Sunday Gratefuls: November 24, 2013-Turkey Roasting Pan

We frequent Horseshoe Casino in Indiana across the River… playing penny slots every now and then… or eating lunch or dinner…

So, sometimes we get FREE OFFERS from them…

Like a gift card for a turkey two weeks ago…

A gas card last week…

and today a Roasting Pan to bake the turkey in…

I didn’t have a Roasting Pan… and was grateful to be able to go and get this one…

I remember Mom having her big pan… but, then she had a lot of “mouths to feed”… as was said…

The smell of baking turkey  wafting upstairs to my bedroom… was the best smell… and I knew she was getting everything ready for all of the company we were going to have…

Family… relatives and friends…

She made most everything herself… for a long time…

as we set the table with the white and lace tablecloth… “good” dishes… silverware and napkins…

Turkey / Gravy

Dressing… ( Stuffing )- 3 kinds… Regular bread/ Cornbread /Oyster

Slaw

Mashed Potatoes

Cranberry Sauce

Sweet potatoes ( Candied Yams) …

Fordhook Lima Beans

Green Beans

Corn

Hot Rolls / butter

Cranberry Relish

Stuffed Celery – Pickles

5 – cup salad

Pies…Cakes…Cookies…Cobblers

As she aged we all pitched in to bring the sides and desserts…  but, she still made the Turkey – Dressing – Gravy…

Although she passed in 2007 at the age of 98… the smell of the house remains with me… and her devotion of cooking all of us that wonderful Thanksgiving Dinner…

Thanks Mom…

and although I have been invited out to eat Thanksgiving Dinner for so many years…

sometime I’ll have to put my Roasting Pan 

  to use and make a big dinner… and see if my house smells as good!

Related articles

• Essential Thanksgiving Dinner for the Elves (kittyandsantaclaus.wordpress.com)
• Canned Cranberry Sauce on a Silver Platter and Other Things to Be Thankful For (blogher.com)

October Gives Way to November

The calendar has changed once again… from

October     

to November…      

We set our clocks back tonight and gain an extra hour of rest…

Don’t know how many times I’ve forgotten this… and arrived an hour early to church…

Halloween disappeared today… put away until next October… but, Thanksgiving arrived with a few “Gobble Gobbles”… sitting around…

My things I sit out are quite old… Some I’ve had several years… but, still enjoy deciding where to put them…

I picked these Fall Kitchen Towels up last year after Thanksgiving…

Coffee Table Centerpiece… will look better with tapers… orange, brown, gold???

Isn’t he the cutest… Just sitting there waiting and hoping not to be eaten for Thanksgiving dinner!

 

Found at the thrift store I visit… “Candle Holders” with Horn of Plenty , Turkey and Fruit/ Veggies… to adorn my kitchen table…

My Fall Salt/Peppers in shapes of Squirrel / Acorn and Turkeys…

Cracker Barrel always has the cutest seasonal Salt/Peppers!

I just love these little birds sitting on an apple and pear… 

I save them for this time of year…

My Pilgrim Pair…

My metal Turkeys are just unusual…

Fall Leaves Candle Holder in bathroom… reflects light so pretty…

Leaves become Fan Pulls…

Autumn Flag blowing in the cool breeze…

My Orange Glass Turkey Candy Dish holds leftover Halloween Candies…

My wooden WELCOME Pumpkin Sign given to me by my daughter-in-law… ( a few years back )…

Welcomes all who wish to stop by…

 

I usually adding one new item… Haven’t got it yet!… and also I need to purchase a few candle tapers for my centerpiece… and votive candles that smell of Hot Apple Pie or Cinnamon…

“Cornucopia Bread?”… Yes, I’ll Bring It Again!

Keepsake:

I’ve made this neat “cornucopia bread“ for quite a few years now… I don’t even know where I read the recipe…

I looked up the directions… where you could have clearer instructions … Just in case you want to try it…

It isn’t that hard… Just don’t expect perfection… Relax!… It will turn out!…

This year I couldn’t find bread stick dough … so I improvised with crescent dough …

Just pressed it together in sheets… cut in strips… and rolled with fingers a little into longer strips…

The wrapping around the cone is the hardest part… but, just keep pressing dough together as you attach each piece…

The cone is filled with balls of loose foil to keep the shape…

Bread before baking…

Bread brushed with beaten egg…

  

Finished Baked Cornucopia…

They will be easy to remove along with the cone shape after bread cools… I Promise!

I cut up yellow squash, carrots, celery and cucumbers into sticks…

and add a few slices of tomato for color and some broccoli florets…green onions…green pepper… I put the raw veggies  into the opening of the cornucopia and on the plate surrounding  it … Add a pretty bowl or glass filled with your favorite dip…

Makes a really nice appetizer as well as a pretty centerpiece for your guests to munch on before sitting down to Thanksgiving Dinner!…

Instructions

1. Cut a heavy-duty piece of aluminum foil to 30 by 18 inches. Fold it in half to 18 by 15 inches, and roll it into a hollow cone shape about 18 inches long. The open end of the cone (cornucopia) should be about 5 inches in diameter.

2. Fasten the ends of the aluminum foil with clear tape. Fill the entire cone with crumpled up aluminum foil. Bend the tail of the cornucopia up, then down at the end.

3. Spray with cooking spray, and place the aluminum cone on a large baking sheet. Beat the egg and water to make the glaze for the bread cornucopia.

4. Open the can(s) of breadstick dough. Separate the breadsticks, and start by wrapping the first breadstick around the end of the cone.

5. Use the glaze as a glue. Brush the end of the next breadstick with glaze and overlap it with the first breadstick end pressing the two together. Wrap the second bread stick further up the cone slightly overlapping the first.

6. Repeat using all breadsticks. Brush each end with glaze, and press to the previous breadstick making sure there are no open spaces until the entire cone is covered. Leave 3 breadsticks to make a braid for the end.

7. Pinch the ends of the three breadsticks together. Braid them like hair. Glaze the opening of the cornucopia and press the braid around the end, stretching to make it fit the end.

8. Bake at 350 degrees F for 45 minutes until the bread is golden brown. If some areas start to get to dark, cover them with foil until the rest brown.

Tips & Warnings

• Dough will be pretty slippery, so work quickly and get help if you can.
• Fill the cornucopia with fresh fruits or vegetables.
• Add a dip to the side, and don’t forget to eat the cornucopia too.

http://youtu.be/tc5-JeezRo8   Another way to make the foil cornucopia…

Related articles

• Thanksgiving Recipe Cornucopia (thesurvivalplaceblog.com)
• History of the cornucopia (berries.com)
• Tweaking traditional cornucopia (rep-am.com)