Thanksgiving

We were so glad family and friends joined our Thanksgiving table this year. Our weather was so pleasant today that I set up the kids table outside. I decorated their table with a pumpkin and the fall crafts they brought home from school, and Emma and Christian donned their headdresses for the meal. Below are some of today's recipes.

Joe's Orange-Sage Turkey

This mouthwatering turkey is so good, I tell Joe we should have it once a week. Joe doesn't follow specific recipes, so the amounts listed here are rough estimates.

Turkey, thawed
1/2 cup fresh sage, chopped
1/2 cup orange zest
Salt
Pepper
Honey
Orange juice

Combine sage, orange zest, and generous amounts of salt and pepper. Clean turkey. Loosen skin from the bird, and rub the herb mixture under the skin. Place the turkey into a roasting pan. Drizzle a little honey onto the turkey, and pour orange juice into the bottom of the pan. Cover the turkey with an aluminum-foil tent, and bake at 350 degrees for 3 hours. Then remove the aluminum foil and bake for another 45 minutes. Remove the turkey from the oven, and allow the meat to rest. Place pan drippings into a small sauce pan and bring to a boil to make gravy. Add orange juice and about half a bottle of honey to drippings. Mix a little cornstarch into cold water, and add this mixture to drippings. Boil for several minutes until gravy thickens. Slice turkey, and serve with gravy.

Sweet Potato Casserole

This casserole freezes well and stretches to feed a crowd.

4 large sweet potatoes, baked and peeled
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 stick melted margarine
1/2 cup orange juice

Topping:
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup flour
1/3 cup margarine
1 cup chopped pecans

Mash sweet potatoes in a large bowl. With a hand mixer, mix in sugar, eggs, vanilla, butter and orange juice. Pour into a buttered casserole dish. Mix brown sugar, flour, margarine and pecans with a fork. Sprinkle crumb topping onto the casserole, and bake 35 to 40 minutes at 350 degrees.

Cranberry-Apple Bake

My sister-in-law, Shannon, is a fabulous cook. This holiday recipe of hers is met with rave reviews.

2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries

6 cups diced apples with peeling

3/4 cups sugar

Topping:

1 stick margarine, melted

1/2 cup dark brown sugar

1/3 cup plain flour

1 1/2 cups oatmeal, regular or quick-cooking

1/2 cup nuts, chopped

Mix casserole ingredients and pour into greased 8-inch baking dish. Mix topping ingredients well and spread over first three ingredients in baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour. May be used as a side dish or a dessert with ice cream. Serves 6.

Fudge Pie

Joe requests this recipe every Thanksgiving. This pie is so rich, I usually cut the slices thin and serve them a la mode.

2 cups sugar

2 sticks butter, melted

1 cup cocoa

1/2 cup sifted flour

4 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

9-inch unbaked frozen deep dish pie crust, thawed according to package directions

Combine all ingredients through vanilla, and pour the mixture into pie crust. Bake at 350 for 35 to 40 minutes.