It’t time to get ready for Thanksgiving! Check out what I will be making as well as my own person recipes!!!

Thanksgiving Dinner Menu and Recipes:

HoneySuckle White Turkey (16-20 lbs)

1. If the turkey has been refrigerated, bring it to room temperature before cooking. If you get a frozen turkey, you will need to defrost it in the refrigerator for several days. Allow approximately 5 hours of defrosting for every pound. So, if you have a 20 pound turkey, it will take about 100 hours (4 days) to defrost it in the refrigerator.
2. Remove the neck and giblets (heart, gizzard, liver).
3. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
4. Wash the turkey inside and out with water. Pat the turkey dry with paper towels. Lather the outside of the turkey with a mixture of 2 tbsp Olive Oil, 2 tbsp melted butter and 3 cloves of minced garlic. Take a knife and gently move it side to side in between the outer skin and the flesh of the turkey. Once you have created a “pocket” rub the combination of 2 tbsp of butter and 2 cloves of minced garlic into the pocket of flesh and skin. Now take 5 cloves of garlic (crush them with the side of your knife), 3-4 sprigs of thyme and 1 onion cut and quartered.
5. Place turkey in a roasting pan with the breast side up. Along the side of the turkey place 5 more whole cloves of garlic and 1/2 onion roughly chopped. Cover the whole turkey with a aluminium foil tepee.
6. Cook at 400 degrees for 3 1/2-4 hours (make sure to check the turkeys temp it must be 160 degrees F).

1. Pour 2 boxes of whole cubed bread stuffing into a large casserole or baking dish.
2. Chop 4 sticks of celery and 1 onion. Saute with 4 tbsp butter, salt and pepper.
3. Mix vegetable mixture into the stuffing mix along with 1 can of chicken broth (carefully pour chicken broth as to not over soak stuffing) and 1/2 cup of melted butter.  Once turkey is done cut off about 1 1/2 cups of turkey and stir everything together well and place in the oven at 350 degrees and cook for 30 minutes or until golden brown on top.

Homemade Cranberry Chutney (sauce)

Ingredients:

• 1 lb package of fresh whole cranberries
• 2 cups white sugar
• The juice of one orange and 1 tsp orange rind
• 1 cinnamon stick

Directions:

1. Place sugar in water and bring to a boil. Stir until the sugar is completely dissolved.
2. Wash cranberries well and place them into the boiling water. Then reduce the heat to a simmer and toss in orange rind. Let simmer for 20 minutes then cool.
3. If you want to make your cranberries a jellied all you have to do pour cranberries into a strainer and press through into a bowl or mold and place in the refrigerator for 3 hours or until firm. For easy unmolding lightly grease the inside of the bowl before pouring in the cranberries.

Green Bean Casserole

Ingredients:

• 1 can Campbell’s Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 tsp soy sauce
• Dash ground black pepper
• 4 cups cooked cut green beans
• 1 1/3 cups French’s Fried Onions

Directions:

1. Stir the soup, milk, soy sauce, black pepper, beans and 2/3 cup of onions in a  casserole dish.
2. Bake at 350°F. for 25 minutes or until the bean mixture is hot and bubbling.  Stir the bean mixture.  Sprinkle with the remaining onions.
3. Bake for 5 minutes or until the onions are golden brown.

My personal favorite Green Bean Dish

Ingredients:

• 3 cups whole fresh green beans (1lb)
• 1/2 diced onion
• Salt and pepper
• 1 clove garlic minced
• 3 slices of bacon

Directions:

1. Cut bacon into 1 inch pieces. Pre-heat saute pan. Once hot add bacon and reduce heat to medium. Cook until just before crispy. Remove from heat.
2. Add green beans and onions  to rendered bacon fat. Cook until al dente season with salt, pepper, garlic and add bacon.

Marshmallow and Sweet Potato Dish 

Ingredients:

• 1 package of small size marshmallows
• 3 large sweet potatoes diced into 1 inch pieces.
• 4 tbsp melted butter
• 1 tbsp condensed orange juice
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Directions:

1. Cut sweet potatoes into 1 inch pieces and blanch off in boiling water for about 2 minutes or until slightly tender.
2. Strain water and place sweet potatoes in a casserole dish.
3. Make sauce with melted butter, condensed orange juice and cinnamon. Pour sauce over sweet potatoes. Cover generously with marshmallows.
4. Bake in the oven at 325 degrees for 20 minutes or until golden brown.

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