What do you have for Thanksgiving?

[bitteroldhag 0]

I really enjoyed reading this threa This is from my French cookbook and the mushrooms are mixed with cream cheese, gruyere, and walnuts. Then you pile that on artichoke bottoms and bake it awhile.

Can I come eat at your house? I like prime rib better than turkey! And the cheese salad with mushrooms!

I often make a salad with artichoke hearts, blue cheese, green pepper and whatever else I can find to toss in.

Mary

I'll give you the recipe from my French cookbook. These are really pretty easy to make:

Fronds d'Artichauts aux Duxelles

8 ounces button mushrooms (regular store mushrooms)

1 TBS butter

2 shallots, finely chopped (you can probably use about half a big onion though I really like shallots though they are expensive)

2 ounces cream cheese

2 TBS chopped walnuts ( I chop these in my food processor)

3 TBS grated Swiss cheese (I use Gruyere if I can afford it; otherwise regular swiss cheese. I have a litle grater for parmesan that you turn a crank and it grates it. I love this grater.)

Canned artichoke bottoms (you can get these at the store near the artichoke hearts. You have to look really closely though and they're expensive. But the first time I did these, I just used artichoke hearts and it worked.)

Salt and pepper

Wipe or rinse mushrooms and pat dry. Put in food processor with metal blade until finely chopped.

Melt butter in non-stick pan and cook shallots over medium heat for 2-3 minutes until just softened. Add the mushrooms; raise the heat slightly and cook for 5-7 minutes until they have rendered and reabsorbed their liquid and are almost dry. (They turn really dark). Season with salt and pepper and preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly grease a shallow baking pan. In a small bowl combine the soft cheese and mushrooms. Add the walnuts and half the grated cheese. Divide the mushroom mixture among the artichoke bottoms and arrange them in the baking pan. sprinkle over the remaining cheese and bake for 12-15 minutes or untill bubbly and browned. Serve hot.

This recipe is from Clements, Carole and Elizabeth Wolf-Cohen, French: Delicious Classic Cuisine Made Easy, London: Hermes House, 2004. This is a great French cookbook though you have to buy it from remainder bookstores. However, you can find it on the web. If you get it, I highly recommend French scalloped potatoes. They are the best ever. I wouldn't sell this book for a whole lot of money.:clap2:

[Carlene 12]

Thank goodness, it's almost all cooked and in the fridge. All I have left to do is roast the turkey and make mashed potatoes & the gravy. My MIL told me that the lady who lives across the street (and her worthless, middle-age, unemployed son) were going to be alone tomorrow and would eat their TG dinner at Luby's, so I invited them over. I already had 19 people coming, so what's two more?

I made sweet potato dressing. For one thing, it's very moist, so I think I can eat a little of it, and for another, my DH bought a 10 pound box of yams, and you can only make so much sweet potato casserole.

My banana pudding turned out beautifully, as did my coconut cream pie. My German chocolate cake looks okay - not great (a little lopsided), but okay. I'm sure it will taste fine, however.

The ham has about 15 minutes left and then I'm going to bed. It's been a rough week. I have the cold from hell and my damn dog is in season. What else do you have in store for me, Lord?

[piercedqt78 658]

We are frying the turkey, and one for a friend. I made the deviled eggs tonight while DH peeled and chopped the potatos for the mashed, they are boiled and ready to be finished tomorrow. I have several cans of cranberry sauce in the fridge and several bags of frozen veggies ready to go. My mom is making sweet potato casserole, and pie. My sister is making ham and green ban casserol. I only have to cook the veggies, mash the taters, and heat the premade pies that I bought. There are going to be 13 of us tomorrow, I'm glad it's almost over. Happy Turkey day all. ~Mandy

[bitteroldhag 0]

I got through the whole thing. We only have 3 people and I made a 16 pound turkey so my friend Mary took most of it home with her. I used to eat a whole lot of turkey, but I started eating, got something stuck and had to throw up some Water I had drunk to try to get it down. That was disgusting, but they said they couldn't hear me throwing up. After that it was all smooth sailing. I ate turkey, cranberry jelly, some dressing and an artichoke bottom with mushroom filling. The artichoke bottom was a little stringy so I mostly ate the filling. Also I ate a small slice of pumpkin pie with whipped cream. I didn't make the sweet potato pie because Mother wanted pumpkin. I'll make one some other time though we'll have to give away half of it. I'm a little hungry now (aout 8 hours after dinner) so I think I'll nuke some dressing or something. My friend said it was the best dressing I've made yet. She says that every year. Mother said it was the best dinner I've made yet, but she says that every year too. Still it stirs this old cook's heart when people compliment the dinner. I worked like a stevadore. The dogs did very well with the drumsticks, wings and the leftover carcass. They are happy. So everyone is happy including me. I'll be less happy tomorrow when I have to have the MRI about my previous stroke which I didn't even know I had. I hope they can work something out to keep me from stroking out so I can make Thanksgiving dinner next year. I highly recommend Assam tea. It makes superior iced tea. I got some in England two years ago and guard it with my life, but I ordered some on the internet so I can make more tea this year. We can't buy it here. It is the best tea I've ever had. Expensive, but good. It beats Earl Grey hands down. Hope you all had a happy Thanksgiving and don't work yourself to death for Christmas. I'll have prime rib and turkey again for Christmas. I just love this time of year because I get to cook really good stuff. Now I get to decorate the house for Christmas which is my second favorite thing to do. Happy days!