For your convenience, here is the outline with timestamps. Please like and share this episode. It helps a ton! OUTLINE: 00:00 - Intro 00:3:29 - Good mashed potatoes 00:06:22 - Orange-colored sides 00:08:47 - Lasagna and mac and cheese 00:11:17 - Stuffing/dressing 00:13:21 - Bread 00:19:00 - Easy vegetables 00:22:19 - Cranberry sauce 00:24:08 - More obscure sides 00:26:45 - Tara doesn't like these 00:31:42 - Our top 5 00:33:44 - Question 1 - dried parsley 00:36:49 - Question 2 - homemade ravioli, pasta, gnocchi
Love you guys!! JIM! Your wife told you a number of times she REALLY likes the stuffing with chestnuts. Over and over. And you said the chestnuts were a pain to deal with. SUCK IT UP! Make this for her. She's telling you she wants it. No more "traditional Thanksgiving" for us. My parents are gone; my brother is 3000 miles away; my sister is no-contact. My MIL/FIL are gone; my SIL/BILs don't want to cook (one BIL cooks dinner for the rest a few times a week (Husband does another dinner night). Husband and I already bought a turkey breast, just simple stuff: turkey, sweet potatoes, veggies, stuffing, cranberry.
We never had a zillion sides. Turkey, onion sage stuffing, home made cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, 1-2 vegetables , rolls, sweet potatoes simple, gravy.
We no longer do stuffing and we’ve cut out three of the more-than-enough side dishes. Too much food can’t be appreciated. We like it this way much better
I don’t like rich side dishes, like anything creamy like creamed spinach or even the Campbell’s green bean casserole., with thanksgiving dinner. But I finally tried the green bean casserole just maybe 3-4 years ago. I didn’t make it for Thanksgiving but always wanted to try it, so made it with a roasted chicken, no gravy & stuffing, a much simpler, leaner meal. I used fresh green beans, added fresh mushrooms, and used TJ’s crispy onions- and I loved it! I probably would not like it with frozen green beans, or overcooked ones, so I was very particular about that, and I added Worcestershire sauce and had a bigger ratio of green beans to sauce than the original. I thought, “No wonder people love this!” For the first time in our lives, we decided against cooking a Turkey for thanksgiving this year and we’re going to have prime rib because we are older and my failing health just makes it impossible now. We tried paring down the sides and simplifying, over the past couple yrs, but the whole ordeal of making the stock, the gravy, straining, fat-separating and using almost every cooking utensil and pots, pans, roasting pans, you name it…..I can no longer do it even with my husband doing more than his share. So this is a turning point for us. We love a turkey dinner so much, I usually buy 2 turkeys and freeze one away to have another turkey dinner in January! It’s been only the two of us for 2 decades now but we always did the whole she-bang , so we will miss it. We will make some of the sides to have along with other meals during the month, we’ll still have the cranberry, yams, baked squash, dressing, just not all in one meal.
Grew up in an Irish home. Finely chopped cranbery relish with orange peel and sugar. Just dairy and potatoes for a mash (no garlic or slivered almonds), grew up in the North and we always had marshmallows. One thing the South excels at is a cornbread / sausage stuffing. Gotta mix half wheat and half corn breads.
I love cranberry relish/sauce with orange! I haven't made it for Thanksgiving yet, but I make with dinner when fresh cranberries are in season. So good!
We make what we call creamed corn, but it isn't. We cut the tips off fresh corn and then scrape the cobs down, too. That goes on the stove or in a casserole and we add butter, salt, pepper and a bit of sugar. We seat 10 to dinner and I calculate 2 ears per person. Everyone who has ever had loves it.
I think what you call creamed corn is exactly that: creamed corn. When you scrape off every bit of the remains and the milky corn juices, after you cut off the kernels, put it all together, that’s what creamed corn is. Never heard of adding sugar, though. It’s sweet already.
Jim, I LOVE the way you use language! And, by the way, if there’s anything I’ve learned in my 73 years on this planet it’s “There is hardly anything more UNwelcome than unsolicited advice.”
My Italian-American family almost always had lasagna/manicotti/shells, stuffed mushrooms and/or stuffed artichokes, and anti-pasta in addition to 8-10 of the more traditional sides
Creamed corn casserole is always a side at my family Thanksgivings. Very simple - can of creamed corn, beaten egg, milk and crushed saltines. Dab butter on the top and bake. Yum!
My signature dish is buckwheat ravioli stuffed with roasted butternut squash and chevre sauced with hazelnut and sage brown butter. Yeah, I like to make pasta.
I loved homemade stuffing from growing up as a kid; my son loves mashed potatoes with gravy. All the rest was just catch as catch can until about a decade ago, when I started working on doing the dinner for a whole family group, brining the turkey, doing the stuffing, string beans, brussels sprouts, etc., and with other sides coming in from the rest of our extended family. It's all good, whatever you like. In the end, it's all about family and friends and getting together, and that's why I now enjoy Thanksgiving far more than Christmas (which is a whole 'nother story). I particularly glad you mentioned lasagna, since my brother got us into that, and I used to go with him to get the fresh pasta sheets from Pasta Fresca in Bensonhurst and fresh mozz' from Leoni's a few blocks away; we never had it for Thanksgiving ourselves, but every year we had two or three trays of lasagna to last us through most of the winter. And I definitely love doing the mashed potatoes with roasted garlic....that makes it a great side for any meal.
It's pedantic, not pandentic. 😉 Pedantry aside, one year I made mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes using recipes from Epicurious. The mashed potatoes include garlic and celery root, and the sweet potatoes have orange juice and ginger with a streusel topping made from oatmeal cookies. The mashed potatoes got mixed reviews, but the sweet potato recipe has been part of our Thanksgiving menu for years now. Green bean casserole made with cream of mushroom soup and topped with fried onions is big here in the Midwest, but it's too rich for me. As I've gotten older, I prefer my Thanksgiving sides to be on the light side; ie, salads, vegetables simply prepared, etc.
I grew up watching, helping and then taking over the pasta making from my mom. I don’t consider it difficult at all, yes, it does take time but that’s where planning comes in. Ravioli is easier if it’s a group effort. Maybe I think it’s easy because when I started it was all done by hand, including a rolling pin. Having the newer tools helps.
I hope ya'll don't mind that I chime in like this all the time. I just feel like I want to join in on the conversation and I love talking about food and cooking. LOL! I'll say this about the instant potatoes - the Hungry Jack brand is not bad at all! I used them when I didn't have any potatoes in the house and my hubby loved them. Real is always better of course. I boil 4 - 5 cloves of garlic in with the potatoes. I also love to use the instant potatoes to thicken soups or certain gravies. OHHHH! I'll be watching for the Chicken Paprikash and can't wait to see how you make it. I promise I will not send any criticism LOL! because I grew up eating that often and my Mom's recipe is very traditional. I still make it the same way. In fact, I'm putting together a cookbook with all "her" recipes that she cooked for us as kids (including creamed spinach), and the Paprikash is the headliner in the book - It's just for my family though. We ALWAYS had Braised red cabbage for Thanksgiving and Christmas. We ALWAYS had a green bean casserole with the mushroom soup. We ALWAYS had home made stuffing, like the recipe you mentioned. My Mom always made WAY too much food, but we loved it and we all got to take some home. I know you dislike the dried basil. I dry a LOT of it (and Oregano) because I always have too much basil at the end of the season and can only make so much pesto. These two dried herbs are great for cheese dips, compound butter, marinades and in soups and stews. No it doesn't taste like fresh, but it adds nice flavor. But like any dried herb, if it's old it loses quality. Dried parsley smells to me like a horse barn. I've made home made pierogies much like ravioli - too much work for me.
One of my sisters used to bring lasagna to Thanksgiving every year for several years. I loved it and still nag her to make again, but she never feels like it! As for sweet potato casserole, it is a MUST. My mom made a delicious one for what would be her last Thanksgiving, but because I wasn't cooking at the time, I never got the recipe. Fast forward 2-3 years, and I found the recipe from the book The Gift of Southern Cooking, and I've been making it ever since. An oddball side that's a holiday staple is "pink stuff," which is a raspberry cranberry Jello mold that's absolutely delicious! It's raspberry Jello, whole cranberry sauce, and sour cream mixed together and poured into a salad mold (or whatever dish you want).
My New Orleans family makes a dressing with a combination of cornbread and stale Bread (from French Bread), sausage, trinity, oysters, egg and broth. The dressing is so filling it can be an entree. It’s awesome with gravy on it.
I love your podcasts and Tara adds an interesting level to it every week. Have to admit I too love the canned cranberry sauce but I like my own more. You showed a clip of James during this podcast and I’m shocked at how tall he’s getting and how much he is changing. I think the kid is terrific… He has a lot of personality and is a pleasure to watch. Looking forward to your next podcast.
Southern Mama here and…. O my goodness! Creamed corn… get the kernels off the cob and into your iron skillet… add butter, pepper, salt, some milk.. stir and cook and stir until it’s done. Yummy! I don’t recognize any of your suggestions about how to make it. And out of the can? Horrors! My Sweet Potato Casserole recipe is as delicious as a Sweet Potato Pie! No marshmallows… but lots of butter and sugar and a tsp of vanilla… and a topping of brown sugar and pecans and flour… YUMMY! Tara, you might love this one!
Happy Birthday Jim!!! I’m an October too. Turned 50 on 10/22. As for sides, they’re my favorite part of the TG meal too. Can’t wait for next weeks video.
Happy Birthday, Jim! Love your content . Your web site and your podcast. Now live in Western Mass, a northern Jersey girl and a LI boy. No reason to go back to LI )no family left) for good ravioli. And gnocchi!
I feel about sweet potatoes the way you feel about potatoes! Sides have always been my favorite! The rolled turkey breasts are favorites among the meat eaters in my fam, but the creole spice rub on the turkey sounds good too Tara!
Thank you for all you do! I enjoy ALL the content you put out. Move on quickly from any negative comments and focus on the positive. As the Thanksgiving holiday approaches, I’m thankful that I can tune in and learn something new. Thank you Jim and Tara. Kind regards, Carolyn
I'm all about the sides!!! Stuffing specifically. Yummm. But mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes plain baked, homemade green bean casserole, rolls, cranberry sauce, jello salad, tossed salad along with turkey and gravy, make a wonderful meal in our home. Growing up in Connecticut, all my friends had marshmallows on their sweet potatoes.
It’s never too late! I never had it growing up, and never had it until I was in my late 60s. But I made it my own way with fresh green beans and fresh sautéed mushrooms, and I thought it was stunning! But you only would like it if you like mushrooms (I do) and I love Campbell’s mushroom soup. I didn’t make it for Thanksgiving, but on another night in Nov-Dec for a different meal. Goes with anything: steak, lamb, chicken…
@@jeanniebrooks I do not like Campbell’s cream soups. I love green beans but not in a sauce. I just laugh because I am old enough to remember when it emerged and marketed by Campbell’s and Durkees as America’s traditional dish for Thanksgiving and then I read the story of the woman who worked for Campbell’s and how she invented it. With mashed potatoes and gravy on the table, more creamed foods seems for me a bit much. I love mushrooms and homemade mushroom soup. Do you know that the folks in Iowa eat a lot of casseroles using creamed soups? Just see their community cook books. It’s a hoot.
I love stuffing - and I don't care what the hypochondriacs say about it's dangerous to cook stuffing in a bird, I still do it. Our family has been making stuffing in turkey (and chicken) for decades and no one ever got sick from it. That said, I do love chestnut stuffing as Tara says. I found a Mediterranean grocery store and they sell cooked, peeled chestnuts in vacuum bags (from Turkey). Easy peasy!
Jim/Tara On corn bread dressing : try making hot water cornbread instead of a cake of it. The hot water cornbread has more crust surface area, so it stands up to the moisture better. Also, since it is fried it doesn't taste dry. Just make several batches ahead of time, more than double what you need because it disappears.
I am Poliish and it wasn't Thanksgiving without Kielbasa and sauerkraut, homemade coleslaw, and cauliflower with bread crumbs. All ethnicities have their own preferences. I hope you all have a very happy Thanksgiving!
thank you guys for this pod…super cool ideas! I think the key to a great Thanksgiving meal (or really any meal) is to prepare as much as you can ahead of time.
Salad??? 💝 your podcast. Thanks for your thoughts. Turkey, stuffing, dinner rolls and cranberry sauce was our base and then we tried all types of things. All kinds of veggies, soup or maybe different salads. I guess living in CA made us very adventurous. Especially when we married we would come home to our parents with all kinds of new sides. Lots of fun and memories. Thanks again for your ideas. ❇❇❇
Brag away!! We were so many in our household on a daily basis, that yes, we used boxed stuffing and mashed potatoes. Also, turkey paper plates and the same pattern for napkins and cups. I can’t recall a Thanksgiving where anyone was unhappy using the boxed sides or paper goods. Happy Thanksgiving, Jim, Tara and your families. 🦃
I’m liking your podcast..i always do the Turkey and gravy.. Sage stuffing is a must as well as Sweet potato casserole with mini marshmallows/pecans/brown sugar struesel. Potato ricer mashed are sooooo good! I agree about the roasted garlic.. but my family said NO garlic save it for the stuffed shells, another must in my house…. My family usually show up with their favorite sides and that makes it so much fun! One thing I’d like to add a fresh element amongst all the other items…i make a homemade cole slaw which is the perfect fresh crunchy side dish! Happy Holidays Guys!
Can homemade gnocchi be frozen? Thanksgiving for me could be nothing but side dishes, with some good gravy for the potatoes. Plus pecan pie, of course!
I freeze gnocchi all the time. Freeze right after you make it. Put a single layer on a tray then in a ziplock once frozen. Cook right from the freezer, they’ll float when done.
My moms strange Thanksgiving menu, Green Salad (on the table always) Turkey, stuffed pork loin with mexican squash, rice and beans, steamed green beans, garlic spinach, rolls, pe khan pies (about four- one for each brother). Cinnamon rolls served after everyone woke up from the food coma. odd eh
Being originally from the Midwest, green bean casserole, shortened to GBC in my family, is my absolute favorite. I’m not talking about the stuff mixed together with canned beans and Campbell’s (though there is nostalgia there), but a homemade version. Make your own mushroom cream sauce with a variety of mushrooms, use fresh or frozen green beans…I actually prefer frozen for ease, but also because they are picked and flash frozen at peak freshness. The fresh version at the store that time of year tends to be not exactly that fresh and the frozen still gives you a great crunch compared to the soggy canned variety. The only thing I don’t make is the crunchy onions. That just isn’t worth it to me. My family always had: mashed potatoes w/ gravy, GBC, dressing, and the jellied cranberry sauce (my dad just won’t go for any other, haha).
I’m from the south (north central Florida) and still here and I say it pee-can. I have made homemade pasta and I enjoy doing it. I’ve made wide noodles for chicken noodle soup and smaller noodles for spaghetti and such. I made it completely by hand no rolling machine I used a rolling pin and a pizza cutter to cut them. They are easy to make but are a little labor intensive. Buying a pasta machine either a hand crank or one that attaches to a kitchen aid would make it easier and possibly a little faster. To me they are worth the extra work but I don’t do it every time we have pasta. You can make large batches and freeze it, it freezes well. I agree with Tara I never liked dressing as we call it in the south until I started making it myself. I don’t know what my family puts in it that I don’t but I can’t stand even one bite of theirs. My grandmother eats with us every thanksgiving and she loves my dressing. She told me how to make it and I do know I use a different poultry seasoning than my family uses maybe that’s the difference. Jim you can dry out your cornbread for dressing. Some people leave it out uncovered on the counter over night to let it go stale or you could always break it or cut it up in smaller pieces and toss it in the oven like you would for homemade croutons. And make the cornbread at least a few days before. One thing I do which some may not do or like is I mix a little of the Pepperidge farm cornbread dressing mixed in it. I boil 10 pounds of chicken quarters and make my own broth. And on creamed corn I had never heard of making it with milk and all that stuff. We grow it and make it as we are putting it up in the freezer. We use silver queen corn and you can use a cheese grater or they make a board with a little blade section on the middle of it to strip the corn. After you shuck it and get all the silk off and wash it you run the cob over the grater over and over even after all the corn is off you run it over the grater and “milk” the cob all the juice comes out of it. Then you blanch it and bag it and put it in the freezer. When you go to cook it you put it in the pot as is and cook it. The grater takes the kernels off in pieces and you also get a lot of juice out of it then milk the cob all of the natural juices from the corn is milky and creamy you won’t need all that added stuff. If you can find silver queen corn on the cob fresh at one of your grocery stores try a small batch of it maybe do 6-8 ears of it and see if you like it. It is sweet but not near as sweet as the canned stuff it’s a different kind of sweet.
Happy Birthday Jim! It sounds like your birthday is Halloween mine is the day before. You have two years on me lol. At this point 2 years don’t mean much lol. Ok maybe they do I appreciate each year I’m here with my family.
I laughed when you said you lived in Minnesota for three years and still didn't understand Midwestern culture. My husband and I moved from the NY tri-state area to a suburb just west of Minneapolis (work-related transfer), and it took me at least a decade to assimilate. And after all my years here, I still don't know if there's a precise definition of what qualifies as a hotdish, so I keep calling them casseroles.
I’ve made the Trader Joe’s one, I used crimini mushrooms, TJ’s mushroom soup and their onions. I doctored up the flavor-it was my first time and I liked it a lot. But it’s too rich for Thanksgiving.
I always thought PEE-can was Southern, and pee-CAHN was North Eastern. But you think the opposite, Jim! And I thought cornbread stuffing and mac’n cheese was Southern.
I’d get mashed potatoes -gotta have that for the gravy. The fries are a great combo with steak, though. I hate roasted garlic in mashed potatoes though. It ruins it for me. Potato pancakes are too rich to have with a Turkey and gravy Thanksgiving dinner. And I like both roasted butternut squash and roasted red garnet yams (or sweet potatoes) with dinner. Not either/or, but both! I’m from New England, and marshmallow & sweet potato casseroles were common everywhere, just like the green bean casserole . I never knew it was a southern thing! I thought everybody made it. I always make bread stuffing with both chestnuts and sweet turkey sausage stuffing, but the turkey sausages are getting difficult to get.
Green bean casserole is my favorite. In fact one day it dawned on me that I don't just have to eat it during the holidays so now I make it several times throughout the year. I just do the basic canned version. It's quick and easy. Oddly enough I've had Green Bean Casserole made from scratch multiple times and frankly it's never been very good. It's always super bland and under seasoned. That's the issue, even making it from scratch there's so few ingredients that it's real easy to screw up because of that.
It’s not bland if you add flavor. I add Worcestershire, a bit of garlic powder, fresh mushrooms are key, coarse black pepper. Use a very flavorful cheese - how could it be bland then? Extra sharp white cheddar or Gruyere! I have to have fresh green beans- the others are too soggy. Just plan it so you don’t overcook the beans. Like you, I’ve never made it for Thanksgiving, but do make it now & again for other meals. It sure isn’t bland!
@@jeanniebrooks I could definitely see using some extra sharp Vermont White Cheddar. I wouldn't normally add cheese to a Green Bean Casserole but heck... it's a casserole so why not.
My mother wet brined a turkey one year. It was a disaster. We don't know if she messed up, or if she just got a bad turkey. Her whole house smelled of rotting meat as it cooked.
We may be in the minority but I agree with you. I would never dream of using a mixer on mashed potatoes. It taste like you’re eating wallpaper paste. I like some texture in my mashed potatoes so they taste like actual potatoes.
Fresh parsley tastes like grass to me. I don't want to eat a bunch of lawn clippings. Fortunately or not, I have a super sense of smell and taste, so I detect things in food and aromas that 99% of people can't. I like fresh basil, but also the dried basil which has a lemony flavor to me. I hate fresh thyme, but I like dried thyme. We all experience our senses differently, and we shouldn't be critical of people who like different things that we may not. If it tastes or smells good to you, use it and enjoy.
28:00 Apart from refined, processed sugar being poison? No, nothing wrong with it 😅 You can make a delicious cranberry sauce using apples as your sweetener, instead of refined, processed sugar.
Homemade, sage and onion stuffing. Do not want it any other way. No meat in my stuffing. Stuffing is my favorite dish. I hate cornbread stuffing.i do not like cornbread
For your convenience, here is the outline with timestamps. Please like and share this episode. It helps a ton!
OUTLINE:
00:00 - Intro
00:3:29 - Good mashed potatoes
00:06:22 - Orange-colored sides
00:08:47 - Lasagna and mac and cheese
00:11:17 - Stuffing/dressing
00:13:21 - Bread
00:19:00 - Easy vegetables
00:22:19 - Cranberry sauce
00:24:08 - More obscure sides
00:26:45 - Tara doesn't like these
00:31:42 - Our top 5
00:33:44 - Question 1 - dried parsley
00:36:49 - Question 2 - homemade ravioli, pasta, gnocchi
Love you guys!!
JIM! Your wife told you a number of times she REALLY likes the stuffing with chestnuts. Over and over. And you said the chestnuts were a pain to deal with. SUCK IT UP! Make this for her. She's telling you she wants it.
No more "traditional Thanksgiving" for us. My parents are gone; my brother is 3000 miles away; my sister is no-contact. My MIL/FIL are gone; my SIL/BILs don't want to cook (one BIL cooks dinner for the rest a few times a week (Husband does another dinner night). Husband and I already bought a turkey breast, just simple stuff: turkey, sweet potatoes, veggies, stuffing, cranberry.
We never had a zillion sides. Turkey, onion sage stuffing, home made cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, 1-2 vegetables , rolls, sweet potatoes simple, gravy.
We no longer do stuffing and we’ve cut out three of the more-than-enough side dishes. Too much food can’t be appreciated. We like it this way much better
I don’t like rich side dishes, like anything creamy like creamed spinach or even the Campbell’s green bean casserole., with thanksgiving dinner. But I finally tried the green bean casserole just maybe 3-4 years ago. I didn’t make it for Thanksgiving but always wanted to try it, so made it with a roasted chicken, no gravy & stuffing, a much simpler, leaner meal. I used fresh green beans, added fresh mushrooms, and used TJ’s crispy onions- and I loved it! I probably would not like it with frozen green beans, or overcooked ones, so I was very particular about that, and I added Worcestershire sauce and had a bigger ratio of green beans to sauce than the original. I thought, “No wonder people love this!”
For the first time in our lives, we decided against cooking a Turkey for thanksgiving this year and we’re going to have prime rib because we are older and my failing health just makes it impossible now. We tried paring down the sides and simplifying, over the past couple yrs, but the whole ordeal of making the stock, the gravy, straining, fat-separating and using almost every cooking utensil and pots, pans, roasting pans, you name it…..I can no longer do it even with my husband doing more than his share. So this is a turning point for us. We love a turkey dinner so much, I usually buy 2 turkeys and freeze one away to have another turkey dinner in January! It’s been only the two of us for 2 decades now but we always did the whole she-bang , so we will miss it.
We will make some of the sides to have along with other meals during the month, we’ll still have the cranberry, yams, baked squash, dressing, just not all in one meal.
Grew up in an Irish home. Finely chopped cranbery relish with orange peel and sugar. Just dairy and potatoes for a mash (no garlic or slivered almonds), grew up in the North and we always had marshmallows.
One thing the South excels at is a cornbread / sausage stuffing. Gotta mix half wheat and half corn breads.
I love cranberry relish/sauce with orange! I haven't made it for Thanksgiving yet, but I make with dinner when fresh cranberries are in season. So good!
We make what we call creamed corn, but it isn't. We cut the tips off fresh corn and then scrape the cobs down, too. That goes on the stove or in a casserole and we add butter, salt, pepper and a bit of sugar. We seat 10 to dinner and I calculate 2 ears per person. Everyone who has ever had loves it.
I think what you call creamed corn is exactly that: creamed corn. When you scrape off every bit of the remains and the milky corn juices, after you cut off the kernels, put it all together, that’s what creamed corn is. Never heard of adding sugar, though. It’s sweet already.
Homemade cream corn is awesome! it’s all about the corn, so make it when corn is in season!
Jim, I LOVE the way you use language! And, by the way, if there’s anything I’ve learned in my 73 years on this planet it’s “There is hardly anything more UNwelcome than unsolicited advice.”
My Italian-American family almost always had lasagna/manicotti/shells, stuffed mushrooms and/or stuffed artichokes, and anti-pasta in addition to 8-10 of the more traditional sides
Creamed corn casserole is always a side at my family Thanksgivings. Very simple - can of creamed corn, beaten egg, milk and crushed saltines. Dab butter on the top and bake. Yum!
Stuffing/Dressing FTW!!!!! Made with cornbread, sausage, and dried cranberries.
My signature dish is buckwheat ravioli stuffed with roasted butternut squash and chevre sauced with hazelnut and sage brown butter. Yeah, I like to make pasta.
Wow! That sounds special! Bet you’ll be asked to make it every year.
I loved homemade stuffing from growing up as a kid; my son loves mashed potatoes with gravy. All the rest was just catch as catch can until about a decade ago, when I started working on doing the dinner for a whole family group, brining the turkey, doing the stuffing, string beans, brussels sprouts, etc., and with other sides coming in from the rest of our extended family. It's all good, whatever you like. In the end, it's all about family and friends and getting together, and that's why I now enjoy Thanksgiving far more than Christmas (which is a whole 'nother story). I particularly glad you mentioned lasagna, since my brother got us into that, and I used to go with him to get the fresh pasta sheets from Pasta Fresca in Bensonhurst and fresh mozz' from Leoni's a few blocks away; we never had it for Thanksgiving ourselves, but every year we had two or three trays of lasagna to last us through most of the winter. And I definitely love doing the mashed potatoes with roasted garlic....that makes it a great side for any meal.
I always enjoyed other people making side dishes for the workplace holiday meal.
Delicious ! What about the stuffed mushrooms ? Gotta have them.
It's pedantic, not pandentic. 😉 Pedantry aside, one year I made mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes using recipes from Epicurious. The mashed potatoes include garlic and celery root, and the sweet potatoes have orange juice and ginger with a streusel topping made from oatmeal cookies. The mashed potatoes got mixed reviews, but the sweet potato recipe has been part of our Thanksgiving menu for years now. Green bean casserole made with cream of mushroom soup and topped with fried onions is big here in the Midwest, but it's too rich for me. As I've gotten older, I prefer my Thanksgiving sides to be on the light side; ie, salads, vegetables simply prepared, etc.
Your comment was my comment & I love that someone said it first.
All love. Good vibes only : )
Not podiatic?
@@ChrisCupcake3 Me too! Because I was afraid if I pointed it out, I would be accused of being pedantic. rofl
Literally all of us were feeling like that. We can be pedantic & supportive together : )
Now you are all being pedantic lol. J/K. Now I will know how to properly insult from this point on.
I grew up watching, helping and then taking over the pasta making from my mom. I don’t consider it difficult at all, yes, it does take time but that’s where planning comes in. Ravioli is easier if it’s a group effort. Maybe I think it’s easy because when I started it was all done by hand, including a rolling pin. Having the newer tools helps.
We made the artichoke dish for thanksgiving last year and agreed to make it a new staple of our meal
I hope ya'll don't mind that I chime in like this all the time. I just feel like I want to join in on the conversation and I love talking about food and cooking. LOL! I'll say this about the instant potatoes - the Hungry Jack brand is not bad at all! I used them when I didn't have any potatoes in the house and my hubby loved them. Real is always better of course. I boil 4 - 5 cloves of garlic in with the potatoes. I also love to use the instant potatoes to thicken soups or certain gravies. OHHHH! I'll be watching for the Chicken Paprikash and can't wait to see how you make it. I promise I will not send any criticism LOL! because I grew up eating that often and my Mom's recipe is very traditional. I still make it the same way. In fact, I'm putting together a cookbook with all "her" recipes that she cooked for us as kids (including creamed spinach), and the Paprikash is the headliner in the book - It's just for my family though. We ALWAYS had Braised red cabbage for Thanksgiving and Christmas. We ALWAYS had a green bean casserole with the mushroom soup. We ALWAYS had home made stuffing, like the recipe you mentioned. My Mom always made WAY too much food, but we loved it and we all got to take some home. I know you dislike the dried basil. I dry a LOT of it (and Oregano) because I always have too much basil at the end of the season and can only make so much pesto. These two dried herbs are great for cheese dips, compound butter, marinades and in soups and stews. No it doesn't taste like fresh, but it adds nice flavor. But like any dried herb, if it's old it loses quality. Dried parsley smells to me like a horse barn. I've made home made pierogies much like ravioli - too much work for me.
I agree with you about the smell of dry parsley. You’re right on. I would never ever use it for anything.
Growing up we never stuffed the turkey. My famliy would put the turkey neck on top of the stuffing to bake the flavor in.
One of my sisters used to bring lasagna to Thanksgiving every year for several years. I loved it and still nag her to make again, but she never feels like it! As for sweet potato casserole, it is a MUST. My mom made a delicious one for what would be her last Thanksgiving, but because I wasn't cooking at the time, I never got the recipe. Fast forward 2-3 years, and I found the recipe from the book The Gift of Southern Cooking, and I've been making it ever since. An oddball side that's a holiday staple is "pink stuff," which is a raspberry cranberry Jello mold that's absolutely delicious! It's raspberry Jello, whole cranberry sauce, and sour cream mixed together and poured into a salad mold (or whatever dish you want).
I'd love to see a fresh pasta and/or ravioli video!
Happy Belated Birthday, Jim! 🎉😊
My New Orleans family makes a dressing with a combination of cornbread and stale Bread (from French Bread), sausage, trinity, oysters, egg and broth. The dressing is so filling it can be an entree. It’s awesome with gravy on it.
Make what you feel comfortable doing Jim .Happy Birthday.
Sides for the win!! I just drafted our Thanksgiving menu and plan, but it might change by the end of this podcast! 😅
I love your podcasts and Tara adds an interesting level to it every week.
Have to admit I too love the canned cranberry sauce but I like my own more. You showed a clip of James during this podcast and I’m shocked at how tall he’s getting and how much he is changing. I think the kid is terrific… He has a lot of personality and is a pleasure to watch. Looking forward to your next podcast.
Happy Birthday Jim!
Baked Brussels sprouts in Chestnuts and chicken stock!👍🏼
Southern Mama here and…. O my goodness! Creamed corn… get the kernels off the cob and into your iron skillet… add butter, pepper, salt, some milk.. stir and cook and stir until it’s done. Yummy! I don’t recognize any of your suggestions about how to make it. And out of the can? Horrors!
My Sweet Potato Casserole recipe is as delicious as a Sweet Potato Pie! No marshmallows… but lots of butter and sugar and a tsp of vanilla… and a topping of brown sugar and pecans and flour… YUMMY! Tara, you might love this one!
Yes on the creamed corn! The natural cornstarch thickens it, no need for a roux.
Happy Birthday Jim!!! I’m an October too. Turned 50 on 10/22.
As for sides, they’re my favorite part of the TG meal too. Can’t wait for next weeks video.
Happy Birthday, Jim! Love your content . Your web site and your podcast. Now live in Western Mass, a northern Jersey girl and a LI boy. No reason to go back to LI )no family left) for good ravioli. And gnocchi!
I buy Rana ravioli & tortellini in California. It’s the best I know of, much better than TJ’s, which I used to buy sometimes.
I feel about sweet potatoes the way you feel about potatoes! Sides have always been my favorite! The rolled turkey breasts are favorites among the meat eaters in my fam, but the creole spice rub on the turkey sounds good too Tara!
Thank you for all you do! I enjoy ALL the content you put out. Move on quickly from any negative comments and focus on the positive. As the Thanksgiving holiday approaches, I’m thankful that I can tune in and learn something new. Thank you Jim and Tara. Kind regards, Carolyn
I'm all about the sides!!! Stuffing specifically. Yummm. But mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes plain baked, homemade green bean casserole, rolls, cranberry sauce, jello salad, tossed salad along with turkey and gravy, make a wonderful meal in our home.
Growing up in Connecticut, all my friends had marshmallows on their sweet potatoes.
Aloha! You guys are great! The whole show is fantastic! I now want to make a couple sides and force them on my family!😜❤️🤙🥂
Love roasted vegetables. No green bean casserole! Never was on our table growing up
It’s never too late! I never had it growing up, and never had it until I was in my late 60s. But I made it my own way with fresh green beans and fresh sautéed mushrooms, and I thought it was stunning! But you only would like it if you like mushrooms (I do) and I love Campbell’s mushroom soup. I didn’t make it for Thanksgiving, but on another night in Nov-Dec for a different meal. Goes with anything: steak, lamb, chicken…
@@jeanniebrooks I do not like Campbell’s cream soups. I love green beans but not in a sauce. I just laugh because I am old enough to remember when it emerged and marketed by Campbell’s and Durkees as America’s traditional dish for Thanksgiving and then I read the story of the woman who worked for Campbell’s and how she invented it. With mashed potatoes and gravy on the table, more creamed foods seems for me a bit much. I love mushrooms and homemade mushroom soup. Do you know that the folks in Iowa eat a lot of casseroles using creamed soups? Just see their community cook books. It’s a hoot.
I love stuffing - and I don't care what the hypochondriacs say about it's dangerous to cook stuffing in a bird, I still do it. Our family has been making stuffing in turkey (and chicken) for decades and no one ever got sick from it. That said, I do love chestnut stuffing as Tara says. I found a Mediterranean grocery store and they sell cooked, peeled chestnuts in vacuum bags (from Turkey). Easy peasy!
Jim/Tara On corn bread dressing : try making hot water cornbread instead of a cake of it. The hot water cornbread has more crust surface area, so it stands up to the moisture better. Also, since it is fried it doesn't taste dry. Just make several batches ahead of time, more than double what you need because it disappears.
I am Poliish and it wasn't Thanksgiving without Kielbasa and sauerkraut, homemade coleslaw, and cauliflower with bread crumbs. All ethnicities have their own preferences. I hope you all have a very happy Thanksgiving!
thank you guys for this pod…super cool ideas! I think the key to a great Thanksgiving meal (or really any meal) is to prepare as much as you can ahead of time.
Salad??? 💝 your podcast. Thanks for your thoughts. Turkey, stuffing, dinner rolls and cranberry sauce was our base and then we tried all types of things. All kinds of veggies, soup or maybe different salads. I guess living in CA made us very adventurous. Especially when we married we would come home to our parents with all kinds of new sides. Lots of fun and memories. Thanks again for your ideas. ❇❇❇
Fresh Parsley tastes like fresh 🍋 lemon zest 😊
Brag away!!
We were so many in our household on a daily basis, that yes, we used boxed stuffing and mashed potatoes. Also, turkey paper plates and the same pattern for napkins and cups. I can’t recall a Thanksgiving where anyone was unhappy using the boxed sides or paper goods. Happy Thanksgiving, Jim, Tara and your families. 🦃
Luv this podcast! I’m planning an Italian American Thanksgiving so this is super info😋
Oh…stuffing is my favorite! Have to have sausage in it. I use toasted white bread.
Corn pudding savory from Nigella Lawson is so delicious.
Sausage, celery, onion with walnuts and apple stuffing IN THE BIRD.
Homemade Cranberry all the way.
I’m 100% there for the sides and only the sides. A cold turkey sandwich the day after (with plenty of mayo) is ok but not a big deal.
I’m liking your podcast..i always do the Turkey and gravy.. Sage stuffing is a must as well as Sweet potato casserole with mini marshmallows/pecans/brown sugar struesel.
Potato ricer mashed are sooooo good! I agree about the roasted garlic.. but my family said NO garlic save it for the stuffed shells, another must in my house…. My family usually show up with their favorite sides and that makes it so much fun!
One thing I’d like to add a fresh element amongst all the other items…i make a homemade cole slaw which is the perfect fresh crunchy side dish!
Happy Holidays Guys!
Can homemade gnocchi be frozen?
Thanksgiving for me could be nothing but side dishes, with some good gravy for the potatoes. Plus pecan pie, of course!
I freeze gnocchi all the time. Freeze right after you make it. Put a single layer on a tray then in a ziplock once frozen. Cook right from the freezer, they’ll float when done.
My moms strange Thanksgiving menu, Green Salad (on the table always) Turkey, stuffed pork loin with mexican squash, rice and beans, steamed green beans, garlic spinach, rolls, pe khan pies (about four- one for each brother). Cinnamon rolls served after everyone woke up from the food coma. odd eh
Happy Birthday
fave side dish of mine are the small half sliced stuffed squash…
Correct! Lasagna was the first course.
Being originally from the Midwest, green bean casserole, shortened to GBC in my family, is my absolute favorite. I’m not talking about the stuff mixed together with canned beans and Campbell’s (though there is nostalgia there), but a homemade version. Make your own mushroom cream sauce with a variety of mushrooms, use fresh or frozen green beans…I actually prefer frozen for ease, but also because they are picked and flash frozen at peak freshness. The fresh version at the store that time of year tends to be not exactly that fresh and the frozen still gives you a great crunch compared to the soggy canned variety. The only thing I don’t make is the crunchy onions. That just isn’t worth it to me.
My family always had: mashed potatoes w/ gravy, GBC, dressing, and the jellied cranberry sauce (my dad just won’t go for any other, haha).
Southern side dish is baked macaroni and cheese
Is it possible for you to put links to the sides you discussed?
I’m from the south (north central Florida) and still here and I say it pee-can. I have made homemade pasta and I enjoy doing it. I’ve made wide noodles for chicken noodle soup and smaller noodles for spaghetti and such. I made it completely by hand no rolling machine I used a rolling pin and a pizza cutter to cut them. They are easy to make but are a little labor intensive. Buying a pasta machine either a hand crank or one that attaches to a kitchen aid would make it easier and possibly a little faster. To me they are worth the extra work but I don’t do it every time we have pasta. You can make large batches and freeze it, it freezes well. I agree with Tara I never liked dressing as we call it in the south until I started making it myself. I don’t know what my family puts in it that I don’t but I can’t stand even one bite of theirs. My grandmother eats with us every thanksgiving and she loves my dressing. She told me how to make it and I do know I use a different poultry seasoning than my family uses maybe that’s the difference. Jim you can dry out your cornbread for dressing. Some people leave it out uncovered on the counter over night to let it go stale or you could always break it or cut it up in smaller pieces and toss it in the oven like you would for homemade croutons. And make the cornbread at least a few days before. One thing I do which some may not do or like is I mix a little of the Pepperidge farm cornbread dressing mixed in it. I boil 10 pounds of chicken quarters and make my own broth. And on creamed corn I had never heard of making it with milk and all that stuff. We grow it and make it as we are putting it up in the freezer. We use silver queen corn and you can use a cheese grater or they make a board with a little blade section on the middle of it to strip the corn. After you shuck it and get all the silk off and wash it you run the cob over the grater over and over even after all the corn is off you run it over the grater and “milk” the cob all the juice comes out of it. Then you blanch it and bag it and put it in the freezer. When you go to cook it you put it in the pot as is and cook it. The grater takes the kernels off in pieces and you also get a lot of juice out of it then milk the cob all of the natural juices from the corn is milky and creamy you won’t need all that added stuff. If you can find silver queen corn on the cob fresh at one of your grocery stores try a small batch of it maybe do 6-8 ears of it and see if you like it. It is sweet but not near as sweet as the canned stuff it’s a different kind of sweet.
Happy Birthday Jim! It sounds like your birthday is Halloween mine is the day before. You have two years on me lol. At this point 2 years don’t mean much lol. Ok maybe they do I appreciate each year I’m here with my family.
The pies are the most important part of the meal!! You need at least 3 or 4 different kinds!!
I laughed when you said you lived in Minnesota for three years and still didn't understand Midwestern culture. My husband and I moved from the NY tri-state area to a suburb just west of Minneapolis (work-related transfer), and it took me at least a decade to assimilate. And after all my years here, I still don't know if there's a precise definition of what qualifies as a hotdish, so I keep calling them casseroles.
Happy 45th bday!
I’ve made the Trader Joe’s one, I used crimini mushrooms, TJ’s mushroom soup and their onions. I doctored up the flavor-it was my first time and I liked it a lot. But it’s too rich for Thanksgiving.
Cranberry sauce is a condiment to me. I make 3 different ones.
No marshmallows ever!!. Pecans & little cinnamon, & a sprinkle of brown sugar & butter!!
Always Brussels!!!
What about glazed sweet potatoes.
Jim!!! Please tell me your family couldn’t have a holiday meal without cardones!!! It’s not a holiday if not!!
Yorkshire pudding!
I always thought PEE-can was Southern, and pee-CAHN was North Eastern. But you think the opposite, Jim!
And I thought cornbread stuffing and mac’n cheese was Southern.
I’d get mashed potatoes -gotta have that for the gravy. The fries are a great combo with steak, though. I hate roasted garlic in mashed potatoes though. It ruins it for me.
Potato pancakes are too rich to have with a Turkey and gravy Thanksgiving dinner.
And I like both roasted butternut squash and roasted red garnet yams (or sweet potatoes) with dinner. Not either/or, but both!
I’m from New England, and marshmallow & sweet potato casseroles were common everywhere, just like the green bean casserole . I never knew it was a southern thing! I thought everybody made it.
I always make bread stuffing with both chestnuts and sweet turkey sausage stuffing, but the turkey sausages are getting difficult to get.
Green bean casserole is my favorite. In fact one day it dawned on me that I don't just have to eat it during the holidays so now I make it several times throughout the year. I just do the basic canned version. It's quick and easy. Oddly enough I've had Green Bean Casserole made from scratch multiple times and frankly it's never been very good. It's always super bland and under seasoned. That's the issue, even making it from scratch there's so few ingredients that it's real easy to screw up because of that.
It’s not bland if you add flavor. I add Worcestershire, a bit of garlic powder, fresh mushrooms are key, coarse black pepper. Use a very flavorful cheese - how could it be bland then? Extra sharp white cheddar or Gruyere! I have to have fresh green beans- the others are too soggy. Just plan it so you don’t overcook the beans. Like you, I’ve never made it for Thanksgiving, but do make it now & again for other meals. It sure isn’t bland!
@@jeanniebrooks I could definitely see using some extra sharp Vermont White Cheddar. I wouldn't normally add cheese to a Green Bean Casserole but heck... it's a casserole so why not.
I love the idea of attempting homemade pasta!
@@tami3407 That's great. Try some Green Bean Casserole while you're at it?
I don’t like canned cranberry like you don’t like Campbell’s mushroom soup and dried basil. 😄
The thing about making homemade pasta is that not everyone has a pasta maker / roller.
Campbells created this recipe and heavily advertised it as a must have on the table and as being traditional 😂
But Campbell’s has promoted many other dishes, but this one stood the test of time. People made this dish famous, not Campbell’s.
Whole cranberry sauce is a condiment in my opinion.
Agreed fresh herbs are better
I grew up with canned jellies cranberry sauce. I still love it!
I have zero desire to make homemade macaroni of any type. It’s something I have no problem spending money on for convenience.
I would not make homemade pasta, but I am considering grinding my own meat.
My mother wet brined a turkey one year. It was a disaster. We don't know if she messed up, or if she just got a bad turkey. Her whole house smelled of rotting meat as it cooked.
If you like it, then they will like it.
Only like sweet potatoes baked with butter, salt and pepper and no brown sugar or marshmallows or nuts added
Me too, but I bake them until the sticky syrup oozes out of them and use lots of butter, S, no pep. Sooo gooood!
@@jeanniebrooks Yes!
I want to be good at what I make and cook. I buy raviolli.
Not creamed corn-corn pudding. Skip green bean blahserole
Your recipe is like mine. I do not put vanilla in it. I do your orange liquor and orange juice
The problem with dehydrated potatoes is that you can't make rustic mashed with them. I like potatoes with some texture.
We may be in the minority but I agree with you. I would never dream of using a mixer on mashed potatoes. It taste like you’re eating wallpaper paste. I like some texture in my mashed potatoes so they taste like actual potatoes.
People eat boxed potatoes?? OMG😱
Fresh parsley tastes like grass to me. I don't want to eat a bunch of lawn clippings. Fortunately or not, I have a super sense of smell and taste, so I detect things in food and aromas that 99% of people can't. I like fresh basil, but also the dried basil which has a lemony flavor to me. I hate fresh thyme, but I like dried thyme. We all experience our senses differently, and we shouldn't be critical of people who like different things that we may not. If it tastes or smells good to you, use it and enjoy.
People eat Stove top and Pepperidge farm mix for stuffing? Just no
Do not ruin green beans
Hate creamed corn. Never liked it. Too sweet and hate consistency. Only like kernal corn
Ever made if from fresh corn on the cob? Then make it into a chowder with potato and onion, add more kernels and add shrimp or lobster!
@@jeanniebrooks as long as it has no sweetness and does not look like something regurgitated. I don’t like corn chowder either.
28:00 Apart from refined, processed sugar being poison? No, nothing wrong with it 😅
You can make a delicious cranberry sauce using apples as your sweetener, instead of refined, processed sugar.
Homemade, sage and onion stuffing. Do not want it any other way. No meat in my stuffing. Stuffing is my favorite dish. I hate cornbread stuffing.i do not like cornbread
Dopamine?