Thanksgiving has always been my favorite holiday. As a child in the 1950s I would wake up early and smell the fire my father had made in family-room fireplace, right next to our kitchen. My mother was already in the kitchen making stuffing. She had to begin early because we had lots of aunts, uncles and cousins coming over for dinner A 22-pound turkey was a bare minimum.

My mother’s stuffing was a combination of breads, herbs, vegetables, butter, sauteed chicken livers, and stock. I usually would get downstairs as she was mixing everything together. I was her taster. I would tell her if there was something needed. She was very careful about any mixture because she told me you can always add ingredients but you can’t take them out.

She would stuff both cavities and if there was any left, make a bowl for my sister and I to eat later. Thanksgiving aside, stuffing is on my top-ten favorite food list.

Everything after that was pretty typical of Thanksgiving: Jellied cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, green beans with crispy onions with cream of mushroom soup.

We did have a relish tray that had olives, black and green, celery, radishes and green onions (scallions). Basically, I made most of my dinner out of stuffing, smothered in gravy. Dessert, of course, was traditional pumpkin pie with lots of whipped cream.

Years later, after I started college, I began to cook. Our dorm had a small kitchen. The food in the college dining hall was passable, but anytime I could get away with my own cooking I did.

After while other girls joined me. Everything was very simple then because our tiny dorm kitchen had limited supplies of utensils, pots and pans.

By the time I got married I was cooking up a storm. I had my own kitchen and all the handy gadgets I could get my hands on. After we had children, I needed something to do. I began talking to other car-pool moms about my love of cooking. I had fantasized about having my own catering business.

Fortunately, one of the mothers ask if I had any interest in catering their Christmas holiday party. After that I got one phone call after another. My catering career was launched.

I knew that as much as I loved my mother’s food, there were foods out there that were a bit more sophisticated and inspiring, like Beef Wellington. I also have to thank my customers because I learned to cook lots of foods just because I said I could. Thus, began my in-depth reading and collecting of cook books. And I began to put my own spin on most recipes.

For example, returning to Thanksgiving, canned cranberry sauce is okay, but cranberry relish is several delectable steps above the gelatinous tube of magenta-colored mixture containing high fructose corn syrup, water and citric acid. Oh yeah, and some processed cranberries. The relish is very easy and can be created with ingredients customized to your family’s tastes.

Another food I added to my own Thanksgiving dinner was a Corn Timbale. It looks beautiful and tastes delicious. It’s a combination of corn, cheese, eggs and cream. As a caterer, I cared very much about presentation. If food looked delicious, most likely it would taste delicious. My catering career lasted 13 years. We moved to Chicago and I became a consultant for one of the city’s top caterers. (Note from husband: George Jewell took one look at photos of my wife’s catering creations and hired her on the spot.)

After my husband and I moved to Florida, I started teaching cooking at the Williams-Sonoma at Boca Raton’s Town Mall. What I found was there were lots of people who loved to cook but were intimidated by the process or the ingredients. I think I succeeded in taking some of the fear out of that!

I hope you enjoy these recipes as much as I do.

And feel free to add or subtract as you feel comfortable.

 

Bread Stuffing/Dressing

• 2 lbs. bread, cubed (white, wheat, French) I save up old bread for weeks before the holiday.
• Let dry out on a cookie sheet. If you keep it wrapped, you’re going to end up with penicillin.
• 1 1⁄2 sticks unsalted butter
• 4 to 5 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 3 stalks celery, chopped
• 3 onions, chopped
• 3 to 4 cloves garlic, peeled and halved
• 1/2 cup parsley (I use curly leaf)
• 1 lb. fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 3 chicken livers, deveined
• 6 to 8 cups chicken stock
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1⁄2 cup milk
• Sage, dried or fresh (if using dried start off with 2 Tbsp. If using fresh chop leaves from 4 to 5 stems.)
• Kosher salt and fresh pepper to taste

1. Put all bread crumbs into a large bowl.
2. Take the neck and heart from the turkey cavity and add to chicken stock. Heat
   to a simmer.
3. Skim if necessary.
4. Melt 1⁄2 stick of butter in pan over medium heat and add half of the
   onions, celery and all the garlic. Sauté about 10 to 12 minutes or until they are just translucent. Do not allow the garlic to brown. If you see it brown, take it out and add to bread crumb mixture.
5. Add the uncooked onions, celery, and parsley to the bowl of bread crumbs. Add half of the chicken stock. Cover with plate or foil. This allows mixture to become moist.
6. Using the same pan that you sautéed the onion mixture in, add 1⁄2 stick
   butter and 3 Tbsp. olive oil and heat on medium high until it is very hot. Add the mushrooms. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and allow to brown before mixing. Mushrooms will give off their liquid unless you cook them quickly. After they are browned, put into a wooden mixing bowl and chop very fine. You can also leave the mushrooms whole.
7. Using the sauté pan again, add 1 Tbsp. butter or oil and sauté chicken livers until just cooked through. Chop well and add to mixture.
8. Add another 2 cups of the chicken stock to the empty sauté pan and allow to simmer to pick up all the browned bits. Mix thoroughly. Cover again. Mix the eggs into the milk. Add this to the bread crumb mixture. Season with salt and pepper.
9. You will have some stock left as well as some butter and oil. I do this because you may have started with more bread crumbs.
10. I taste this mixture for seasoning. Even though there are fresh, uncooked eggs!
11. Stuff your bird or put the dressing into a casserole.
12. For the extra dressing, bake at 350 degrees for 1⁄2 hour covered with foil and 1⁄2 hour uncovered.

And remember, you may omit the chicken livers or mushrooms depending on family tastes. My husband wasn’t a fan of either when we married 46 years ago, but accepts nothing less now.

Corn Timbale

• 12 ears of fresh corn
• 6 eggs, mixed well
• 1 large onion, chopped fine
• 5 Tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 cup fresh bread crumbs
• 1 cup gruyère cheese, shredded
• 3⁄4 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1/8 tsp cayenne
• Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper

1. Remove kernels of corn with a sharp knife and using a food processor, process 6 to 8 pulses. Pour into a bowl and add the rest of the ingredients.
2. Butter an enamel baking container and place parchment paper on the bottom. Pour mixture into the container and place container into a larger pan, wide enough to add boiling water to go a third of the way up on the sides.
3. Bake at 350 degrees until golden brown on top, approximately 1 hour.
4. Take out of water bath and cool completely. Run a knife around the edge of timbale and turn out onto a platter.

I like to sauté brussels sprouts and put around the edge of the timbale. The green and yellow make a nice presentation.

 

Cranberry Relish

• 1 12oz bag of fresh cranberries
• 1 3⁄4 cups sugar
• 1 granny smith apple, peeled, cored,
  and cut into small pieces
• 1 cup dried cherries
• Juice of 1 lemon

1. Add all ingredients and bring to a boil on top of stove.
2. Cook on a simmer until all the skins have popped, approximately 1⁄2 hour.
3. Let cool completely.

Serve in glass bowl.

Have a safe, happy Thanksgiving
everybody.