The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
The very first special meal I cooked as an adult (when I was living on my own at my first job in eastern Illinois) was Thanksgiving dinner for a couple of friends.
I had watched my Mom for years make this meal. I had an idea of what it took. There were very few recipes and just a bunch of throwing things together. So I dove in.
The meal turned out great but I cooked to feed an army because that how mom cooked; there were just a few of us. I discovered some neat ways to handle all of the leftovers and I’ve been hooked on Thanksgiving dinner ever since.
I love having a table full of food surrounded by family and friends. The sounds of clinking glasses, silverware pinging the good china, spurts of laughter; I just sit back and enjoy these sounds and sights as I give thanks.
I have a couple of goals in mind for Thanksgiving Day.
The first is to be thankful for everything, good and bad.
The second is to fill everyone up with good food and company.
The third is to have enough leftovers to send a couple of meals home with everyone.
I think these are the same goals my grandmother had every year we had holiday meals at their farm.
The day may seem to be crazy and hectic to get everything done, but just remember, it isn’t about the perfect table setting displayed in the magazine. It is about treasuring time together. So enjoy.
One of Michael’s and Austin’s favorite post-Thanksgiving meal is Shepherd’s Pie. It takes all of their favorite dishes and combines them into a one dish meal. I think they leave left-overs just so I can whip this up for them.
I don’t mind. It is one of my favorites too!
There really isn’t a true recipe for this dish. It is just a combination of what I have in the frig at the time.
I’ve put some measurements down as a guideline. You can make it any way you want.
The other recipes give the turkey a Mexican and Italian flavors. By the time I make these dishes, I wish we had Thanksgiving dinner more than once a year!
3 c. cooked stuffing/dressing
1 c. cranberry sauce
1 pound cooked sliced turkey
10 oz glazed carrots, green bean casserole or sweet potatoes
½ c. gravy
3 – 4 c. mashed potatoes
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Generously butter a pie pan or any other baking dish. Layer the pan with dressing as the bottom crust. Top with cranberry sauce, turkey, veggies, smothered in gravy. Use the mash potatoes as the top crust. Place pie plate on a baking sheet. Bake till heat through and potatoes turn golden. 35 – 40 minutes.
**If the mashed potatoes are stiff, warm them up in the microwave with a little bit of milk. I add shredded cheese to these potatoes to help give it a great golden color and flavor.
2 ½ c. cubed cooked turkey
1 ½ c. (12 oz) sour cream, divided
3 tsp taco seasonings, divided **
1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup, divided
1 ½ c. shredded cheddar cheese
1 small onion, chopped
½ c. salsa
¼ c. sliced ripe olives
10 flour tortillas
In a bowl, combine turkey, ½ c. sour cream, 1 ½ tsp taco seasonings, half of soup, 1 c. cheese, onion, salsa and olives. Place 1/3 c. filling on each tortilla. Roll up and place seam side down in a greased 9 x 13 baking dish. Combine remaining sour cream, taco seasoning and soup.
Pour over tortillas. Cover with tin foil and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
Sprinkle with remaining cheese.
Serve with shredded lettuce and chopped tomatoes.
Note: Taco seasoning is just chili powder, cumin, salt, pepper and I like to add paprika. Combine some of each seasonings according to your taste.
½ of a (1lb.) package of Rotini
2 c. cubed, cooked turkey (or 1 lb. ground beef)
1 c. chopped onion
1 small chopped green pepper
1- 28 oz can tomatoes, cut up
1 – 6 oz can tomato paste
1 – 4 oz can sliced mushrooms, undrained
1 tsp salt
½ tsp each..basil leaves and oregano
¼ tsp each ..garlic powder and crushed red pepper
2 c. mozzarella cheese shredded
Cook rotini according to package directions. Drain.
While rotini is cooking you can make the sauce. In a large pot add all ingredients except for the cheese. Simmer on low heat 20 minutes. Combine cooked rotini and sauce.
In a greased 3 qt baking dish, layer half sauce/meat mixture. Top with 1 c. shredded cheese. Layer remaining mixture and top with cheese. Bake 350 degrees for 35 minutes. Makes 6 – 8 servings.
(If using beef, cook ground beef with onions and green peppers. Drain fat then add remaining ingredients and follow the remaining instructions.)
Fun Turkey Facts about Thanksgiving. 88% of American will eat turkey at Thanksgiving. That is about 46 million turkeys. Many of them are grown right here in central Minnesota. Did you know old, large make turkeys are preferable to young toms? Young male turkey meat is stringy. The opposite is true for females. Old hens are tougher birds…hence the phrase “she’s a tough old bird!”
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As their four children pursue dairy careers off the farm, Natalie and Mark are starting a new adventure of milking registered Holsteins just because they like good cows on their farm north of Rice, Minnesota. (Natalie grew up in Stronghurst, the daughter of Becky and the late Larry Dowell.)
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