Over the weekend, I tried a new recipe that makes for a perfect little hostess gift to take to someone's house when you are a guest. With the holidays here, we could all use some ideas like these. As you can see, we put up our Christmas tree this weekend so, yes; the holidays are here.
This week I am preparing Thanksgiving at our house and will be hosting 9 people including Lauren, Nick and family, and my niece and husband coming from a town about 1-1/2 hours away so we are all excited about Thursday. In my family, it's all about the food! And you know how we all love to eat...
Here's the rundown to my Thanksgiving menu:
the turkey - we will be brining our turkey like we always do with this wet brine recipe that I've been using for years. Then we smoke it in the Traeger and it's the BEST turkey ever!
the stuffing - I always make my mom's recipe using bread and sage which is stuffed right into the bird. It's the only way in our family.
mashed potatoes - I now make Ina Garten's mashed potatoes for holiday meals and keep them in the crockpot. I make them ahead a day or two and put them aside so I can make other things.
gelatin salad - we have a traditional gelatin salad we only eat on Thanksgiving; our Hernon Green Gelatin Salad that my aunt always made when I was growing up in California. We celebrated holidays with them and this recipe became a tradition and everybody LOVES it.
special cocktail - This year, I am making my Harvest Apple Sangria which is a nice cocktail for a large group and very fall-sh, too.
sweet potatoes - I make this recipe for the sweet potatoes. My mom always made the kind with marshmallows on top. Now, I use a Hannah Freese, RD -approved recipe that everyone loves. I've made this the past two Thanksgivings now and it is a perfect sweet potato dish, not too sweet but really flavorful with the thyme and coconut milk. Everyone comments on it after the first bite, a real winner.
the pies - I always make pecan pie, pumpkin pie and this year I'm also making apple hand pies for the grandkids since these are their favorite. Pecan and pumpkin are the family favorites and traditional for our Thanksgiving.
The rest of the Thanksgiving meal are various versions and recipes that aren't necessarily traditional and end up just being what I feel like or whatever someone wants to bring such as the cranberry sauce, Brussel sprouts or green beans, rolls, etc. I always make the gravy from the turkey juice right beforehand. It's the perfect flavor and saltiness when you brine the turkey. I don't have a recipe for the gravy because it depends on the amount of juice you have but I do use chicken broth and a flour/water paste-type mixture to thicken it. Anyway, nobody will be going hungry on Thursday.
I've been thinking of making this truffle recipe for awhile and I finally had a reason this weekend when we were invited over to my sister's house for dinner. Then my friend, Ginny, stopped by the next day after our neighborhood walk and I gave her a few of them. Basically, they have passed the taste test. I use my 72% Trader Joe's dark chocolate (that I eat on a daily basis...) then you add some butter and cream.
I recently found some cute little mini cupcake holders while out shopping for Thanksgiving at Fred Meyer and Metropolitan Market so decided to try these out and they work perfectly.
I don't know where this recipe came from but there are a lot of chocolate truffle recipes out there. This one is Hannah Freese, RD - approved because it uses dark chocolate, heavy cream and butter. I did change the original version from rolling them in plain cocoa powder to a mixture of powdered sugar and cocoa powder (I don't like plain cocoa powder) and they turned out perfect. They have a little sugar in them but honestly, there is no way to totally avoid sugar this time of year so I just try to keep it to a minimum and this recipe falls into that category. Plus, this is not an everyday food I will eat. I suggest you make these the next time you get invited over to someone's house for a holiday gathering and I can guarantee that your host will love you for it.
Makes 18 (depending how large you roll them)
7 oz. semisweet or dark chocolate
1/3 cup 35% heavy cream
1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
sifted cocoa powder/powdered sugar for rolling, about 1/4 cup of each.
1. Chop chocolate. Combine cream and butter in a small saucepan; bring to a boil over medium heat. Remove cream from heat; add chocolate, stirring until chocolate is melted and smooth.
2. Cover the mixture and refrigerate for 2 hours or until firm enough to handle. Or if it’s cold enough weather, you can just leave it out on the counter for a few hours. Do not chill overnight because it will get too hard to handle.
3. Using your fingers, a small melon ball scoop or spoon, shape into small balls. Roll the balls in the cocoa/powdered sugar mixture.
4. Place on parchment lined baking sheet or tray, cover and refrigerate until firm.
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