How to cook a Thanksgiving meal

Each Thanksgiving I would procrastinate and then run around at the last minute like a crazy woman.  Then I would google my recipes or frantically look for the ones I had printed out the previous year and then send poor Mister out to get my ingredients.

This year is different, we are visiting The Scrappys!

So in honor of that I thought I would save you procrastinators out there the trouble and lay it out for you...

Thanksgiving Pester Style. Click on the link to go directly to the recipe.

Turkey - Done as Roasted Sticky (see previous mention of it here) BUT.... this is important!  Follow the cooking directions of this guy... Click HERE

Spiral Ham - Yes we have both

Fresh Cranberry and Raspberry Vinegar Sauce- (nope the can does not do once you have had fresh) 

Green-bean and French Fried Onions Casserole -  (isn't this a staple)

Sweat Yams w/ brown sugar and butter -  (I leave them chunky)

Strawberry Pretzel Jello Desert - This is AMAZING

Apple Blackberry Sour Cream Pie -  MUST add the blackberries to make it extra special!!!

Spinach dip - I add artichoke to mine! (You can get canned or in a jar). Make sure to have plenty of sourdough chunky bread to dip in this!

Awesome Apple Cranberry Sausage Stuffing -  I add walnuts and leave out the Chicken parts.

Pester's Twice Baked Potato Casserole - (my own recipe and YUM) All the goodness that is in a baked potato and MORE!

6 large Potato's (Wash, leave the skins, quarter and boil until drain then mash, but don't mix until completely soft land smooth leave a tiny bit chunky).

Mix in your favorite seasonings (our most favorite for this dish is Roasted Garlic Red Bell Pepper) Season salt is good if you don't have anything fancy and pepper.

Add milk and butter to help mix.

Spread into casserole oven safe dish.

Layer 1 large container of sour cream over the top of potato mixture

Sprinkle Bacon bits over the top of sour cream (we use fresh chunky type).

2-3 cups of cheddar cheese over the top of the bacon bits.

Heat in oven at 350 F. uncovered for 20 minutes 

Sprinkle chives and more bacon bits over top and return to oven and broil for 2 minutes (or until golden brown, watch carefully so chives and bacon don't burn).

Black Olives - (to put on your finger tips)

Hawaiian Sweet Rolls - We loved them before we lived in Hawaii and LOVED them even more when we got there.

Gravy - a must have (I just buy he packets of turkey gravy from the store and add a small amount of drippings from my real turkey).

And if I am going to be honest here.... Last Thanksgiving SUCKED for the Pester family. We wanted to go and visit with family since we had a new baby and Momma wasn't in the mood to cook, (normally we have a big family gathering at our house). Our Suburban broke down on the side of the freeway and it was FREEZING.   We spent 4 hours... yes 4 hours at a truck stop waiting for the tow truck to take our Suburban back to our house and for Mister to get our other vehicle unstuck out of the gravel in our driveway and drive the 1.5 hours back to pick us up.  Yup. For reals!

This picture below is our do-over Thanksgiving the next month with just the Pester family in our own home. Not fancy but still very good! I didn't have the energy to make a fancy table.  

I hope you are blessed this Thanksgiving with lots of good food, good friends and family and great memories.

Gobble... Gobble!

-Sister Pester