Thanksgiving Prep Day

The best laid plans must at times be put aside, and then somehow, everything works out anyways!  Arden was sent home yesterday from daycare, vomiting with a stomach virus that had been going around.  She threw up every hour or so until 10:30 at night, and then slept relatively peacefully.  I had high hopes that she’d be able to go into daycare in the late morning (12 hours after last vomit), and then she had diarrhea – thus resetting the 12-hour clock. 

Mom and Dad were planning on coming over to go grocery shopping for our Thanksgiving meal anyways, so we just planned that Dad would wheel Arden around while Mom and I shopped.  She was in a remarkably good mood, and no more loose poops.  She fell asleep on my Dad for a bit, ate lunch, and then took a three-hour nap while Mom and I baked and prepped to our heart’s content.  The blue mask is because he’s allergic to the dogs, cats, and the air in general of our 90+ year-old home.

After she woke, we went to a local nursery to look at all their beautiful Christmas decorations and take pictures with Arden – a little tradition we began last year.  After Dave got home from work, Arden opened her present from Grandma & Grandpa – a Little People Farm that she LOVED!

Here’s what’s going to be on our Thanksgiving table tomorrow:

• Turkey
• Turkey gravy
• Rolls
• Pompano – Dave’s Thanksgiving fish
• Praline sweet potatoes – recipe from Southern Living
• Mashed potatoes
• Stuffing (Stove Top – we’re so not purists around here!  It’s easier and we all like it pretty much as well as homemade.)
• Broccoli cauliflower casserole
• Pumpkin pie bars
• Apple pie

What’s on your Thanksgiving table?

Pumpkin Bread

 

Nope, I didn’t mis-title the post – the cans are for the pumpkin bread!  This recipe bakes right in metal coffee cans.  My husband saved a bunch of the cans from all-nighters during early grad school thinking he’d hammer them flat and put them on a table for a “coffee table”.  He’s got his own creative ideas, though it’s been about eight years since he defended his dissertation.  Maybe when the garage/”man cave” is completed he can add that to his project list.

Laser likes to help me in the kitchen, as evidenced by the flour on his nose.

You end up with these giant-muffin shaped loafs of yummy pumpkin bread!  The only bad thing about it making four or five loaves is that my husband thinks that means he gets bread for breakfast, lunch, and dinner!

Pumpkin Bread

Ingredients

• 2 C pumpkin
• 3 ¼ C sugar
• 1 C vegetable oil
• 4 eggs
• 2/3 C water
• 3 ½ C flour
• 2 t baking soda
• 1 ½ t salt
• ½ t baking powder
• 2 t pumpkin pie spice
• 2 C chopped walnuts

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Grease 4 16 oz., or 5 10 oz. metal coffee cans.
3. Mix all ingredients together, add nuts.
4. Fill cans 1/2 full.
5. Bake at 350° F for one hour.

Slow-Cooker Squash Lasagna

Slow-cooker Squash Lasagna

Here’s a new meatless meal that has won an entry into my recipe book:

Slow-cooker Squash Lasagna

Source: Real Simple

Ingredients

• 2 10- to 12-ounce packages frozen winter squash puree, thawed
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 32-ounce container ricotta
• 1 5-ounce package baby spinach (6 cups)
• kosher salt and black pepper
• 12 lasagna noodles (about 3/4 of a 16-ounce box)
• 8 ounces mozzarella, grated (about 2 cups)
• green salad, for serving

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, mix the squash and nutmeg. In a second bowl, combine the ricotta, spinach, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper.
2. In the bottom of a 5- to 6-quart slow cooker, spread ½ cup of the squash mixture. Top with 3 of the lasagna noodles (breaking to fit), half the remaining squash mixture, 3 lasagna noodles, and half the ricotta mixture; repeat, ending with the ricotta mixture. Sprinkle with the mozzarella.
3. Cook on low, covered, until the noodles are tender, 3 to 4 hours. Serve with the green salad, if desired.

Gotta love anything that you just layer into a crockpot and leave for several hours.  This didn’t have any pre-cooking, not even the noodles!  Yum-yum!

Easy samosas

I didn’t intend this to be a cooking blog, but these were so easy and delicious that I wanted to share them.  My wonderful husband Dave is vegetarian (ovo/lacto/pesco which means he does eat eggs/dairy/fish), and I struggle to find quick and good non-meat dishes to put into rotation.  This one definitely made the cut.  They turned out really well even though I had to scramble to finish them to get Arden who woke early from her nap.

Easy samosas

 

Easy Samosas 

Source:  Real Simple

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder
• Kosher salt and black pepper (I used table salt)
• 2 cups store-bought refrigerated mashed or frozen mashed potatoes, thawed (about 16 ounces) (I used Idahoan brand potato flakes)
• 1 10-ounce package frozen peas, thawed
• 1 15-ounce package refrigerated piecrusts
• 1 jar mango chutney (optional)
• (Sour cream or plain yogurt) This is my addition

Directions

1. Heat oven to 375° F. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes. Add the curry powder, ¾ teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in the potatoes and peas.
2. Unroll the piecrusts and cut each into 6 triangles. Place a heaping tablespoon of the potato mixture in the center of each piece. Gather the corners of the dough and pinch to form a point. Pinch the seams to seal. Transfer to a baking sheet.
3. Bake the samosas until golden, 22 to 25 minutes. Serve with the mango chutney and/or sour cream/plain yogurt if using.
   

I made these last week for the first time, and I already bought ingredients to make them again this week.  That good and easy!  I hope you enjoy as well!