Kale with Bacon

 Ok, this one's quick and easy peasy. I know kale is very trendy at the moment, but when you get right down to it, there are many reasons why everyone is going crazy for it. Well, for one thing, it's like super crazy good for you. It has a ton of vitamins C and K and beta-carotene and antioxidants and about a bazillion other nutrients that I can't even pronounce. And on top of all of that, it's delicious!!! It's hearty enough that it still keeps its integrity when you cook it (instead of just turning to mush), and it doesn't disappear in the pan the way fresh spinach does when you cook it.
 This recipe is from Taste of Home, and I knew it was a winner at first glance. Frankly, you can cook anything with bacon, onions, and garlic, and I'm in heaven. When I made it for my Friendsgiving dinner, it was a big hit! But no one needed to know how easy it was. And remember, your Mom always said to eat your greens, right? She was absolutely right!
 I think maybe Popeye would have eaten kale instead of spinach if he had cooked it with bacon and onions and garlic. Just sayin!


2 pounds fresh kale, trimmed and torn 
8 bacon strips, diced 
2 large onions, chopped 
4 garlic cloves, minced 
1 teaspoon salt 
1/2 teaspoon pepper

 In a large saucepan, bring 1 in. of water to a boil. Add kale; cook for 10 minutes or until tender. Meanwhile, in a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp. Using a slotted spoon, remove to paper towels; drain, reserving 1 teaspoon drippings. In the drippings, saute onions and garlic until onion is tender. Drain the kale; stir into onion mixture. Add salt, pepper and bacon; heat through. 

Tip:
If you're not a fan or pork, try turkey bacon instead!!
For a little extra added flavor, try cooking it in chicken broth instead of just plain water!

Cider-Glazed Turnips & Apples with Sage & Bacon

 Here's another fabulous side dish that falls right in line with my latest obsession with apples and sage. It's from Finecooking.com, and I absolutely fell in love at first bite. It also fits my criteria for the perfect Thanksgiving dish because it's easy, you can do it ahead of time, and you can adjust the amounts to feed however big of a crowd you're having at your table this year.
 It's a pretty simple dish, but it really hits a lot of different notes that all work perfectly together. You have the sweetness from the apples and cider and the freshness from the sage, both of which mellow that sharp bite that the turnips can sometimes have. And we all know everything is better with bacon, right?  That just goes without saying! It makes everything rich and special enough for your holiday guests.
 The other thing that I love about this recipe is that it is cooked on the stove top, not in the oven. If you've ever cooked Thanksgiving dinner, I'm sure I don't need to tell you that oven space is precious real estate that is not always readily available when you're trying to get everything cooked and hot at the same time. Having the option of cooking something without using the oven is a life saver (not to mention a time saver as well!) You just sit it on the back burner and let it braise until everything is nice and tender, and the cider is sweet and syrupy. YUM! Oh, and if you're not a fan of turnips, I think maybe you just haven't found the right recipe for them. This could be the one to change your mind! And if you've never tried them, well, now is the perfect opportunity! Enjoy!

1-1/2 lb. small purple-top or white turnips (about 9 small)
4 slices bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 Tbs. unsalted butter
1 cup apple cider
2 tsp. granulated sugar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 large firm, sweet apple such as Pink Lady or Braeburn
2 tsp. chopped fresh sage


Peel the turnips and cut them in half lengthwise. Cut each half into wedges 1 inch thick at the widest point. Put the bacon pieces in a large skillet and set over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until crisp, about 8 minutes. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels. Pour off the bacon fat from the pan and set the pan back on the burner. Add the butter and, when it’s melted, add the turnips, apple cider, sugar, and 1-1/2 tsp. salt. Bring to a boil over high heat. Cover the pan with the lid slightly askew, reduce the heat to medium high, and cook at a steady boil, shaking the pan occasionally, until the turnips are just tender but not soft (a pairing knife should enter a turnip with just a little resistance), 8  to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, peel and core the apple and cut it into 1/2-inch slices. Uncover the pan, add the sliced apples and sage, and continue to boil, stirring occasionally, until the liquid has reduced to a sticky glaze, 2 to 3 minutes. The turnips should be soft and the apples should be crisp-tender. (If not, add a few tablespoons of water and continue to cook for another 1  to 2  minutes.) Toss in the cooked bacon and season to taste with black pepper and more salt if necessary.


Tips:
I know I usually like to switch things around and tweak a recipe here and there, but for this one, I didn't change a thing! It's just absolutely delicious as it is. I used Honeycrisp apples, because they're my favorite. What's yours? I also didn't drain out all of the bacon fat as instructed, because... bacon.

Apple, Sausage, and Parsnip Stuffing with Fresh Sage

 Here's a stuffing recipe that I found on Epicurious.com. As soon as I saw it I thought "well, if THAT doesn't scream THANKSGIVING, I don't know what does!" Sausage stuffing with fresh sage? I mean, COME ON! And the apples and parsnips bring a sweetness to the party that is simply just perfect!! It's definitely something new and different, but it's classic at the same time. Cool, huh?
 Now, if you've read any of my other recipes, you know that I can't leave a recipe alone. In this case, I didn't change the ingredients listed in the original recipe, I changed the AMOUNTS. Apparently, the folks at Epicurious were feeding an army, and their amounts were about twice as much as I needed for my 9x13 casserole dish. Then again, they used part of it to stuff the turkey, and part of it to bake in a dish. Since I prefer to stuff the turkey with aromatics, I just cut the recipe in half (except for the butter and chicken broth) and that's how I have listed the recipe below. It worked perfectly! However, if you have quite a gang to feed, or if you prefer to stuff your turkey with stuffing instead of aromatics, then by all means double everything and go for it!


1 lb loaf sliced sourdough bread with crust, cubed
1 lb sweet Italian sausages, casings removed
1 lb hot Italian sausages, casings removed
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cups celery. chopped
3/4 cup (1  1/2 sticks) butter
3 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, cubed
1 lb parsnips, peeled, cubed
1/4 cup packed fresh sage leaves
1/2 cup low-salt chicken broth


Preheat oven to 325°F.
Bake bread cubes on a large rimmed baking sheet until lightly toasted, about 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, sauté sausages in very large skillet over medium-high heat until cooked through, breaking into pieces with spoon, about 15 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer to large bowl; add bread.
Add onions and celery to same skillet and sauté until golden brown, about 10 minutes; transfer to bowl with bread. Melt 1/4 cup butter in same skillet over medium-high heat. Add apples and sauté until tender, about 8 minutes; mix apples into stuffing. Melt 1/4 cup butter in same skillet over medium-high heat. Add parsnips and sauté until golden, about 10 minutes; mix into stuffing. Melt 1/4 cup butter in same skillet. Add sage and sauté until dark green, about 2 minutes. Mix sage and butter into stuffing. Season with salt and pepper.
Place in buttered casserole dish. Drizzle with 1/2 cup chicken broth. Cover with foil.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Bake stuffing covered until heated through, about 1 hour. Uncover and bake until beginning to brown, about 10 minutes.


Tips:
When I brought some to my brother, Chris, he said he wished that it would hold together a little more. Since there are no eggs or any kind of binder to the recipe, the best way to keep everything together is to chop everything a little more finely than I did, and don't skimp on the butter and chicken broth. Again, the amounts are just guidelines. Add them til it's enough!
This can absolutely be prepared a day in advance. Actually, you could even do it TWO days in advance if you cover it tightly with foil and keep it in the fridge until it's time for baking.

Joey's Cauliflower and Carrot Gratin

 If there was ever a dish that screams home cooking, it's a casserole. By definition, a casserole is a dish served in the pan in which it was cooked, and it often has meat and vegetables and a crunchy or cheesy topping. That sounds like home cooking to me! For this casserole, there's no meat, but the veggies are a match made in culinary heaven! Who would have ever guessed that something as simple as cauliflower and carrots would go so well together in a casserole???? Well, Pillsbury, for one, which is where I first discovered the recipe.
 But here's the thing.. when I first made Pillsbury's recipe, I found the cheese sauce to be just SO bland. Like, there wasn't really anything special about it. It just tasted like melted American cheese. Now, I love American cheese as much as anyone, but for a casserole to be good enough for Thanksgiving, it needed to be just a little more fabulous, in my humble opinion. So I gave it a little makeover. OMG it was SO much better!!! Clearly, they should have asked my opinion as they were developing this recipe! LOL I'm not even kidding. Just the addition of a couple extra ingredients pushed everything WAY over the top and suddenly now we've gone from boring to showstopper!
 So if you're looking for a new something to add to your Thanksgiving menu, consider giving this one a try! Even if you're not making it for a big holiday meal, it's still easy enough for a simple Sunday supper. This just might become a new favorite!

1 lb carrots, peeled and sliced into thick coins

1 head cauliflower, cored and cut into florets

6 tbs butter1 onion, roughly chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1 or 2 two big pinches of dried or fresh thyme leaves

3 tbs flour

1 tsp mustard

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper 

2 cups milk 

8 slices American Cheese

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

1/2 cup Panko bread crumbs

Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 2 1/2-quart casserole with cooking spray.
In a large pot, bring about 8 cups of water to a boil. Add carrots and cook for about 10 minutes. Add the cauliflower and cook for an additional 4 minutes. Drain and set aside.
Meanwhile, in 4-quart saucepan, melt 3 tablespoons of the butter. Cook onion in butter about 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened. Add garlic and thyme. Saute a minute or two longer. Stir in flour, mustard, salt, and pepper with whisk; cook about 1 minute or until bubbly. Slowly stir in milk. Cook and stir until bubbly and slightly thickened. Remove from heat; stir in cheeses until melted. Stir in carrots and cauliflower. Pour into casserole. In small microwavable bowl, microwave remaining 3 tablespoons butter on high for 1 minute or until melted; stir in bread crumbs. Sprinkle over vegetable mixture. Bake uncovered 25 to 30 minutes or until bubbly around edges. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Tips:
For a little extra something, add a splash of white wine to your cheese sauce. It will elevate it to "special occasion" status!
Use whatever veggies you like! You could absolutely add broccoli or parsnips or even just baby red potatoes. Anything you like!
Not a fan of American cheese? Use any kind you like? Any cheese that melts really well will work!

Slow Cooker Mashed Potatoes

 Can one really ever have too many potato recipes???? I think not! So here's an easy one that you can prep the night before your big holiday meal, and then just turn it on in the morning. SO easy!!!
 When you're cooking for a crowd and you have several pots and pans going at the same time on the stove, isn't it nice to know you have another alternative? Of course, I'm talking about your slow cooker!!! To be quite honest, I've been using mine quite a lot lately and it has become one of my most favorite items in the kitchen. It works miracles! Even the novice cook will have great success using a slow cooker, especially with a recipe as easy as this one. I got it from a video on Thekitchn.com and it's pretty amazing. They did mention one thing, though. The longer your potatoes cook, the more they will brown around the edges of the crock pot. They advised scooping away the browned bits if you don't want them mixed into your mash, (I also wonder if giving it a stir every so often will prevent it from becoming brown), but frankly, I didn't see this as a problem. Did you ever watch Chef Anne Burrell? She's always saying "brown food tastes good!" And guess what! She's not wrong! I say let them get brown, mash 'em all together, stir in your butter and cream, and savor ever single bite! Now THAT's what I call Thanksgiving mashed potatoes! Boom.


5 pounds russet potatoes
3 to 4 cloves garlic, optional
1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt, plus more to taste
Freshly ground black pepper
3 to 3 1/2 cups milk, or a mixture of milk and cream
1/2 cup unsalted butter 
Chopped chives, for garnish, if desired


 Lightly grease the slow cooker insert with butter or cooking spray. Peel the potatoes and chop into 1" small pieces. Transfer the potatoes to the slow cooker. Smash the garlic cloves, if using, and drop on top of the potatoes. Stir in the salt and a generous quantity of black pepper. Pour in 1 1/2 cups milk. Cover the slow cooker and cook 4 to 5 hours on HIGH or until the potatoes are very tender and soft. Turn the heat to WARM.
 When the potatoes are done, melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat. Stir 2 cups milk, or a mixture of milk and cream, into the melted butter and warm gently over low heat. If you used garlic but don't want the potatoes super garlicky, remove the garlic cloves and discard. Use a spoon to scoop out and discard any browned bits on the sides of the pot, if desired. Use a potato masher or ricer to mash the potatoes right in the pot. When the potatoes are as smooth as you like, slowly stir in the warmed dairy and butter. The potatoes will look soupy at first but the potatoes will quickly soak up the liquid. Add an additional 1/2 cup of milk or cream if you want them to be even creamier. Taste and season with additional salt or pepper, if desired. To keep the potatoes warm, leave in the covered slow cooker on the WARM setting for up to 4 hours. 

Tips:
For dairy free potatoes, just use chicken or vegetable broth instead of butter and cream. 
For a little variety, add other root vegetables such as parsnips, turnips, rutabagas, and/or carrots.

Baked Mashed Potatoes

 If you've ever cooked a big holiday dinner, you know that one of the most important things to consider is time management. So how do you get everything done and hot and on the table at the same time??? You do as much as possible in advance! And this is the perfect recipe to do a day or two ahead of the big meal. You can literally make and assemble this entire dish and then bake it in time for dinner, or you can even do everything, baking included, and then just heat it up when the time comes.
 I literally can't even remember where I got this recipe. I think it may have been something that I just threw together one night and then jotted down for a later date, and now here we are! This is absolutely one of my very favorite mashed potato recipes of all time, like in the history of ever, so you should definitely give this one a try!

5lbs Yukon Gold potatoes
8 oz cream cheese
1 1/2 sticks butter
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup (or more) french fried onion rings

Peel and quarter your potatoes. Place potatoes in a giant bowl of cold water. Swish them around to rinse away most of the starch, then drain. Do this two or three times. Boil potatoes until fork tender and then drain very well.
Use a potato ricer or food mill to mash the potatoes into a big bowl. In a small pot, melt together the cream cheese, butter, and cream. Stir into mashed potatoes. Season well with salt and pepper. Place potatoes in a 9x13 casserole pan. Sprinkle with onion rings. Bake at 350ºF for 45 minutes to an hour or until golden on top.

Tips:
-My best tip for making mashed potatoes is to use a ricer. It gets out all of the lumps! (if you're not familiar with a potato ricer, it basically looks like a great big oversized garlic press!) If you just use a regular hand masher, you may not get all of the lumps, which is fine, but I prefer a smoother mash. Definitely do NOT use a big mixer to mash your potatoes. The texture will become like glue!
-Be sure to rinse the peeled potatoes a few times before you boil them. Getting rid of that extra starch will give you a fluffier potato. Otherwise all of that starch will turn your potatoes into spackle.
-When you melt the butter and cream and cream cheese, it may seem like there's far too much liquid for that amount of potatoes, but just go with me on this. It will all stir in, and you'll have beautifully rich and creamy potatoes!
Be sure to season well! The potatoes will take more salt and pepper than you think they will!
For a little extra flavor, add some fresh garlic to the pot when you melt the butter and cream mixture!

Joey's Autumn Harvest Stew

Ok, so let's talk about my FAVORITE new recipe in quite a long time.
Every so often, I'll come up with an idea that I can't seem to get out of my head, and this was absolutely one of those times. I was thinking that I wanted to do a savory something with fresh pumpkin. A one-pot dish sounded like a good idea... maybe a soup? or a stew? Yes, definitely something along those lines. I also thought it might be cool to add a few other autumnal ingredients. Another kind of squash, maybe some corn, and definitely something green for color. I also had the idea to include barley to add a little body to the stew. Again, ideas that just stick in my mind until I go ahead and try them. I did some googling, found a couple recipes to use as inspiration, and this was the result! This stew has the most AMAZING flavor, you won't even believe it. I'm not even kidding when I tell you that I couldn't stop eating it! It's rich but not heavy, hearty but not too filling, fresh but still very deep with flavor. It's also cozy and comforting and it'll definitely hit the spot. It only took about an hour to make, but it has the taste of something that is simmered all afternoon. And it lends itself to any number of variations. I think that's one of my favorite things about this recipe. I'll probably NEVER make it the same way twice! Want to make it completely vegetarian? Use vegetable broth and leave out the meat. Don't like barley? Add rice instead! The possibilities are endless.
 I think the reason I love this one so much is that it feels like something my Mom would make. She used to say to me "Just put it in a pot and let it cook." It sounds simple, but seriously, that's how she always did it. It's definitely the best way to cook and it's how I learned! So you should absolutely give this one a try. It definitely tastes like home, like a big hug in a bowl.
 I hope you like it :)
 


2 tbs butter 
2 tbs olive oil 
1 medium onion, chopped 
2 cloves garlic, chopped
several sprigs of fresh thyme, tied together with cotton twine 
2 tbs fresh sage, chopped
1 or 2 bay leaves
2 tsp kosher salt 
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp paprika 
2 cups fresh pumpkin, peeled, seeded, cubed
1 acorn squash, peeled, seeded, cubed
1 can cream style corn
8 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1/2 cup pearl barley, uncooked 
2 big handfuls of kale, chopped
1/2 rotisserie chicken, pulled from the bone and shredded
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup flour 
crisped and crumbled bacon, optional


In a large pot, melt butter and oil together over medium heat. Add onions and garlic. Saute for just a few minutes until the onions begin to soften and the garlic becomes fragrant. Add the herbs, seasonings, pumpkin, and acorn squash. Toss all until well coated. Add the corn and the chicken broth. Bring it to a bowl then reduce the heat to simmer. Add the barley and give it a good stir. Simmer for about 45 minutes. Add the chopped kale and the shredded chicken. Stir in the cream. Make a slurry with the flour and 1/2 cup cold water. Add to the pot. Stir and simmer until it thickens. Adjust seasoning if needed. Remove thyme bundle and bay leaves from the pot. Serve deep soup bowls. Garnish each bowl with crumbled bacon, if desired.


Tips:
This is one of those recipes where you really don't need a recipe. The amounts are just guidelines. Taste as you go, and add as much or as little as you like. It will all work!
I used pumpkin and sweet dumpling squash, but you can use butternut, acorn, or literally any of the nearly 150 varieties that are out there. Use any kind you like! Use potatoes instead of barley, add carrots, parsnips, turnips, or any other root vegetable. Use the recipe as a springboard to make it your own!