Maddie’s Favorite Thanksgiving Recipes

In case you haven't heard, I'm going to attempt to eat an entire pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving. 

I think I can handle the challenge, but I might be second-guessing myself come Thursday. Turns out, there's a lot more side dishes and snacks on the holidays then I remembered. You've got cheese rolls, crackers, and shrimp cocktail for appetizers, green bean casserole and mashed potatoes for sides, and of course pounds of turkey and ham for the "main" part of the meal.

Then, there's dessert. This is the part where I'm supposed to eat an entire pie after eating plenty of all the aforementioned items. I have to admit, I'm pretty rambunctious for setting the bar so high for myself. Anyway, thinking about Thanksgiving and all the yummy sides got me thinking about my favorite foods to eat on Turkey Day. Me being a "pretend" chef, I decided to pull some of my favorite Thanksgiving recipes and share them with you. I hope they inspire some of your side dishes this year.

First up, of course, is homemade pumpkin pie. You need:

1/2 tsp Ginger, ground
2 Eggs
1 can Evaporated milk
1 Unbaked deep-dish pie shell
1 tsp Cinnamon, ground
1/4 tsp Cloves, ground
1/2 tsp Salt
2/3 cup Sugar or succanat sugar
1 can Libby's 100% pure pumpkin or 2 cups of cooked pureed fresh pumpkin

For the official list of directions, click here.

Next up, one of my favorite sides EVER, green bean casserole.
BTW...can we just make this as a side all the time? I always have to wait until Thanksgiving to eat green bean casserole and I don't understand why. Anyway, you'll need:

2 (6-ounce) cans French's fried onions
2 cloves Garlic
1 1/2 lbs Green beans, frozen
12 oz Mushrooms
1 cup Chicken or vegetable broth, low-sodium
1 tsp Tamari or soy sauce
1/4 cup All-purpose flour
1/2 tsp Black pepper, freshly ground
1/2 tsp Nutmeg
4 tbsp Butter, unsalted
2 cups Whole milk

For how to put it all together, click here.

Okay, time for another good one. Crock Pot corn. I know, it sounds odd, but I've heard people SWEARING by this stuff lately. I haven't attempted to make it yet, but this year is my opportunity. Plus, it seems super easy to make (what Crock Pot recipe isn't, honestly). You'll need:

3 (15.25-ounces) cans Corn, whole kernel
1/4 tsp Pepper
1 tbsp Sugar
1/2 cup Butter, unsalted slices thin
8 oz Cream cheese
1 cup Milk

THAT'S IT. Throw it all in the Crock Pot for 3.5 hours and BOOM. You're done.

Of course there's tons of other things I could list, but I consider these the staples of my menu this year. I have to give love to mashed potatoes, because they're my favorite, but everyone knows how to make those. I also LOVE stuffing. Again, we should have stuffing more often than just Thanksgiving. Anyway, I hope you give some (or all) of these a go next week. Let me know what you think!