I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! Since last year, Thanksgiving is even more meaningful because it's my blogoversary. This year, we didn't travel, so that was a nice bonus. We had Thanksgiving dinner with my family at my parents house. The four toddlers were running around, my aunts and cousins were there, as well as my siblings and their families. And everyone brought something delicious to the table, from appetizers to desserts.
It got me wondering...
What is your speciality that you bring/buy/do for family dinners?
Mine is apple pie (really simple recipe from my Mom) and pecan pie (recipe from the back of the Karo syrup--it's really the best I've had--and the No-Roll Pie Crust I wrote about here). Londo made mashed potatoes (modified from his mom's recipe). These are our specialities.
What about you? What do you bring to the dinner table?
12 comments:
Actually, for the past few years it’s been this (http://kitchenlackey.blogspot.com/2007/12/acorn-squash-soup.html). But this year there weren’t really any demands on me, as they know trying to cook with my ever-present “helper” is not easy. I just helped out a little with some prep at Mom's. At my in-laws, they don’t tend to like my cooking (I have a different style than they do)…with the exception of this (http://kitchenlackey.blogspot.com/2007/12/chocolate-peanut-butter-pie.html).
I have never had the opportunity to contribute to a Thanksgiving meal, but I feel my food speciality is cheese cake. I don't get to make them very often, but I seem to do it well when the chance presents itself.
My favorite is a White Chocolate Raspberry or a Tradewinds cheesecake which I made for Caramama's birthday so many years ago. Here is the tradewinds link - http://www.pastrywiz.com/archive/trade.htm
The Tradewinds requires thinly sliced mango on the top, which is impossible to do with human hands, IMHO. I tried once and ended up with mango mush, which is great for a smoothy, but not so much for a fancy cheesecake. After cursing a lot and freaking out (the cake was for Caramama's surprise party!), I raced back to the grocery store to get more mangos and, in desperation, asked a kind lady in the meat department if they could help me. She had just cleaned one of the slicers, so she popped it on, skin intact, and it worked like a dream!! The slicer went through the nebulous mango pit like a knife through butter and I had perfect mango slices!
I do roasted vegetables a lot. Just toss with a little olive oil, add some spices and put in the oven to roast. It gets a great mix of flavors and tastes much more complicated than it really is.
I love cooking, and I'm decent (to be modest). And every single family gathering my mother-in-law tells my wife and I to just bring dinner rolls. . . oh and her family only likes the store bought brown and serve dollar rolls. We're just the kids so it's apparently all we can handle.
For my side of the family I bring my grandmother's cheesecake. It's the refrigerated type not the baking type, lighter a fluffier than any other dessert I know of. . . oh so good. But off limits for my wife's family because citric acid gives my mother in law migraines.
I make a really tasty broccoli casserole and I usually bake some cookies. We usually only have to bring a side since we always visit with relatives out of town!
Hmmm- we typically do Thanksgiving at my house, so I usually make everything except for a fancy stuffing and a side dish or two. My Mom comes and helps, though.
I consider baking my specialty- I make a mean pie crust. Even if I sometimes squish it, like I mentioned on my blog. I used to always make homemade rolls, too, but have had to let that go for the past two years.
Gravy would be my anti-specialty. I don't eat it, and don't really like making it. My Mom usually handles it while I mash potatoes or what not.
Oh, I guess cakes are my speciality (to bring to dinner at friends'). I have started making low GI varieties, grounding my own flour and combining different ones (My current favourite is barley, spelt and bran flour combinations). Usually with carrot or banana or dried fruits such as apricots and prunes. They are usually pretty popular and come out well, but I'm a pure dud at frozen cheesecake!! My mum and SIL are the best FCC makers, but mine never never never set. Will check out those links to see what I'm doing wrong.
Otherwise people ask me to bring a pasta dish, usually gnocchi. I steer away from the more traditional variety preferring pumpkin and potato or potato, spelt and chestnut flour. My mum is the bestest ever gnocchi maker in the world and it seems that years of observing her make them has paid off as mine aren't too bad either ( although, I'll never be as good as my mum!)
My specialty is my appetite.
It's tough having to eat so much yummy food :-)
I like to bring sweet potatoes or squash casserole. What I really love to bring however is a Cecilia Villaveces Baily's Irish Cream Cake. *drool* No cooking required and the best cake you'll ever taste.
My specialty is ME! I don't bring anything because the 6 to 7-hour drive just isn't conducive to bringing stuff to the potluck. No one seems to mind, fortunately.
I like to make homemade stuffing with cornbread, pumpernickel, wheat bread and celery. It's pretty good and I've received many compliments on it but my dad still prefers Stove Top! :)
Ah, I love Thanksgiving because almost every year since the boys came along, my husband has made the whole thing, with a teeny bit of help from me. For potlucks, I often bring a Greek Salad or Better than Sex Cake.
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