Sweet Potato and Green Apple with Marshmallows

Sweet Potatoes or Yams along with slightly tart green apples, dusted with some brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg, baked till done, dotted with marshmallows at the end so it turns gooey, hot off the oven, is certainly a late fall treat I don't make often.

While not my favorite, this casserole is certainly a nice addition to Thanksgiving or Christmas menu. I prefer the white marshmallows, but, kids liked the pastel colored ones which is what I used in this recipe.

I par-cook the yams/sweet potatoes in the microwave first to cut down on baking time.

Ingredients
1 large Sweet Potatoes or Yam, sliced
1 large Green Apples, sliced
1 tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice Mix -or- ½ tsp each ground cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg
¼ cup brown sugar (more if preferred)
½ cup mini marshmallows
a few Tbsp evaporated milk (optional)

Preparation

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350°F
2. Arrange the yams or sweet potato slices in a 9-inch baking dish, add about ¼ cup of water, cover and microwave till par-cooked, drain excess water
3. Add the apple slices, spices, brown sugar, and some evaporated milk, stir well, pack down firmly and bake in a 350°F oven for about 30-35 minutes, checking for doneness/charring
4. Dot with marshmallows and place under broiler for a minute or so till gooey, remove from heat, allow to sit for a few minutes, and serve warm

Pumpkin Pie

Pumpkin and mildly sweet winter squashes are a few of my favorite winter vegetables - soups, poduthuvals, dals, risotto - I like to add them to dishes as often as I can. Pumpkin is a rich source of nutrients, high in fiber with an inherent mild sweet taste that goes well with most dishes, including sambar and pachadi - South Indian staples.

Pumpkin Pie, Apple Pie, Moo-less Chocolate Pie, Banana Cream Pie (and any sortof smooth-textured pudding-like pie filling), Strawberry Pie Glace are some of the kids' favorites, Cherry Pie being the least favored one.

I don't make pies often. Typically, something about the Holiday Season, with shorter days and colder weather inspires me to bake cookies, breads, and pies more often.

We made a Pumpkin pie during the Thanksgiving holidays recently. The recipe is the classic one found on the label of Libby's Canned Pumpkin.

The only simple changes I make to this famous recipe (as I have a chronic inability to follow a recipe exactly) are:

1. substitute brown sugar instead of sugar
2. only ½ cup of brown sugar instead of ¾ cup
3. use ready-made Pumpkin Spice mix

If making pie shell from scratch, I follow the standard single-crust pie pastry recipe, cook it, cool it before filling it and baking the Pumpkin pie.

Green Bean Casserole

Green bean casserole is one of my favorites, especially for Thanksgiving dinner. However, this year, I have made it quite a few times in the last few months, not just on Thanksgiving Day, possibly because casseroles are a great alternative to soups for quick and easy weeknight dinners.

Nothing special about this recipe - very much like what comes on the label of Campbell's™ soup cans. I change the seasoning a bit, and prefer Cream of Asparagus soup rather than Cream of Celery.

Frozen French cut green beans and canned soup makes for a quick meal that cooks under 30-35 minutes. If in season, fresh green beans cut into 1" pieces and blanched, along with a creamy sauce from scratch is a nice alternative (adjust cooking time as needed).

While Green bean casserole is typically served as a side dish, I make it a main meal especially on cold fall and winter nights. Seasoning and flavors can be adjusted to taste - I keep it fairly simple for the kids, and add a few drops of Tabasco™ sauce or Franks™ Red Hot for myself and D.

Ingredients
16 oz of frozen French-cut beans, thawed
1 can (10¾ oz) Cream of Asparagus (or Broccoli or Potato) soup
6 oz evaporated milk
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp lemon thyme seasoning (optional)
1 Tbsp French Onion Dip mix
2/3 can of French fried onions (about 4 oz)

Preparation

1. Pre-heat the oven to 375°F; reserve half of the French-fried onions to use as topping at the end
2. In a 9-inch square baking dish, combine all the ingredients, stir well and bake for about 25 minutes till bubbly; if preferred, use about 4oz of evaporated milk (+ a few Tbsp water) instead of 6oz, for a thick casserole
3. Top with the reserved French-fried onions and bake another 3 or 4 minutes to crisp the French-fried onions, taking care not to char them
4. Serve warm

Chicken in Cranberry Sauce

This Chicken in Cranberry Sauce dish came about experimentally on Thanksgiving. We were not making turkey, and I was not well enough to plan any special menu, but, since D likes chicken, I decided to make something different, something interesting, for him for Thanksgiving meal.

I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into thin cutlets, marinated in a simple marinade, and pan cooked till mostly done. Meanwhile, the cranberry sauce, with fresh whole cranberries and seasonings was done in a separate pan. Then, the chicken was thrown into the sauce and simmered till done. Garnish with some olives and fresh herbs.

Ingredients
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin slices/cutlets
marinade: red wine vinegar, soy sauce, ginger powder
1-2 Tbsp canola oil

for the cranberry sauce:
1 cup whole cranberries
2 shallots finely minced -OR- a small red onion finely minced
4 cloves of garlic finely minced
1 Tbsp brown sugar (or more if desired)
1-2 Tbsp Thai red curry paste
¼ cup white wine (optional)
1 Tbsp canola oil or butter
salt to taste

Preparation:

1. Marinate the chicken pieces in the marinade for about 20-30 minutes while assembling the sauce ingredients
2. Sauce:Sauté the shallots and garlic; combine the sauce ingredients with about a cup of water and allow to simmer on medium-low till cranberries are done - they mush up when pressed with the back of the spoon; mush some of the cranberries for thickness, and leave the others whole for presentation; adjust flavors to taste
3. In a hot pan, sear the chicken pieces, and allow them to cook through but not get rubbery and tough; poke with a fork or slice with a knife, if juices no longer run pink transfer the chicken pieces to the sauce and simmer till chicken feels done to your liking
4. Garnish: with sliced olives, cilantro, chives or any other favorite fresh herbs

Thanksgiving 2007

Until a few years ago, I never cooked a Thanksgiving meal at home. We usually try to drop off packaged foods at Oregon Food Bank collection centers and just enjoy the 4 day break from work routine.

I am not fond of turkey. But, to me, Thanksgiving meal is all about the sides. Usually, we visit D's family on Thanksgiving Day and have quite a good meal that I never felt the need to cook at home.

But, a year or so before our wee one arrived, D wanted to start making a simple meal for Thanksgiving at home. My favorites are cranberry sauce (made from whole fresh cranberries, when possible), green bean casserole, candied yams, stuffing and steamed corn.

D likes to cook turkey, but, a whole bird is a lot of effort and since I don't like it, we just resort to cooking a fairly medium-sized turkey breast. Turkey breast is brined overnight, then marinated for about 24-36 hours before cooking.

The marinade this time was: soy sauce, hot sauce, red wine vinegar, kecap manis and some herbs. Just before cooking, it is rubbed with a spice rub that D just makes up each year, and it is baked in a 345°F oven (with a foil tent) for about an hour, turning midway, till it is done. It was as moist as turkey can get, and had enough infused flavor to make it interesting - at least the piece D gave me to try :)

Now, stuffing is done separately, I am not fond of stuffing that has been inside the bird. And since we don't cook a whole bird, D put the turkey breast on the top rack of the broiling pan, and at the bottom the stuffing items are thrown together and baked in the oven while the turkey breast is getting done.

Stuffing: 2 cup cubed boxed stuffing mix, carrots, celery, potatoes, onions all chopped, 2 Tbsp butter, 1 cup stock and any favorite seasonings. Toss these together and spread it on the bottom of the broiling pan (top rack holds the turkey breast) and bake it along with turkey breast.

Green bean casserole is one of my favorites. I only make it around Thanksgiving and Christmas for some reason. While I prefer fresh tender green beans, blanched to crisp-tender, I used french-cut frozen green beans this time and they turned out just fine. Mixed with home-made sauce and baked, topped with french-fried onions, green bean casserole is a wonderful meal by itself.

Greenbean casserole sauce: 3 Tbsp flour, 1 Tbsp butter, 1 cup warm milk, 1 cup freshly grated colby jack or any other cheese that melts well, some water as needed, ¼ cup jalapeño tomato sauce (optional), ½ cup finely diced celery, french-fried onions, green beans

Toast the flour, add the butter, sauté (no lumps), add milk slowly and stir constantly, add the celery and jalapeño-tomato sauce and any seasoning/flavor let it thicken a bit, stir in the cheese, allow it to melt; add the thawed frozen french-cut green beans; stir to coat; transfer to a greased casserole dish; bake in a 350°F oven for about 15-20 minutes, top with french-fried onions and bake about 5 minutes more; serve warm.

Cranberry sauce: 1 cup fresh whole cranberries, 1 cup unsweetened tart applesauce, 4 Tbsp brown sugar, water as needed

Combine the cranberry sauce ingredients and cook over medium low till cranberries are soft but still discernible, not too mushy.