Stuffing

I thought the flavor of this was fantastic.  I made it on Christmas to go with the crockpot turkey. The only thing is that I had to broil it at the end because it was too soggy for my liking. Next time I am either going to lower the broth or the eggs.  I like her idea of doing everything the night before so it takes less time.  Next year... 

Make Ahead Tip:
When I make this stuffing, I always toast the bread in the oven the night before. I also chop up all the vegetables and cook them the night before, refrigerating after they are cooled. Finally, I combine the seasonings in one small bowl. The day of, I can throw everything together and bake it quickly.

http://www.melskitchencafe.com/thanksgiving-dinner-101-the-stuffing/ 

Stuffing

Yield: Makes a 9X13-inch dish

Ingredients

• 7 tablespoons butter, plus more for dish and baking
• 1 loaf rustic/artisan/crusty white bread, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 9 1/2 cups bread cubes)
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 5 celery stalks, thinly sliced on the diagonal
• 2 medium onions, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced in half-moons
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1/2 to 2 cups chicken broth
• 1/2 teaspoon poultry seasoning
• 3 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1 teaspoon dried sage
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon dried rosemary (rubbed between fingers to crumble lightly)
• 3 to 4 large eggs, lightly beaten

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Melt 5 tablespoons butter in the microwave. Toss with bread cubes in a large bowl. Spread in a single layer on 1 or 2 rimmed baking sheets. Toast in the oven, tossing once, until golden, about 20 minutes. Let cool completely.
2. Heat the oil and remaining 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat until butter has melted. Add celery, onions, garlic, and a pinch of salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown and soft, about 10 minutes.
3. To bake all of the stuffing in the oven: (this is my preferred method) Put vegetable mixture and toasted bread into large bowl. Stir in poultry seasoning, herbs, and 2 cups broth into stuffing. Stir in 4 eggs until bread mixture is well coated. Spoon into a buttered 13-by-9-inch baking dish, and dot generously with butter. Cover with foil, and bake in a 375° oven for 25 minutes. Uncover, and bake until golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes more.
4. To stuff inside of turkey: Put vegetable mixture and toasted bread into a bowl. Stir in 1 cup broth, the poultry seasoning, and herbs; season with salt and pepper. Stir in 3 eggs. Stuff inside of turkey and bake.

Recipe Source: adapted from Martha Stewart

Crockpot Turkey with No Fuss Gravy

I tried this for Christmas Day and it tasted amazing and was sooo easy!  Will do as a tradition from now on.  The Gravy was a little bit runny but tasted great.  I didn't have any problems with it being over salty like she says to beware of. The flavor was wonderful! 

 

/http://www.melskitchencafe.com/slow-cooker-turkey-with-no-fuss-gravy-simple-thanksgiving-solution/

Slow Cooker Turkey with No-Fuss Gravy

Yield: 6-8 servings

The one thing to keep a very, very close eye on is the salt content of this recipe. If you can't find no-salt added chicken broth and use low-sodium, take care not to oversalt the turkey breast because the gravy will be too salty. I used low-sodium chicken broth and only used about 1 teaspoon salt over the entire turkey breast and it was probably on the verge of being too salty. Keep in mind that you can always add salt at the end but it's hard to take away if you've oversalted at the beginning. Got it? Great. Also, you definitely need a large, oval slow cooker for this recipe. Even still, I had to scrap using the lid and cover the turkey and slow cooker with a few layers of foil. Worked perfectly.

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
• 1 large carrot, peeled and coarsely chopped
• 1 stalk celery, coarsely chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 1/2 cups no-salt added or low-sodium chicken broth
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 sprigs fresh thyme or 1/2 tablespoon dried
• 2 bay leaves
• 6-8 pound bone-in skin-on turkey breast
• Salt and pepper

Directions

1. In a large, nonstick skillet melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, celery and garlic and cook for 8-10 minutes, until the onion is translucent and the vegetables are lightly browned.
2. Stir in the flour and cook for 2-3 minutes until the flour coating the veggies turns golden. Whisk in 1 cup of the broth, working to smooth out any lumps as it cooks and thickens. Stir in the remaining broth and water. Add the thyme and bay leaves.
3. Pour the mixture into the slow cooker. Season the turkey breast all over with salt and pepper (see the note above about how much salt to use). Place the turkey in the slow cooker (breast side down). Cover and cook on low for 5-7 hours until the internal temperature of the turkey breast reaches 165 degrees.
4. Carefully transfer the turkey breast to a cutting board (or 9X13-inch pan to catch any juices), tent with foil and let rest while preparing the gravy.
5. Strain the liquid in the slow cooker into a saucepan. Let it settle for 5 minutes or so and then skim the fat from the surface. Bring the gravy to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes, stirring often, until it is slightly thickened. It won't be as thick as traditional gravy but will be silky and slightly thick. If you'd like it thicker, simply whisk together a slurry of cornstarch and cold water (a tablespoon or so of cornstarch in a couple tablespoons of water) and stir the slurry into the gravy, simmering for 2-3 minutes.
6. Season the gravy with any additional salt and pepper, if needed.
7. Carve the turkey and serve with the warm gravy.

Recipe Source: adapted from a recipe referred to me by a long-time reader, Rebecca L., from America’s Test Kitchen Slow Cooker Revolution (thanks, Rebecca!)

Hot Chocolate

This is so easy!  I love it because it is on the darker chocolate side and takes few ingredients.

Ingredients

• 3 1/2 cups sugar
• 2 1/4 cups cocoa
• 1 tablespoon table salt
• Whole milk for serving

Directions

1. In a large bowl, combine sugar, cocoa, and salt, and whisk to combine well. Store the mixture in an airtight container.
2. For individual servings, pour 1 cup whole milk into a microwave-safe mug, and microwave on high just until hot. Add 2 tablespoons of cocoa mix, and stir to dissolve. For a larger batch of cocoa, warm the milk in a saucepan set over medium-low heat, taking care not to let the milk boil; as it warms, stir in 2 tablespoons of mix for each cup of milk.

Cook's Notes

This mix will keep all winter if stored in an airtight container.

http://www.marthastewart.com/353001/homemade-hot-chocolate

Chewy Ginger Molasses Cookies

Oh man!  These are good.  I made them for neighbors at Christmas and they were perfect!

http://www.gimmesomeoven.com/chewy-ginger-molasses-cookies/ 

Yield: About 28-32 cookies

Chewy Ginger Molasses Cookies

These chewy ginger molasses cookies are soft, sweet, and unbelievably good.

Prep: 15 mins Cook: 10 mins Total: 25 mins

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ cups butter, softened to room temperature (not melted)
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• ½ cup molasses
• 2 eggs
• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 4 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375°F.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, soda, cinnamon, cloves, ginger and salt. Set aside.
In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, beat together butter and sugar on medium speed for 1 minute until light and fluffy.  Add in the eggs and molasses, and beat on medium-low speed until combined. Gradually add in the dry ingredient mixture and beat until combined.  Cover and refrigerate dough for at least 30 minutes, until it is chilled*.
Roll the dough into small balls, about 1-inch in diameter. Fill a small bowl with sugar, and roll each ball in the sugar until it is completely coated. Place on cookie sheet at least 1 inch apart, then bake for about 8-10 minutes, until the cookies begin to slightly crack on top.  (They may crack more while cooling.)  Remove from the oven and let cool for a minute or two. Then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
Serve immediately or store in a sealed container for up to 1 week.

*It is essential that the dough be thoroughly chilled with this recipe before baking.  Otherwise, the dough will be soft and difficult to form into balls, and the cookies will flatten out significantly while baking.
I actually recommend chilling the dough before rolling.  And then after you have placed your dough balls on the cookie sheet, pop the entire cookie sheet with the dough in the refrigerator for an extra 10-15 minutes before baking.

Difficulty: Easy Category: Vegetarian Ingredients: baking soda, butter, cinnamon, cloves, eggs, flour, ginger, molasses, sugar

Beth's Strawberry Chocolate Frozen Yogurt

When I had gestational diabetes this was a frequent treat after dinner. I still love it for a quick and easy treat that isn't terrible for you.

2 C. frozen strawberries
1 C. Greek Yogurt
1/2 C. whipped cream
2-3 T. Cocoa
1 C. Milk
1 T. Vanilla
1 T. sugar

Blend in Blendtec on icecream button. 

Kid's Favorite Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins

 
This recipe is a good one. It's pretty straight-forward and doesn't take a ton of ingredients/spices to make it taste good. I think all the chocolate chips help out, but it's a semi-healthy option for my kids before they head off to school. (we like milk chocolate chips)

• I added about 3 Tbsp. flax seed to increase the benefits. 
• I decreased the sugar to 1.75 cups(which might still be good with 1.5 sugar-theres a ton of choc. chips...)
• I used applesauce instead of oil.

apple crisp

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/229088/apple-crisp-with-oat-topping/

We always have a few extra apples from judd's work around this time of year so this always hits the spot.