The Meal That Keeps on Giving

I'm on meal number 285 of leftover Thanksgiving food. Okay, maybe that's a little bit of an exaggeration. BUT... come on. The leftovers just go on and on. I guess it's good that I really like my own cooking. LOL

Is this enough food for three people??

So, in the spirit of awesome food, today I'm going to share a few recipes that always make it to my Thanksgiving table. These are tried and true crowd-pleasers - maybe because there's booze in them. (No worries, the alcohol cooks off and is only there for flavor). 

I hope you try and enjoy them. Happy Thanksgiving leftovers!

- Alex

Warm Cranberry Compote

serves 6

2 T butter

1 small bunch of green onions

1/4 C cognac

2 C of fresh cranberries (you can also use frozen whole cranberries)

1/2 C water

1/2 C sugar

a pinch of salt

Dice the green onions including a lot of the green bit. Saute the green onion in the butter over medium heat until the onion is soft. Deglaze the pan with cognac. Add the cranberries, water, and sugar. Bring to a boil and boil until the berries pop and the compote thickens. Add a pinch of salt. Remove from heat and keep warm. This dish can be made up to three days ahead of your meal and stored, tightly covered, in the fridge. Just warm gently before serving.

Bourbon Sweet Potatoes with Buttered Pecans

serves 8

6 large sweet potatoes

3 T (or more) bourbon

1 stick of butter (softened)

2 C pecan halves

1 t Kosher salt

2 T packed dark brown sugar

Preheat oven to 425. Prick the sweet potatoes with a fork and bake in the middle of the oven until tender, about 1 hour. (use a baking pan or they'll drip sugary stuff all over your oven) When just cool enough to handle, peel and mash until smooth. Add bourbon (I use more than the three T's the recipe calls for...) and 6 tablespoons of the soft butter and mix well. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer potatoes to a 2 quart gratin dish or similar shallow baking dish. The mash can be made up to two days ahead and stored, covered, in the fridge. Bring the potatoes up to room temperature before proceeding. 

Reduce oven temperature to 325. In a shallow baking pan, spread the pecans in a single layer and bake until fragrant - about 10 minutes. Toss the hot pecans with the remaining 2 T of butter and the course salt. Arrange pecans on top of the mashed sweet potatoes and sprinkle with brown sugar. Bake the potatoes until heated through and pecans are slightly browned - about 30 mins. 

Green Bean Casserole

DON'T JUDGE ME!

2 cans of Del Monte French-cut green beans

1 can of Campbell's cream of mushroom soup

A whole mess of French's French-fried onions

Black pepper

Heat oven to 325. The actual recipe on the back of the onion container also calls for milk. I find that makes the casserole too soupy. So, just mix the beans and the soup together in a casserole dish. Mix in some black pepper and some of the french fried onions. Put a layer of onions on top of the casserole and bake, uncovered, until warmed through and the onions are a bit browned - about 30 mins.