Category Archives: Family Recipes

Gran Evan’s Corn Bread Dressing

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This is Matt’s favorite Thanksgiving dish, as I mentioned on Monday. I don’t really like dressing/stuffing, so I hadn’t paid attention enough to know that this dish was from my Great Grandmother Evelyn, who we called Gran Evan. She died when I was young so I didn’t really know her well. From what I hear, though, I really wish I had known her because it seems like she was awesome.

My mom is in charge of the dressing every year, and each time she mixes it up a little bit. I’ll share the original recipe, and follow up with my mom’s spin on the classic. It’s a recipe two-for!

Sausage Corn Bread Dressingimage via familyfun.go.com

 Gran Evan’s Corn Bread Dressing

8 cups corn bread (Cinch’s brand) or 2 pkgs. corn bread mix, baked and crumbled
2 cups cubed bread (dried)
1 cup oil
1 tablespoon salt
1 cup diced onion
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 cup diced celery
3 eggs (beaten)
2-1/2 cups broth
1 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon marjoram
1 teaspoon sage

Saute onion and celery in butter or bacon drippings. Add seasonings to bread crumbs. Add celery and onions, then add eggs and broth. Stuff the turkey — or put in an oven-proof dish and bake 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

My mom’s notes: Gran always baked a custard cup of stuffing to test for seasonings before stuffing the turkey. Pork sausage added to the bread also makes a moist, tasty stuffing. If using sausage, use less sage.  Almost every year I made additions or substitutions. Most notable are:

  • Saute onion and celery in pan sprayed with cooking spray or maybe a little oil
  • Substitute 1 cup applesauce for the 1 cup oil
  • Use sourdough for the dried bread (in addition to the corn bread)
  • Definitely add sausage; some years I use Aidell’s
  • Rachael Ray recommended baking dressing in cupcake tins lined with cupcake papers for individual servings
Here’s one of my mom’s adaptations for you in recipe form.
Mom’s Corn Bread Dressing
  • 1 lb. Trader Joe’s pesto and chicken sausage
  • 2 cups chopped onions
  • 2 cups chopped celery
  • 6 cups crumbled cornbread
  • 1 cup dried sourdough bread, crumbled
  • 1 cup dried apricots, chopped
  • 1 cup dried cranberries
  • 1 tablespoon sage
  • 1 stick melted butter or 1 cup oil
  • 1 cup chicken stock
  • salt and pepper to taste
Saute sausage until gray. Put in large mixing bowl. Saute onion in butter or small amount of oil until tender. Add onions, celery, dried fruits, bread crumbs, crumbled corn bread and eggs to sausage in the mixing bowl. Add seasonings and melted butter or applesauce, and mix. Fold in chicken stock to provide enough moisture but do not add too much to make dressing soggy.
Either stuff the turkey cavity or place dressing mixture in an oven-proof dish, and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, or until hot.
With all this stuffing/dressing talk, I must ask — do you stuff or do you dress? :) Have a Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Tips for a Stress-Free Turkey Day

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I know it is only the Monday before Thanksgiving, but we just wanted to stop in with a few ways to spend the day stress free. Ready? OK! (Can you hear the cheerleader in me??) :)

Our Pre-Thanksgiving Dinner, 2011

  1. Don’t get turkey grease on you. According to my dad, it stains forever. He has lost his favorite pair of sweatpants and one T-shirt (two different Thanksgivings) to this phenomenon. Wear an apron. It’s that simple.
  2. Cook your turkey in a bag, if you are using the oven, that is. We cooked our turkey this weekend (a pre-Thanksgiving, if you may) in a Reynolds Wrap bag and it was browned and delicious!
  3. Make your centerpiece easy. Use vegetables, jars, and a cute tray, like Bobbi did, for a pretty centerpiece!

Turkey -- in a Bag!!

Any other tips for a stress-free Thanksgiving?

Healthier Green Bean Casserole

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I love fried things, especially those crunchy fried onions. They are ALWAYS on my salads — which makes me want to eat salads more. I often see the green bean casserole recipe on the side of the can, but I never make it. Maybe I made it once before? This classic side is on many a Thanksgiving table. But with two cans of cream of mushroom soup and over two cups of the fried onions, it is in no way healthy. I wanted to try and make it a little bit healthier, so that is how I came up with this recipe.

Healthier Green Bean Casserole

inspired by Campbell’s

  • 1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup
  • 1 cup Milk
  • 1 can (4 oz.) diced Green Chilies
  • 2 teaspoons Soy Sauce
  • 1/4 teaspoon Black Pepper
  • 3 cans (10.5 oz. each) Green Beans (I used French Cut)
  • 2 cups French Fried Onions

Combine soup, milk, green chilis, soy sauce and black pepper in a bowl. Add the green beans and one cup of the french fried onions. Mix well and transfer into a 3 1/2 quart casserole dish. Top with remaining one cup of onions. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 45  minutes, or until hot all the way through. It will be bubbly and golden brown.

Served alongside a pork chop and quinoa

The chilies add an unexpected kick to this dish, which I really liked. It’s like taking your grandma’s dish and going “Bam! Top that!” Only, I would not do that to your grandma, because that is just not nice. However, if the recipe if from your crazy aunt Millicent, you can totally do that!

I don’t think I have a crazy aunt Millicent, so I can’t throw the smack down. Kind of a bummer. However, I guess I can simply appreciate that I have a wonderful family? Yeah, I will go with that!

Hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Mama Carol’s Pecan Pie Recipe

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The month of November is all about Thanksgiving. Emily and I are teaming up to share family Thanksgiving recipes. We hope you enjoy these recipes as we pass them from our family to yours! That brings us to this week’s recipe…

This pie has been baked for Thanksgiving every year for as long as I can remember.  A few years back, my grandma let me help her bake it. I remember knowing that it was a special moment that I could treasure with her. As I cooked this in my own kitchen, I felt like she was right there with me laughing about something or another. [Sidenote:  She is very much alive, she just lives on the other side of the state as me.]

Mama Carol’s Pecan Pie

  • 1 cup dark Corn Syrup
  • 3/4 cup Sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon Salt
  • 3 Eggs (room temperature), slightly beaten
  • 3 tablespoons Butter, melted
  • 1 teaspoon Vanilla
  • 1 cup (2 – 2  1/2 oz. packages) Chopped Pecans
  • 1 unbaked Pie Shell

Either line pie plate with shell or pull the prepared one out of your fridge / freezer.  If any of you know my mom, you know the pie shells are bought premade.  If you know me, I like to be difficult and make my own.  Do whatever you want though, cook’s choice.

Combine syrup, sugar and salt in saucepan.  Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved.  Boil for two minutes.  Pour SLOWLY over eggs from height in a very thin stream, stirring constantly so that the eggs will not cook (stir, not whisk – trust me).  Add butter, vanilla and pecans, stirring to mix.  Pour into pie shell.  Bake at 350 degrees for forty five minutes or until completely puffed on top and firm.  Watch closely the last twenty minutes and cover with foil if crust and pecans become too brown.  Serve with whipped cream.

I made this a few weeks ago, as a test for Thanksgiving. The church group liked it so much that I am sure it will grace our table on turkey day! Do you have a favorite family dessert from Thanksgiving?

Mocha Chip Ice Cream

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This has to be one of my all time favorite ice cream recipes.  My dad loves coffee ice cream, so this has been a staple in my parents’ home for as long as they have had an ice cream maker.  This taste reminds me of every Fourth of July and time spent with my family.  So good!  Major thanks to my mom for sharing this recipe with me — and for making it for so many years!

Mocha Chip Ice Cream

  • 3 teaspoons Instant Coffee (but espresso powder is better)
  • 1-1/4 cup Sugar
  • 1/8 teaspoon Salt
  • 1 tablespoon Flour
  • 3-3/4 cup Half and Half, divided
  • 1 1/4 cup Coffee
  • 3 Egg Yolks, beaten
  • 2-1/2 teaspoons Vanilla
  • 1/2 cup chocolate chips or grated dark chocolate.

Combine dry ingredients in saucepan.  Pour in coffee and 1-1/4 cups half and half, stirring occasionally.  Cook over medium low heat until thickened, about 20 minutes (mine never thickened, but it did boil after 20 minutes, so I called it good).  Temper eggs (add a tiny bit of the hot mix and stir), then add to hot and cook for one minute longer.  Chill one or more hours.  Stir in rest of half and half and vanilla, freeze in ice cream maker.  Add chips about halfway through.

This tastes so good!  You will also be glad to hear this is my last ice cream recipe for this month’s Abundant Crop, so no more fattening foods for you! ha!  Anyways, there are a few optional items for this ice cream.  You can either add 1/4 cup liquor when you add in the vanilla, or put crumbled bacon on top for serving.  Yummy!

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