I don’t know about you, but I'm still full from Thanksgiving. My holiday was a bit untraditional this year. On the actual day of Thanksgiving, I vegged out on the couch and watched movies with friends and ate frozen pizza. Having spent nearly every waking moment of my time off working on refinishing my built-in, it was nice to be off my feet and good to be in the company of friends.
For those of you following along with my project, here’s currently where I’m at:
Everything has been stripped. Now I’m working on scraping, sanding, and getting all the pieces ready to be primed. It’s one heck of a mess. I’m regretting a little that I’m going to be painting the whole thing white, but I don’t have the confidence, talent or money to hire someone to stain the wood (plus, I don’t think it’s in very good shape). Often I got so into the project I forget to eat. Add that to the smell of the stripper and all the dust I inhale when and I sand and I get pretty loopy. I don’t recommend this.
Sunday was the day I celebrated Thanksgiving with my friends. My neighbors across the street made a gi-normous turkey and some of the best-tasting stuffing I’ve ever eaten in my life.
I made Heidi’s Wrong Potatoes. The recipe gets its name due to the fact that you’re supposed to use cubed potatoes and I always use hash brown potatoes.
Heidi’s Wrong Potatoes
1 (30-oz) package of shredded hash browns
1 (16-oz) container sour cream
1 (10.7-oz) can cream of celery soup
1 (10.7-oz) can cream of potato soup
Paprika, if desired,
Parsley, if desired
Butter, if desired
Combine all ingredients except paprika, parsley and butter. Pour in 9x13-inch greased casserole dish.
Sprinkle paprika on top.
Sprinkle chopped parsley on top.
Cut up chunks of butter and place on top.
Bake at 350°F for about an hour.
I also made Fresh Herbed-Topped Rolls (same as last year). Both dishes made my kitchen smell divine.
Fresh Herb-Topped Rolls
Prep Time: 15 Minutes
Start to Finish: 1 Hour 30 Minutes
12 rolls
1 tablespoon cornmeal
1 loaf (1 lb) frozen honey-wheat or white bread dough, thawed as directed on package
36 fresh Italian (flat-leaf) parsley leaves
1 egg
1 tablespoon water
1. Heat oven to 375°F. Grease cookie sheet with shortening or cooking spray; sprinkle with cornmeal. Divide thawed dough into 12 equal portions.
2. Shape each portion of dough into a ball. Place rolls on cookie sheet. Spray sheet of plastic wrap with cooking spray; place sprayed side down over rolls. Cover with towel. Let rise in warm place 45 to 60 minutes or until doubled in size.
3. Meanwhile, place rinsed parsley leaves on paper towels; pat dry. With kitchen scissors, cut stems from leaves.
4. In custard cup, beat egg and water with fork. Brush mixture over top of each roll. Dip parsley leaves into egg mixture; place 3 leaves on top of each roll. Brush remaining egg mixture over parsley-topped rolls.
5. Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. Immediately remove from cookie sheet. Serve warm.
High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): No change.
Tips:
* Any fresh flat-leaf herb, such as dill weed, sage or marjoram, can be substituted for the Italian parsley.
* Place the parsley leaves close together on the rolls; they'll shrink during baking, increasing the space between them.
The killer was Amy’s Pumpkin-Pecan Cheesecake.
By the end of the meal we were all in food comas.
How about you? What was your favorite part of the holiday?