The Caterist Files ~ Don't Get Sidelined this Thanksgiving!!

I start thinking about Thanksgiving months before its time!! Yes, I'm one of those crazies who makes lists for the lists! I spend days thinking about what I want to serve, and how to make it different from last year. And that changes over the course of the weeks before Thanksgiving. Now, the good old turkey and mister ham are invited to every Thanksgiving, and they pretty much stay standard and true to what the family favorites are. Now, the sides...they're another story!!! I like to take a little bit...well, maybe a lot...of advantage of 'chef's choice' law with the sides. I might not get too crazy with them, as nothing breaks up a nice gathering better than a full mutiny, but I do like to twist the recipes a bit! Let me share some tips and recipes that I use...maybe you can twist up your Thanksgiving feast a bit, too!!

As far as Sides go, we've all partaken in the standards...Dressing, Green Bean Casserole, Sweet Potatoes, Mashed Potatoes, Corn Casserole, Broccoli Rice Casserole...and they're all very good in their classic form. But after 25 plus years of the same old, same old...it's time to expand our culinary horizons. I'm moving away from the canned high sodium Cream of... Soups, and away from over sweetened sides...we DO have desserts, after all! I'm kicking up flavors of the humdrum mashed potatoes, and putting a good swift kick into the classic corn casserole! Let's cook!!

Shall we begin by dressing up the Dressing?? My classic dressing is a recipe that has morphed over the decades, from my mother's original white bread giblet dressing. The bread has become a mixture of both cornbread and white bread, for the different flavors. It can take on a variety of add-ins without giving up its original identity! For this twist, we're leaving out the giblets.

You can do this with your own personal favorite dressing, as we're just adding in a few items to give extra pizazz. We've got a honey crisp apple, chopped, a handful of dates, chopped, a handful of dried apricots, chopped and a handful of pecans, toasted and chopped. Just toss them in with your dressing, and bake!! The apples will soften, and the dry fruits will become soft, and all will lend a delicious fruitiness to the dressing, to be offset by the wonderful crunchy texture of the toasted pecans. These fruits and nuts work in tasty concert with the celery and onions and sage that are already a part of the seasonal favorite! Your Thanksgiving guests will be amazed!

And, it's not Thanksgiving without the old Green Bean Casserole!! We're taking this favorite uptown! The classic recipe uses a canned cream of mushroom soup. And it doesn't have mushrooms in it except for the miniscule bits in the soup. We're going to fix that! Here's my version, The Uptown Green Bean Casserole.

I like to use a mix of cremini and button mushrooms for this recipe, along with a half cup of chopped sweet yellow onion. You can use your favorites. I go with a pint, total, freshly sliced. Saute them in a pan over medium heat, in a mix of 2 tablespoons, each, of olive oil and butter. Strip a couple of sprigs of fresh thyme into the pan. Mushrooms love thyme!!! It's a wonderful marriage of flavor! When the mushrooms have given off their liquid and have turned a luscious golden brown, sprinkle over a quarter cup of flour and stir to mix and cook off the raw flour flavor. Add a good pinch of kosher salt and several grinds of fresh cracked black pepper. Stir to blend the flavors. Next, add in 2 cups of home made or good quality of chicken stock. Note: if you want the dish to be vegetarian, use vegetable stock. Increase heat and bring to boil. Reduce to simmer and cook until you have a nice, thick consistency. Add in a a few dashes of soy sauce and a half cup of heavy cream; stir to blend.

While this is going on, get a good sized pot of water boiling. Clean and halve 2 pounds of fresh green beans. When the water is up to temperature, add a palmful of kosher salt and add the green beans. Let cook for 5 to 7 minutes, strain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process. Add these into the mushroom sauce and place in a family size casserole. Dress the edges with French's Fried Onions, if desired. Or, you can fry up some sliced shallots...my group likes the French's, so I give them that concession.

I tried it with the fried shallots one year, and you would have thought I was pulling the wings off of fairies, or something!! They really like the French's crunchies. It's very possible that that's the only reason they eat the green bean casserole! Anyway, bake this at 350 for 45 minutes to an hour, uncovered. You will have Uptown Green Bean Casserole! It'll be all bubbly and delicious!!

Next, we'll tend to the Corn Casserole...it's acceptable on it's own, but it's just so, I don't know...un-zippy?? Bland in its plain yellowness, it just has never done much for me. Now, this Fire Roasted Poblano Corn Casserole is a whole 'nother story!!

Start by fire roasting one or two poblano peppers,

easily done on the stovetop. You want them to be crusty dark all over. When they get to this point, put them in a bowl and cover it with plastic wrap, so the poblanos will steam, and will release their skin.

Use paper toweling to wipe away the charred skin. It's ok if you don't get it all...it adds a nice smokiness. Cut the peppers open and remove the seeds and membranes and cut the flesh into strips. Cut the strips into bits and set aside.

While the peppers are roasting, dice a medium onion and mince 2 cloves of garlic. Saute them in a tablespoon of olive oil and butter, each. While this is going, in a large mixing bowl, add 2 cans each, of creamed corn and whole kernel corn, a box of Jiffy corn muffin mix, 3 eggs and a stick of butter that you have melted and cooled. Add in the poblanos and the sauteed onions and garlic. Sprinkle generously with kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper. Mix it until it's thoroughly combined and place in a family sized, buttered casserole dish. Bake at 350 for an hour or until it's set and golden brown.

Or next endeavor is waking up sweet potatoes!! I'm matching them with some new friends for a whole new flavor!!

This Roasted Winter Veggie Medley is not only tasty, it's downright beautiful!! Just look at those colors!! I take a pound and a half to two pound butternut squash and an equal weight of sweet potatoes, peel and dice into bite sized chunks. Clean and halve a pound of Brussels sprouts. Cut a large red onion into 1 inch chunks.

Put all of this on a sheet tray, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle generously with kosher salt and pepper.

Place in a 425 oven until tender and a bit caramelized, about 20 minutes to 30 minutes. While this is cooking, de-seed a pomegranate. The little jewels can be a bit difficult. One easy tip is to split the pom in half, then turn it seed side down and wack it with a wooden spoon, hard...yes, it's fun!! Try it!! Anyway, when the veggies are done , just toss it all together and put it in a pretty bowl.

Next, we'll wander through and take on the mashed potatoes! This recipe is formulated so it can, actually, be made ahead! That's always a bonus point for any Thanksgiving recipe!! Try these Smoked Gouda Mashed Potatoes with Chives!! They are a fun twist on the original!!

Start by washing 4 pounds of Yukon gold potatoes. The skin on these is so very thin, that you really don't need to peel. A scrub off is all that you need.

Put the cut potatoes in a large pot of well salted cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, just until tender.

I like to add roasted garlic to this recipe, for a nice garlicky flavor. Roasted garlic has an entirely different flavor from fresh, and it's deepened and mellowed by the roasting process.

You just cut the top off the head of garlic, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and wrap in foil. Bake at 425 for 45 minutes. When you unwrap, it will be golden and delicious! Just turn the garlic bulb over, after it's cooled enough to handle, and squeeze the cloves of garlic out!

We're going to use about half the head of garlic in this recipe. Store the rest in a small container with olive oil to cover. Keep refrigerated.

When the potatoes have become fork tender, remove and drain well. Return them to the still hot saucepan. Add in a stick of butter (or more, I won't tell!), and an 8 oz. package of room temperature cream cheese, a cup of sour cream, a half head of roasted garlic, a cup and a half of grated smoked gouda cheese and a good amount of kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper. Taste it at this point, for seasonings. Adjust as necessary. Stir in a quarter cup of chopped chives or scallions. Done!

Our next undertaking is to update the Cheesy Broccoli Rice Bake. Here's my Broccoli White & Wild Rice with Cranberries!

I like to use the Zatarain's brand of White & Wild Rice Pilaf for this, with a few adjustments. I begin by sauteeing about a cup of chopped onion and a teaspoon of minced garlic in 2 tablespoons of butter. When the onions are soft and translucent, stir in the rice blend. Stir to coat all of the rice grains...butter is tasty! Add water as stated on the box, add salt and pepper, cook per instructions. If you're using your rice cooker, use the white rice setting.

Meanwhile, rinse and deflower a head of broccoli crowns. Add to a well salted pot of boiling water and blanch for 5 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water, to stop the cooking process. Add the drained broccoli to the cooked rice along with a good half cup of dried cranberries, more or less, to taste. I'm leaving the heavy cheese out of this dish, as there is still cheesy goodness yet to come! All this needs is a simple topping of panko bread crumbs and butter with a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Bake at 375 just long enough to toast the breadcrumbs, about 15 minutes. Note: if you like your broccoli more well done, just blanch for a few extra minutes. It'll cook a bit more in the oven, so just keep that in mind.

And, last, but not least, on our Thanksgiving sides is Spinach Artichoke Mac & Cheese!! Have you noticed how we're sneaking extra veggies into these normally just starchy sides?? Yep, and they're gonna like it, too!!

We'll start with a large shallot and two cloves of garlic. Mince them finely and saute them in 2 tablespoons of butter. Do this over a medium heat, and stir often so they don't brown. When the onions are soft and translucent, stir in 3 tablespoons of flour. Stir and cook for a few minutes, to cook out the raw flour taste. Let it just begin to toast. Meanwhile, get a large pot of water boiling. Add a palmful of salt and 8 oz. whole wheat or regular pasta. Cook 2 minutes below al dente according to the package directions. It's going to continue cooking once in the oven. When the pasta is done, reserve 3/4 cup of the pasta water and drain the pasta. Set the pasta aside. Coming back to the sauce, we now whisk in 1/2 cup of milk and the reserved pasta water. Whisk constantly until it's thickened. Whisk in 1/2 cup of sour cream, 2/3 cup of mozzarella, 2/3 cup of Swiss cheese and a tablespoon of Parmesan. Once the cheese has melted, add the pasta, a 6 oz. bag of baby spinach and 9 oz. of frozen artichoke hearts that have been thawed and drained, a teaspoon of kosher salt and 1/4 teaspoon of fresh cracked black pepper. Stir well to thoroughly combine. Transfer this to a broiler safe baking dish that has been sprayed with a no stick coating. In a small bowl, mix together 1/3 cup of mozzarella with 3 tablespoons of Parmesan. Sprinkly this over the casserole. Broil until golden brown and bubbly!! Enjoy!

I sure hope you've enjoyed this little romp away from traditional and that you'll give one or more of these fantastic taste twists a try!! Maybe these will become new tradition for you and your family!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

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