

  • 3 cups all-purpose flour

  • ½ cup white sugar

  • ½ teaspoon salt

  • 1 cup butter

  • 1 ½ cups light corn syrup

  • 1 ½ cups white sugar

  • 4 large eggs

  • 3 tablespoons butter, melted

  • 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

  • 2 ½ cups chopped pecans

Directions

  1. Gather the ingredients. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease or line a 10x15-inch jellyroll pan with parchment paper.

  2. Combine flour, 1/2 cup sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Cut in 1 cup of butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle mixture evenly over the prepared pan and press in firmly to make a crust. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes.

  3. Meanwhile, mix corn syrup, 1 ½ cups sugar, eggs, 3 tablespoons melted butter, and vanilla together in a large bowl until smooth. Stir in chopped pecans; spread filling evenly over hot crust immediately after removing from the oven.

  4. Bake in the preheated oven until filling is set, about 25 minutes. Allow to cool completely in the pan on a wire rack before slicing into bars.

Totsy's Dressing

This was my mom's recipe, and I love it! It's super-moist. I think she got the original recipe out of a Southern Living magazine, but she made her own tweaks. As you can see, not everything is measured exactly, so you kind of have to guess. I tried to get her to tell me exacts once, but she said, "Well, I don't know how much I use--just a little of this, a little of that." And, yes, my mother's name was Totsy, lol!

Ingredients:

1 pan of cornbread, crumbed up (3 c. cornmeal, 2 eggs, 2 tsp. baking powder, salt, milk, 1/4 c. oil @ 350 degrees for 30 minutes)

Chopped onion (saute and add to breads, or add in cornbread when baking)

4 pieces loaf bread, torn up

1 1/2 tbsp. sage

1 can chicken broth

3 cans cream of chicken soup

1/2 c. butter

Directions:

Combine broth, butter, and soup in large bowl--heat in microwave until butter is melted. Add breads, sage, and mix. Pour into 9x13 casserole dish and bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.

Cranberry-Jello Salad

The grandmother of one of my middle school students in NC made this for a teacher appreciation luncheon years ago, and it's wonderful! I made sure to get the recipe from her. It is an excellent complement to turkey and dressing.

Ingredients:

2 small boxes of jello (cherry & cranberry work well, but any red jello will do)

1 tall can crushed pineapple

1 can whole berry cranberry sauce

1 cup nuts (either pecans or walnuts are fine)

Directions:

Dissolve jello in one cup hot water, add remaining ingredients, and stir all well. Chill and enjoy.

 

Indian Pudding

I haven't actually made this, but it's a vintage recipe for a dessert that was popular in America during colonial times. I heard about it on "Tasting History," and it sounds interesting! I think I'm going to make it for Thanksgiving this year.

Ingredients:

1 quart plus 1/2 cup (1 L plus 120 ml) milk, divided

1/2 cup (80 g) cornmeal

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup (180 g) molasses

1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger or cinnamon

Lightly whipped cream, for serving

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 300°F (150°C). Butter the bottom and sides of a 9x9 inch (23x23 cm) baking dish.
  2. Scald 1 quart (1 L) of the milk by heating it in a saucepan or double boiler to 180°F (82°C), or until it just starts to have little bubbles, stirring frequently so that the milk doesn’t burn or form a skin on top.
  3. While the milk heats, whisk the cornmeal and salt together in a bowl.
  4. Once the milk hits 180°F (82°C) or starts to have little bubbles, reduce the heat to low and stir in the cornmeal and salt. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring constantly.
  5. Stir in the molasses and cook and stir for another 2 minutes.
  6. Stir in the ginger or cinnamon. If you’re using ginger, it’s best to sift it in so there are no clumps. Cook and stir for another minute or so, or until everything is nice and smooth.
  7. Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish. Pour in the remaining 1/2 cup (120 ml) cold milk, and don’t stir it in.
  8. Bake for 3 to 4 hours, then take it out of the oven and let it cool completely. Mine had a kind of film form on top, and I’m not entirely sure if this is as intended.
  9. Once the pudding has cooled and firmed up a bit, scoop it into serving dishes, top with whipped cream, and serve it forth.

I think this is the right recipe. I could not find the magazine that I got it from. I made this for a couple Thanksgivings and people seemed to like it. Though, I could not find shallots anywhere. From the same magazine there was also a recipe for baked cranberries, apples, and grapes? That was super easy to make and there were overlapping ingredients. I'll share that if I find it.

Apple-Cranberry Stuffing

  • 20 ounces cubed crusty whole-wheat bread

  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

  • 1 ½ cups diced celery

  • 1 ½ cups diced shallots

  • 2 cups diced apple

  • 2 cloves garlic, minced

  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary

  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage

  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter 

  • 2 cups low-sodium no-chicken or chicken broth

  • 1 cup dried cranberries

  • ½ cup chopped walnuts

  • 1 teaspoon salt

  • ½ teaspoon ground pepper

 
Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 275°F. Spread bread on a large baking sheet. Bake until dry to the touch, about 30 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl.

  2. Increase oven temperature to 350°F. Coat a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.

  3. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add celery and shallots; cook, stirring often, until just starting to brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring often, until tender, 3 to 5 minutes more. Add apple and garlic; cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Add rosemary and sage; cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Scrape the mixture on top of the bread. Melt butter in the pan, scraping up any browned bits, then scrape onto the bread. Add broth, cranberries, walnuts, salt and pepper to the bread mixture and stir to combine. Transfer to the prepared baking dish and press with the back of a large spoon into an even layer. Coat one side of a piece of foil with cooking spray and cover the stuffing, sprayed-side down.

  4. Bake the stuffing for 30 minutes. Uncover and continue baking until the top is golden brown, 20 to 30 minutes more.

 
Tips

To make ahead: Refrigerate stuffing (Steps 1-3) for up to 1 day. Let stand at room temperature while the oven preheats before baking.

Originally appeared: EatingWell Magazine, November 2020

This year I am thankful for...just having my family around. We had our fair share of health scares. 

Sweet Potato Casserole

4 1/2 cups cooked and mashed sweet potatoes

1/2 cup butter, melted

1/3 cup milk

1 cup white sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla

2 eggs, beaten

1 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup flour

1/3 cup butter

1 cup chopped pecans

 

Preheat oven to 350. Grease 9x13 baking dish. 

In a large bowl, mix together mashed sweet potatoes, 1/2 cup melted butter, milk, sugar, vanilla and eggs. Spread sweet potato mixture into the baking dish. In a small bowl, mix together brown sugar and flour. Cut in 1/3 cup butter until mixture is crumbly, and then stir in pecans. Sprinkle pecan mixture over the sweet potatoes. 

Bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown.