A round up of my favorite Thanksgiving menu items, including recipes for appetizers, turkey, potatoes, rolls, sweet potatoes, veggies, and dessert.
Eric is running a freaking marathon in a couple weeks. I canโt even talk about it without the freak part. Partly to emphasize how utterly impressed I am, and partly to remind him that heโs a total freak.
He just waltzes around dropping pounds all over the place, while eating all my hand pies like itโs no big deal. Heโs down to the same weight he was when we got married, all on a steady diet of peppermint oreo milkshakes. (Iโm at the same weight too, technically. But babies do CRAZY THINGS to your body so numbers donโt apply here. All you moms know what Iโm talking about. ITโS NOT THE SAME.)
Which reminds me of yesterday,ย when I was in a stall in the bathroom at church andย heard a friend of mine (who is in her 60s) step into the next stall over. It wasย silent for a moment until she said, โEnjoy your youth Karen. Things just get weird when youโre old.โ
Comments like this are exactly why I love old people.
Well, Iโm certainly going to be enjoying Thanksgiving next week. (Thatโs right people: NEXT WEEK.) Bring on the carbs. I put together a round up of some recipes you might want to add to your menu next week, including the stuff Iโve been posting the last few weeks. Shall we start with appetizers? (Click on the link before the photo, or the photo itself. It will open in a new tab.)
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Bacon Ricotta Crostini: Easiest make-ahead appetizer ever!
Butternut Squash, Cranberry, & Goat Cheese Crostini:
Sage-Butter Roasted Turkey โ>> (a great turkey for beginners/poultry wusses (like me):
Another great recipe I have made is this Apple Cider Brined Turkey. It calls for flipping the turkey partway through cooking, which is a pain, but results in a deliciously moist breast.
Gruyere-Crisped Potatoes Au-Gratinย โ>> make ahead! Win:
Chipotle Sweet Potatoes with Bacon:
Samoan Coconut Rolls (Pani Popo) โ>> I refuse to recommend any other rolls for Thanksgiving. These are the best thing ever:
Balsamic-Browned Butter Asparagus.ย SO SO GOOD you guys:
Lemon Green Beans with Feta and Fried Pecans:
Sauteed Asparagus and Cherry Tomatoes: (one of the top-visited recipes on The Food Charlatan)
Broccoli with Feta and Fried Almonds:
Pistachio Pear Cucumber Salad โ>> Would be a fun way to change up your sides. I love this salad:
Creamy Strawberry Banana Jello. Donโt turn up your nose. You know you love jello.
No-Bake Maple Cheesecake with Roasted Pears:
Cranberry Dulce de Leche Hand Pies:
Cinnamon-Cardamom Cake with Maple Pecan Frosting:
Cranberry Cake with Warm Vanilla Butter Sauce:
Hahaha omg what did you say after your friend said that? Did you have a response or was it just awkward stall silence?
These are all so amazing I donโt know how Iโd pick one. Iโve got a great idea, Iโll just come to your place for Thanksgiving! What time are we eating? ;-)
I busted up laughing of course!! And she laughed with me. We were those awkward people cracking up in the bathroom, lol. Oh and PS you are TOTALLY invited for Thanksgiving! :)
Great line up! Iโm so ready for Thanksgiving now.
You take amazing pictures Karen!
Thanks so much Melanie! Youโre sweet :) Happy T-day!
haha omg your friend โ that comment totally cracked me up!
And Iโm with you โ I will totally be enjoying thanksgiving! What a great round-up!
Haha! Iโm glad other people think itโs funny and not just me. Sometimes you just have to be there, you know? Iโm happy this translated well. I was DYING.
THOSE MASHED POTATOES. Iโm still not recovered from the last time you posted them! I wish I was doing Thanksgiving this year but weโre doing a backpacking trip instead. Send me your leftovers? :)
Backpacking!! So fun! Iโm jealous I havenโt been in years. Where are you headed?
Iโd love to have each and every one of these recipes on my menu. Thatโs acceptable, right?
YES! Totally acceptable :)
I am so impressed he is doing a FULL marathon! Iโm doing a 5K on Thanksgiving, and I was thinking I was a superstar. But a full marathon? That is crazy! Good for Eric! And that ladies comment in the bathroom is so funny! And so true. Great recipe roundup! Bring on the carbs!
Thatโs awesome you are doing a 5K Natalie! Fat lot more than Iโm doing!! Iโm so impressed with Eric. He has been training like crazy. He ran 19 miles on Saturday. Like who DOES that??
What a great round up. And your husband needs to run so he can eat more of your food. Also, pretty funny bathroom story.
I need to run so that I can eat more of my food too. Haha! Thanks Peter!
HOW could I have forgotten about that broccoli salad? That was gone SO fast the last time I made it. And itโs a way better choice for a green Thanksgiving side than the brussels sprouts hash we made last year. Yes, I said hashโฆand brussels sproutsโฆin the same sentence. Nope. Never again.
hahahaha brussels sprouts in any sentence is already a stretchโฆ :)
Thank you for this round-up! Loving these recipes! I missed the crostini postsโฆthey look awesome!
Thanks Annie! Love make ahead appetizers like those!
Oh my gawd, Karen! What a line-up!!! love everything here . . this is too much deliciousness on one page! :P Iโve got to try the brown butter cranberry tart! Love that line from your 60 year old friend. . amen to that. . youโre right. I love old people. Telling it like it is. Gotta love that.
Thanks Alice! I definitely hope Iโm still tellin it like it is when Iโm in my 60s lolโฆHappy Thanksgiving friend!
Great round-up Karen. Iโm definitely making your bacon-ricotta crostinis for an appetizer! Yeah!
They are so good Liz!! Hope you love them!!
Karen! Old people?! 60โs!? Oh that hurts! LOLโฆโฆ.but the truth usually does. I am enjoying your blog and the recipes. Keep doing what you are doing, we are all out here young and โoldโ alike benefitting from your work! Thanks for all your hard worK.
Chris
HA! I knew I would get flack for that, Chris, but I was expecting it from my mom and mother-in-law. If you are getting discounts at Denneyโs, then the law saysโฆ :) Iโm so glad you are enjoying the blog, Chris, thanks for commenting today. You made me smile!
Wait. Is Eric running the Sacramento marathon?!?! SO is Lucas!!! Want to run around and cheer with me?!?!
Also โ I want to sit and eat a whole pan of those gruyere-crisped potatoes au-gratin while we watch them run. K?
Wait really? Why is he coming here to run? YES LETโS HANG!