Thanksgiving Sides

Ahhhh, Thanksgiving. My favorite holiday of the year. Now, my favorite holiday meal of the year is still hands-down the Christmas Eve Seven Fish dinner…more on that in a few weeks. But when you’re talking holidays, Bird Day is the tops for me. I love everything about it. The smells, the colors, the crisp fall air, the leaves on the ground. Everything about it screams tradition, comfort and nostalgia. Just the smell of turkey brings me back to when I was a kid, when my brother and I would help my mom make the apple pies. We would start the morning by watching the parade on tv, followed by hours of the WOR Holiday King Kong movie festival (monsters were always more important to me than football when I was little). Then came the food. The glorious food! Now that I have a family of my own, we have our own traditions that we look forward to. And they still involve lots of eating!

Obviously, the main event of the day is the turkey. These days there are countless ways to prepare the main course. My friend John does both a traditional bird in the oven, and another one on the grill. My friend Tony, on the other hand, has turned deep-frying into an art form. So I won’t even begin to suggest turkey tips. Now, if you grew up in an Italian household, chances are that your Thanksgiving main course consisted of a double bill – a pasta course, followed up to a few hours later by the turkey.

So, what I’ve decided to do was offer you some side dishes that go over well with our family dinner. The first, Cranberry Compote, was an Emeril recipe that I came across a few years back. The second, Baked Butternut Squash with Apples, was one that I just recently found. Enjoy, and have a very Happy Thanksgiving!

FRESH CRANBERRY COMPOTE

6 ounces fresh cranberries, rinsed and picked over
1 tablespoon orange zest
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup water
Pinch of salt
Pinch of ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 cup fresh orange juice

In a non reactive, non-stick saucepan, over medium, combine the cranberries, zest, 1/2 cup sugar, water, salt, and cinnamon. Bring the mixture to a boil and cook for 10 minutes. Dissolve cornstarch in the orange juice. Add the mixture to the cranberries and stir to blend. Simmer another 15 minutes until the mixture is thick. Remove from the heat and cool completely. Cover and refrigerate until chilled.

BAKED BUTTERNUT SQUASH WITH APPLES

2 tblspn butter
1/2 tspn ground cinnamon
1/4 tspn ground nutmeg
1-1/2 lb butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 to 3 large Granny Smith apples, cored, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 tblspn balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup chopped pecans,toasted

Heat oven to 375ºF. Place butter in 13×9-inch glass baking dish; heat in oven 5 to 7 minutes or until melted.
Stir cinnamon and nutmeg into melted butter. Add squash; toss to coat. Cover with foil; bake 20 minutes. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, mix apples, syrup and vinegar.
Pour apple mixture over squash. Cover; bake 10 minutes. Stir; bake 5 to 10 minutes longer or until squash is tender. Stir before serving and sprinkle with pecans.

Harvest Ratatouille for Two

I came across this recipe a few years back, and it has since become a regular in the weekend rotation. It’s a fun, simple and healthy meal. There is a good bit of chopping prep involved, so it’s also one of the few times when I get to use the little pre-measured ingredient dishes that they use on all of the cooking shows. BAMMM!!!!!!

Be sure to serve with plenty of crusty bread. You can also serve it over hot cooked linguine. Goes well with a nice bottle of Pinot Grigio.

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small red or green bell pepper, coarsely chopped
½ cup chopped onion
1 garlic clove, minced
1-1/2 cups diced eggplant
1 cup diced zucchini
1 cup diced yellow summer squash
1 medium tomato, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh Italian Parsley
1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano
1 teaspoon chopped fresh dill weed
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoon grated or shredded fresh Parmesan cheese

Heat oil in medium skillet or wok over medium-high heat until hot. Add bell pepper, onion and garlic; cook and stir 2-3 minutes or until crisp-tender.

Stir in eggplant, zucchini and summer squash; cook and stir 5-7 minutes or until crisp tender.

Stir in all remaining ingredients except Parmesan cheese; cook until thoroughly heated. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Chicken Crescent Squares

When I was a kid, Saturday night dinners in our house were always fun, quick, kid-friendly food events. Stuff that you would brag about to your friends who were stuck eating boring, home-cooked foods, just to make them jealous. Hot dogs, burgers, sloppy joes, tacos, or the almighty Swanson TV dinner (pizza was the Friday night staple). I still remember the first time my mom raised the bar and bought me a Hungry Man-sized TV dinner. It was a proud moment, one that was only equaled at the time by my first bike ride sans training wheels, or being allowed to stay out past 8:30. I wasn’t just a young man…I was a HUNGRY young man!

In the past years, frozen entrees have taken on a whole new life: hot pockets, lean cuisines, bagel bites, frozen paninis…it’s as if the frozen food aisle is endless.

Well, thanks to this recipe, our trips to the frozen food aisle have been slashed. It’s a fun recipe that is easy to make, and is not only a quick meal solution, but also works well as an appetizer for dinner parties. Below is the original version, followed by a couple of variations that I have tried. Feel free to add your own mixture or favorite hot pocket filling!

1 (3 oz) package light cream cheese, softened
3 tablespoons melted butter
2 cups cooked, cubed chicken breast (I suggest the Perdue pre-cooked strips)
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons chopped chives
1 teaspoon chopped pimento
1 (8 oz) can crescent rolls
¾ cups seasoned bread crumbs, crushed

Preheat oven to 350º. In a bowl, blend cream cheese and 1-1/2 tablespoons melted butter. Add the chicken, salt, pepper, chives and pimento. Mix well. Separate the crescent rolls. Pull and flatten slightly. Spoon ¼ cup mixture into center of each. Pull cornets to top center and twist slightly. Seal edges. Brush tops with remaining butter, dip into crushed crumbs and bake on an ungreased cookie sheet for 20-25 minutes.

Alternate fillings:

3 oz cheddar cheese spread (I use WisPride Sharp Cheddar), softened
2 cups frozen chopped broccoli, defrosted
(omit chives and pimentos, season w/ salt & pepper to taste)

3 oz cheddar cheese spread, softened
2 cups cooked ham, sliced into small pieces
(omit chives and pimentos, season w/ salt & pepper to taste)

1 (3 oz) package light cream cheese, softened
2 small cans crab meat
¼ cup slivered almonds
(omit chives and pimentos, season w/ salt & pepper to taste)