The Gift of Giving

     A couple of weeks ago, my bible study group decided to “adopt” a family to cook Thanksgiving Dinner for… a pretty interesting concept, given the fact that only two of us know how to boil an egg.  It’s amazing how something so seemingly simple can spiral out of control.  Once you decide to take on a project like this, there’s a litany of questions to be answered.  Who do we give it to?  What do we make?  When do we deliver it… or do we even need to?  Maybe we should just invite them over?  If we invite them over, should we do it ON Thanksgiving or the day before.  Oh… and who’s going to make this stuff? 

     Before we knew it, we had a good old-fashioned conundrum on our hands.  One wanted to take it to a hospital and give it to people with sick loved ones.  Another wanted to give it to a woman who just moved into a Habitat home.  A third person thought we should find someone who was homeless.  At one point, we actually debated whether one of the families we were considering was “misfortunate” enough since they recently bought a flat screen.  Who knew doing something nice could be so wrought with questions. 

     Eventually, we decided to enlist the help of Aimee Fortney, “Not the Perfect Cook” (since we’re clearly not).  She gave us six idiot-proof recipes.  Instead of cooking the meal, we’re all going on a field trip to Kroger on Sunday night to buy the ingredients.  Hopefully we won’t get into a brawl in the aisles over whether to buy name brand or generic. 

     Once we’ve secured the loot, we’re going back to my house to package up each dish separately with the ingredients and the recipe tucked neatly inside.  I thought I’d share those with you in case you’re feeling altruistic, or you’re just an idiot in the kitchen and need some help figuring out what to take to your sister in-law’s.  Happy Thanksgiving! 

THANKSGIVING TURKEY

10 – 12 pound turkey
1 stick of butter, softened
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon sazón completa (I don’t have the slightest idea what this is… so don’t ask)
1 teaspoon seasoning salt
dash of cayenne
pinch of salt 
pinch of pepper
freshly squeezed lime juice
1 lime, cut in half
1½ to 2 cups white wine

Remove neck and giblets from turkey.  Set turkey in roasting pan and pat dry with paper towels.  In a small bowl, stir butter to soften completely and add all seasonings and lime juice.  Stir together to make a paste.  Lift the skin from the turkey, and rub underneath the skin with the butter paste, as well as on top of the turkey.  Sprinkle a little bit of salt and pepper on top of the turkey.  Stuff limes inside turkey.  Pour white wine in the bottom of the roasting pan.  Place in a preheated 325 oven, and baste every 30 minutes.  After about two and a half hours, when turkey is golden brown in color, cover with aluminum foil.  (if it is not golden brown, do not cover with foil yet, wait until the color is there.)  Roast for a total of about 3 ½ hours.  Let turkey rest before carving, to keep it moist.

CORNBREAD DRESSING

1 stick of butter, melted
2 cups diced celery
1 cup diced onion
4 cups crumbled cornbread (cornbread that has been prepared prior; either homemade or from a mix)
1 ½ Tablespoons sage
1 teaspoon salt
½ to 1 teaspoon celery salt (use amount to your taste)
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (again, use amount to your taste)
dash of cayenne pepper
1 ½ cups to 2 cups chicken stock
1 egg

Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl.  Lightly grease a 9 x 13 casserole dish and press all ingredients into bottom of dish.  Bake at 350 for 30 to 40 minutes.

Mashed sweet potatoes

3 large sweet potatoes
 2 tablespoons of butter
spoonful of brown sugar
1 tablespoon of cinnamon
a couple of splashes milk drizzle of honey

Pierce the potatoes with a fork, and bake at 350 for 40 minutes.  Remove from the oven, peel, then add to a mixing bowl, and mix all ingredients together until it’s creamy. 

Aimee’s Corn casserole

2 cans cream style corn
1 small box ( 8 ½ ounce size) corn muffin mix
1 small container ( 8 ounce ) sour cream
 2 eggs, beaten
3/4 stick butter, melted shredded cheese

Beat all ingredients together in a medium-sized bowl. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.  Top with shredded cheese, and continue cooking until the cheese melts.

CRANBERRY SALAD

2 cups fresh cranberries; (use the whole bag, actually)
2 packages of red jello; raspberry, strawberry or cherry
2 cups boiling water
2 cups sugar
make jello with the sugar, following package directions
2 oranges, cut into pieces or 1 can of drained mandarin oranges
2 apples cubed
small can crushed pineapple, drained
1 cup of pecans 

Pulse cranberries in the food processor.  Dissolve jello in hot water, then add sugar.  Mix all ingredients together and let it congeal in the refrigerator.

Broccoli cheese Casserole

1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 cup mayonnaise
1 egg, beaten
1/4 cup onions, chopped
3 (10 ounce) packages frozen chopped broccoli
8 ounces shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
salt and pepper to taste
1 dash paprika

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Butter a 9×13 inch baking dish.
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together condensed soup, mayonnaise, egg and onions.   Place frozen broccoli into a very large mixing bowl. (I like to use my large stainless steel bowl to mix this recipe thoroughly.) Break up the frozen broccoli. Using a rubber spatula, scrape soup-mayonnaise mixture on top of broccoli, and mix well. Sprinkle on cheese, and mix well. Spread mixture into prepared baking dish, and smooth top of casserole. Season with salt, pepper and paprika.   Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour.

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