Thanksgiving is coming up faster than ever, as Fall slowly fades away like the leaves on the trees. We enjoyed the beautiful colors for a week or two, but we can soon enjoy the amazing feasts of Thanksgiving and soon- Christmas.
Don’t put the Christmas tree up just yet! There are still so many amazing recipes you can follow to prepare an awesome bounty for you and your family. In this blog, we’re going to highlight some of the amazing side dishes you can make here in Appalachia for your family and guests. You can even make these and bring them to your family or friend’s place!
Many times you can make this as a “Sweet Potato Casserole” or sprinkle in the marshmallows. Either way, they compliment each other extremely well, and the brown sugar, marshmallows, and the yams mixed together are sure to please any picky eater. They’re also super easy to cook!
This recipe is from: https://www.epicurious.com/
Serves 8 – INGREDIENTS
4 pounds red-skinned sweet potatoes (yams), peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces
2/3 cup packed golden brown sugar
5 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Pinch of ground ginger
2 cups miniature marshmallows
1/2 cup sliced almonds
PREPARATION
Preheat oven to 375 °F. Arrange potatoes in 13 x 9 x 2-inch glass baking dish. Combine sugar, butter, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg and ginger in heavy small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Pour over potatoes; toss to coat. Cover dish tightly with foil.
Bake potatoes 50 minutes. Uncover; bake until potatoes are tender and syrup thickens slightly, basting occasionally, about 20 minutes. Increase oven temperature to 500°F. Top potatoes with marshmallows and nuts. Return to oven; bake until marshmallows begin to melt and nuts begin to brown, about 3 minutes.
You can’t have a Thanksgiving feast without the Pumpkin Pie. October may be over, but Fall is still the time of pumpkins! Here is a recipe on the “Perfect Pumpkin Pie” (I’m sure it isn’t better than your mama’s). It’s also a pretty easy recipe to follow if you’re a fan of the ole “dump it all together and mix” method.
This recipe is from: https://www.allrecipes.com/
Serves 8 – INGREDIENTS
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin
1 (14 ounce) can EAGLE BRAND® Sweetened Condensed Milk
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (9 inch) unbaked pie crust
PREPARATION
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Whisk pumpkin, sweetened condensed milk, eggs, spices and salt in medium bowl until smooth. Pour into crust. Bake 15 minutes.
Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F and continue baking 35 to 40 minutes or until knife inserted 1 inch from crust comes out clean. Cool. Garnish as desired. Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator.
Don’t forget the bacon, too. This is a staple in every kitchen spreading all the way down to good ole Southern cooking. Many people suggest the thickest flavory bacon to add that little extra to your green beans and potatoes, but that’s up to you! Here’s a recipe for making sure your measurements are balanced. (Although you can never have too much bacon.)
This recipe is from: https://www.allrecipes.com/
Serves 8 – INGREDIENTS
6 slices bacon, chopped
3 tablespoons butter
1 red onion, chopped
2 pounds fresh green beans, trimmed and snapped
8 small new potatoes, diced
1 large clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup chicken broth
1 1/2 teaspoons white balsamic vinegar salt and pepper to taste
PREPARATION
Place the chopped bacon in a skillet, and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until evenly browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain the bacon pieces on a paper towel-lined plate.
Melt the butter in a skillet with a lid over medium-low heat, and cook and stir the onion until translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the cooked bacon, green beans, potatoes, garlic, and chicken broth. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer over low heat until the green beans are tender, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle with vinegar, salt, and pepper, and serve.
Everyone has their own way to make cornbread. Jiffy is obviously the cheatin’ way of doing it, but it can be acceptable in certain situations. Upgrade your cornbread game by breaking out the cast iron skillet and impressing your family. The goal here is to get your husband to say “You make it better than my mom.” The ultimate compliment. Here is a recipe you can start with!
This recipe is from: https://www.feastandfarm.com/
Serves 6 – INGREDIENTS
2 cups self rising cornmeal mix not just plain cornmeal
2 eggs or 1 extra large egg
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/4 cup vegetable oil for the skillet if using cast iron
1 3/4 cups buttermilk or regular milk (start with 1 cup of liquid if you are using regular milk and add the rest as necessary)
PREPARATION
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
If you are using cast iron, place the 1/4 cup oil in the bottom of a 9″ skillet and place over high heat on your stovetop while you make the batter.
Pour the cornmeal into a bowl and add the oil, egg, and buttermilk. Mix until combined and drop a small amount into your skillet.
If it sizzles immediately, go ahead and pour in your batter to within 1 inch of the top. If you want a thinner cornbread, just don’t pour in as much.
Transfer the skillet from the stove top to the hot oven.
Bake 25-30 minutes or until golden and set.
Note: If you are not using cast iron, grease your pan with nonstick cooking spray and do not preheat the pan. Bake as directed.
Collard greens is a hard pleaser. Either people like collard greens, or they don’t. If you utilize a lot of the bacon fat from crisping the bacon for your greens, you can really inject a lot of flavor! Check out this recipe over at Divas Can Cook for the full details on how you can maximize the flavor out of your greens.
This recipe is from: https://www.divascancook.com/
INGREDIENTS
12 hickory-smoked bacon slices, finely chopped
2 medium-size sweet onions, finely chopped
3/4 pound smoked ham, chopped
6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 (32-oz.) containers chicken broth
3 (1-lb.) packages fresh collard greens, washed and trimmed
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon pepper
PREPARATION
Cook bacon over medium heat in a 10-qt. stockpot for 10 to 12 minutes or until almost crisp.
Add onion to stockpot, and sauté 8 minutes. Add garlic and ham, and sauté 1 minute. Stir in broth, collard greens, apple cider vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper. Cook 2 hours or until desired degree of tenderness.
Happy Thanksgiving from Little General Stores and be safe traveling all over beautiful Appalachia. You’re always welcome at our gas stations to grab you a snack to hold you over until you get there! Enjoy these awesome recipes and we hope they inspire you to cook something delicious this Thanksgiving dinner. (Or you can just bring the drinks, we sell 2-liters and cups.)
The 13 Arby’s restaurants franchised by Little General Stores were recently awarded $10,000 to grant to a nonprofit of their choice from The Arby’s Foundation.
We believe in investing in the future of Appalachia, and that is why we established the Little General Stores Scholarship Program over two decades ago and have donated over $175,000 to students since its inception.
Little General Stores, Inc. recently presented $75,000 to WVU Medicine Children’s to help support the hospital’s efforts in caring for patients and their families.
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