Celia Hillhouse shares Thanksgiving favorites

The most unique Thanksgiving dressing I’ve ever eaten was oyster dressing, at Uncle Bubba’s restaurant (Paula Deen’s brother) in Savannah, Ga.

I have always been a traditional dressing maker, and remember that my aunt Kaki Baker of Macon said she used lots of sage and poultry seasoning, and mother-in-law Barbara Lantrip’s advice was to just “keep tasting it” as you add your ingredients.

Celia Hillhouse

However, a recipe with a twist to traditional dressing that recently caught my eye was submitted by a recent “Look Who’s Cooking’ “ cook Jennifer Cain–her mother, Donna Liles’ Spicy Chicken and Dressing. It is on my menu this Thanksgiving (and I might even add a little hot sausage) as are Lee Yancy’s stuffing muffins, maybe for Christmas.

Aunt Leora Simpson hosted many Thanksgiving meals for our family in Coffeeville, complete with fresh mint leaves frozen into the ice cubes for our tea. Tried and true as a family favorite for a couple of generations now is her cranberry Jell-O salad.

She used black cherry Jell-O, but you can now get cranberry Jell-O at some places. I will eat the salad with celery in it, but when I make it, as with dressing, I am likely to just use celery salt. I could eat whole cranberry sauce right from the can, and a recipe for Orange-Cranberry Sauce that sister Lisa McNeece discovered a few years ago using fresh, is really good.

She has printed the salad and sauce recipes in her column before. I discovered a similar sauce recipe in the newest Food Network magazine in which Clementine oranges were used with fresh cranberries, orange juice and cranberry juice, along with a cinnamon stick, and a star of anise pod (that ingredient will have to be investigated.)

I have stuffed a turkey with everything from onions to apples and oranges, and usually prefer a to cook a turkey breast in the crockpot. I’ve never tasted a deep-fried turkey and that’s definitely on my to-do list. Since Becky Wright told me about brining a turkey, I would consider trying that once, anyway.

Besides turkey, dressing and cranberry, pumpkin and sweet potatoes are a staple of many Thanksgivings meals, and can now be so in many non-traditional ways. I recently had pumpkin cheesecake at a restaurant in Collierville that was delicious and I would like to try Emily Rennie’s pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipe (published 11-1-12).

Another recipe of interest, Pumpkin Parmesan biscuits, was featured in the Food Network magazine, and I have that page marked. Vickie Allred told me about Rose Mary Shelton’s sweet potato cobbler recipe and I think that would be a great Thanksgiving addition, because I am a sweet potato fan.

I received a Thanksgiving catering e-mail from the Viking Cooking School in Greenwood last week that included cranberry walnut rolls, pumpkin cheesecake with spice cream, green chile cheddar cornbread, and sweet hot cranberry chutney–yum! Happy Thanksgiving!

Pumpkin Parmesan Biscuits
Food Network Magazine
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/4 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
2 Tbsp. finely grated parmesan cheese
1 stick cold unsalted butter, diced, plus melted butter for brushing
1/2 cup canned pure pumpkin
1/4 cup heavy cream.
‘Preheat oven to 400°. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Whisk flour, baking powder, sugar, salt and nutmeg in large bowl. Whisk in 1 Tbsp. parmesan. Add diced butter and work it in with fingertips until mixture looks like coarse crumbs. Mix pumpkin and cream in a small bowl and pour over the flour mixture. Mix with your hands or fork to make soft dough. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and roll out into a 3/4″ thick rectangle using a floured rolling pin. Cut out biscuits using a 2″ round cutter and arrange about 2″ apart on prepared baking sheet. Brush tops with melted butter and sprinkle with remaining 1 Tbsp. parmesan. Bake until golden, 15-20 minutes. Transfer baking sheet to a rack and let biscuits cool slightly before serving or cool completely and freeze.

Sweet Potato Cobbler
Rose Mary Shelton
Melt one stick margarine in large 9×12 ovenproof pan. Mix: 1 cup self-rising flour, 1 cup sugar, 1 cup milk. Pour into center of melted margarine. Do not stir. Mix 2 cups cooked, but firm, peeled and sliced sweet potatoes, 1 cup sugar, 1/2 cup light brown sugar, 1 1/2 cups water, 1 tsp. vanilla, 1 tsp. cinnamon. Pour this mixture into center of melted margarine and batter. Do not stir. Bake at 350° for 45 minutes or until light brown.

Spicy Chicken and Dressing
Donna Liles
4 cooked chicken breasts
2 cans of chicken broth
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 medium onion and 1 cup chopped celery sauteed in butter
2 sticks butter
1 pan cooked cornbread
3 eggs
1/2 cup jalapenos sliced
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
Red pepper to taste
Crumble cornbread into large bowl. Add garlic salt and pepper to taste. Stir in beaten eggs, broth, sauteed onions and peppers, jalapenos, cheese. Melt butter in casserole dish or Dutch oven and pour in mixture. Bake until golden brown at 350°.

Stuffing Muffins
Lee Yancy
Use a good dressing recipe–mine involves leftover cornbread, onions, celery, cooked chicken and/or mild sausage, a good stock, a bit of butter and eggs. I do not put bell pepper in mine because it overpowers everything, nor do I use garlic. I go heavy on the sage (less if I use sausage), with enough basil and rosemary to stand out. Do not chop your onions or celery too fine because they provide a good texture, especially the celery. Salt to taste. Make sure you have plenty of moisture–a thick wet batter. It’s a good idea to add an extra egg, whipped, to your basic recipe, mixed in very well. Use a cooking spray to oil the pan and if you use them, the paper cups as well. Spoon mixture into the cups. Fill to the top, since these do not rise as a true muffin would. Place pans in the middle rack of the oven and bake at 350 until tops are firm and edges have just begun to brown, about 20 minutes. Top with whole cranberries when they’re about halfway done. Brush with melted butter and let them cool before taking them from pan (use a fork) and removing the paper. Store for later or reheat on cookie sheet in very warm oven before bringing to the table.

Cranberry Jell-O Salad
Leora Simpson,?Lisa McNeece
1-8 oz. can crushed pineapple, 1/4 cup water, 1-3 oz. box black cherry Jell-O, 1 can cranberry sauce, 1 cup chopped pecans, 1 cup chopped celery, 1/4 cup lemon juice. Combine pineapple and water in saucepan; heat over medium. Take off heat, add Jell-O, stir until dissolved. Add other ingredients. Stir well. Chill until firm.

Orange Cranberry Sauce
Lisa McNeece
1-11 oz. can mandarin oranges, 1-12 oz. pkg. fresh cranberries, 3/4 cups sugar, 1 Tbsp. minced ginger root or 1 tsp. ground ginger, 1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional). Drain oranges; reserve 1/4 cup syrup. In 2-qt. casserole, cook cranberries, sugar, ginger and reserved syrup, covered, on high 7-11 minutes until cranberries pop; stir twice during cooking. Stir in oranges and nuts. Chill. Serve with turkey. Makes 3 cups.