Beyond-my-thoughts: November 2019

It's crazy to think that December is here!

Christmas is just right around the corner!

But, before that I wanted to share with you guys my favorite Thanksgiving dish.

I just realized that I haven't got a chance to share it with you guys.

This is what I've been making every year.

The turkey is hubby's, so maybe next time I'll ask him about it.

But, for now.

Here's my favorites!

Feel free to change it, add more seasoning to your liking!

It's good to add a little bit of your touch to meals.

Everyone doesn't have to follow the Recipe exactly as it is.

Enjoy!

How was your Thanksgiving by the way??

I hope its awesome.

Okay, for an Appetizer this doesn't have an exact recipe.

It's more of a visual reicope.

I got some Ritz crackers, Cheese, Salami.

The nose is cut up cheese and the eyes are chocolate chips!

Isn't cute? haha!

For Another Appetizer I love love this deviled.

I find myself making this just whenever!

Bacon Deviled Eggs

Ingredients

1/3 cup bacon, crumbled
6 eggs
1 teaspoon yellow mustard
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon paprika
Dried Parsley flakes for garnish

Instructions

Place the eggs in a bowl of hot tap water while you bring 2-3" of water to a boil in a pot.
Reduce heat to medium and after it stops boiling carefully lower eggs into pot with a spoon.
Cook for 15 minutes and then place eggs back in original bowl of water.
Wait ten minutes and then crack eggs on counter.
Peel eggs and cut in half.
Scoop out the egg yolks into a mixing bowl and mash. Add mayonnaise, mustard, salt and pepper.
Mix until smooth and fill crevice in eggs with mixture, piping if desired.
Garnish with paprika, crumbled bacon and parsley flakes

I'm obsessed with these!!

Sweet Potato Casserole with Marshmallows and Streusel

Ingredients

Mashed Sweet Potatoes:

3 to 3- 1/4 pounds sweet potatoes* peeled and chopped into large chunks
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup milk or half and half
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice
2 tablespoons brown sugar
salt to taste

Topping;

4 tablespoons unsalted butter softened
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup all purpose flour for a sturdier streusel add and additional heaping tablespoon of flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chopped pecans
2 -3 cups mini marshmallows or more, if you'd like

Instructions

Mashed Sweet Potatoes:

Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease a 2 or 2 1/2 quart casserole dish (preferably a rectangle or oval so there's a decent surface area for the topping; I use an 8x11) and set aside.
Place the sweet potatoes in a large pot, cover with water, and boil until tender (about 7 minutes, depending on the size). Drain really well and return to the pot. Add butter, milk, cinnamon, brown sugar and salt to the potatoes and mash until smooth. Use a hand mixer, if desired, to make them extra smooth. Taste the potatoes and add additional seasonings, if desired.
Transfer the mashed potatoes to the prepared casserole dish. Place in the oven until heated through (if they're already warm it will only take a few minutes). While the sweet potatoes are heating, prepare the topping.

Topping:

In a medium bowl, combine butter, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon and salt (I use a fork or rubber spatula to stir and mash the mixture), then mix in pecans.
Remove the sweet potatoes from the oven. Top with half the marshmallows, then sprinkle half the streusel over the marshmallows (pinching pieces together with your fingers). Top with the other half of the marshmallows and sprinkle the remaining streusel over the top. Place back into the oven for 8-15 minutes, until the topping is bubbly and golden brown (keep an eye on it so the marshmallows don't burn). You can also place it under the broiler very briefly to add a little more color to the marshmallows. Note: the longer it is in the oven the more likely that the marshmallows will begin to melt. Allow to sit at room temperature for several minutes before serving.

Cheesy Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients:

2-2.5 lbs Potatoes
3/4 Cup Milk
1/2 Cup Sour Cream
4 Ounces Cream cheese (Softened)
4 Tbsp Butter
Salt and Pepper to taste
1/2 Tsp Dried Rosemary
Chopped Parsley
Bacon, (Broken into Pieces)

Directions:

Heat oven to 350F. Grease 1 1/2 quart casserole.
Place Potatoes in the dutch oven, add enough water to cover
Summer about 15-20 minutes or until potatoes are tender; drain
In a large bowl, mashed potatoes until there' no lumps. Add Milk in small amounts, beat each addition
Combine cream cheese and sour cream in a large bowl; beat until smooth add half of the cheese, salt, pepper and butter
Add the cream cheese mixture to the potatoes, beat with a mixer.
Spread potato mixture in a prepared pan.
Bake uncovered for 30 minutes
Remove from over and sprinkle with remaining cheese, bacon pieces, and parsley
Bake for 5 minutes or longer until cheese melts.

Green Bean Casserole

2 cans Kitchen Sliced Green Giant green beans, drained
1 can Campbell's Cream of Mushroom soup
1 6 oz. container French's French Fried Onions
2/3 cup whole milk (you can use skim but whole is definitely tastier)
Salt and Pepper
Garlic powder
Onion powder

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a 2 qt. casserole dish combine green beans, soup and milk. Sprinkle in the salt and pepper, garlic powder and onion powder (typically 6 shakes of each) and stir together. Once ingredients are completely incorporated, pour half the container of french fried onions in the mix and mix together completely. Put into the oven and cook for 30 minutes. Take casserole out of the oven and sprinkle the remaining french fried onions on top. Place back in the oven and cook for 4-5 minutes or until french fried onions look really golden brown. Remove from the oven and let sit for 5 minutes before serving.

...And last but not the least,

My favorite Thanksgiving dessert!!

Pumpkin Roll!!!

INGREDIENTS

PUMPKIN CAKE INGREDIENTS:

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice (*or see below for substitution)
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup pumpkin puree
optional: powdered sugar (to sprinkle on at the end!)

CREAM CHEESE FILLING INGREDIENTS:

1 (8 ounce) brick cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
6 tablespoons butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

INSTRUCTIONS

TO MAKE THE PUMPKIN ROLL:

-Preheat oven to 375° F. Line a 15 x 10-inch jelly roll pan with parchment paper, leaving an extra 1-inch of parchment sticking up on both 15-inch sides of the pan so that you can easily lift the cake out after baking. (If you’d like the parchment to stick to the bottom of the pan more easily, sprinkle a little bit of water on the pan and then press the parchment paper on top of it. You can also lightly mist the top of the parchment paper with cooking spray for easier cake release afterwards, although it’s not required.)
-Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice and salt in a large mixing bowluntil combined.
-In a separate bowl, whisk eggs and granulated sugar for 1 minute until thick. Add in the vanilla and pumpkin, and whisk until just combined. Fold in the flour mixture with a rubber spatula, and stir together until just combined.
-Spread the batter evenly into prepared pan. Bake for 13 to 15 minutes, or until top of cake springs back when touched. Carefully lift the parchment paper and cake out onto a flat (and heat-safe) surface. Then slowly, use your hands to roll the cake — rolling from the short end to the short end — until it is completely rolled up. Transfer the cake roll to a wire rack, and cool until it reaches room temperature.
-While the cake is cooling, make the cream cheese filling (see below).
Once the cake has reached room temperature, transfer the cake roll to a flat surface, and carefully it until it is flat again (or mostly flat, it’s ok if the ends curl up a bit). Spread the cream cheese mixture evenly over cake, leaving a 3/4-inch border on all sides. Then carefully re-roll the cake, gently peeling away the parchment paper as you roll until you can completely remove and discard it. Tightly wrap the pumpkin roll in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour.
Remove and unwrap the pumpkin roll and transfer it to your serving dish. Lightly dust the pumpkin roll on all sides with powdered sugar, if you would like. Then slice* and serve.
If you have leftovers, just re-wrap the pumpkin roll in plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Or freeze for up to 3 months.

TO MAKE THE CREAM CHEESE FILLING:

Whisk together cream cheese, powdered sugar, butter and vanilla extract in a mixing bowl until smooth. If the filling is too thin, add more powdered sugar. If it is too thick, add a half teaspoon or two of water. (You want a medium consistency so that the filling is easy to spread, but not too warm or thin that it will ooze out of the cake when you’re rolling it up.)