Posts Tagged ‘Dinner’

Thanksgiving is one of the few days in the year that you can prepare a meal and get away with serving multiple carb-laden side dishes. My family thought nothing of serving a roast bird with mashed potatoes & gravy, cornbread dressing, macaroni & cheese, sweet potatoes, and homemade biscuits. Sometimes we even went extra crazy and threw in some chicken & dumplings for good measure. After eating, we were all laid out like a bunch of bears who had been shot with tranquilizer darts.

I try not to do that these days, but I still can’t resist serving some bourbon smashed sweet potatoes along with my cornbread dressing and roast bird. It’s the more adult version of sweet potatoes for the holidays.

Bourbon "Smashed" Sweet Potatoes

INGREDIENTS:

* 1 3/4 to 2 pounds sweet potatoes

* 1 teaspoon olive oil

* 1/2 cup heavy cream

* 1/4 cup bourbon whiskey

* 3 tablespoons packed light brown sugar

* 2 tablespoons molasses

* 1/8 teaspoon salt

 DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the oven to 425° F.

Lightly rub the sweet potatoes with the olive oil. Place on a foil-lined baking sheet and bake until tender, about 45 minutes to 1 hour, depending upon their size. Remove from the oven and let sit until cool enough to handle.

Peel the sweet potatoes and transfer the flesh to a large bowl. Add the cream, bourbon, brown sugar, molasses, and salt, and beat on high speed with a hand-held mixer until smooth. Cover to keep warm until ready to serve.

Makes 4 servings

As you can tell from the recipe, these are totally low-fat and healthy!

Some people look forward to giant family gatherings with a huge roast turkey, spiral ham, and all the trimmings. They enjoy the chaos of being in a packed house with relatives and their screaming, high-energy children. The Mister and I are people who generally don’t enjoy that kind of chaos, and both our families live at least a 10-hour car ride away. (We simply refuse to fly during the holidays!) As such, we prefer to spend Thanksgiving at home. Sometimes I cook a large, traditional meal and invite other Black Sheep to the party. However, sometimes I just want to spend a relaxing day at home with the Mister; I enjoy our little family of two! But what do you do when you only have two people who still want to enjoy some of the traditional Thanksgiving delights? We certainly can’t consume a whole turkey or even just a turkey breast by ourselves!

When we do our Childfree Thanksgiving, I cook cornish game hens. They are the perfect substitution for a large roast turkey, chicken, or duck.

Cornish Game Hens with Brussels Sprouts

Since we already know how much I love Brussels sprouts, I often roast the hens right on top of a bed of fresh sprouts. Of course, I also have the traditional sides: cornbread dressing, gravy, cranberry sauce. For me, it’s not Thanksgiving without those side dishes.

I hope this idea inspires you to truly embrace and enjoy Thanksgiving as a small family, whether you are part of a couple or a group of close-knit friends. If you don’t enjoy the drama and tension of gatherings with extended family and their children, don’t participate! Create your own Thanksgiving traditions and be proud of who you are and where you are in life. Remember, this holiday is about expressing gratitude. Personally, I’m extremely grateful to be able to spend my holidays in a calm, relaxing atmosphere. I don’t have to fret about pleasing in-laws and entertaining children during a family gathering. I get to spend my holidays snuggling with my honey, watching bad movies, and eating delicious food we both enjoy.

Roast Cornish Game Hens with Brussels Sprouts & Chestnuts

INGREDIENTS:

* 1/2 tablespoon(s) chopped fresh thyme

* 1 teaspoon(s) salt

* 1/2 teaspoon(s) freshly ground pepper

* 2 Cornish game hens, 1-1 1/2 pounds each

* 1 teaspoon(s) butter

* 1 teaspoon(s) extra-virgin olive oil

* 1/2 large red onion, peeled and cut through the root end into 4 wedges

* 1 pound(s) Brussels sprouts, trimmed and cut in half if large (about 3 cups)

* 8 ounce(s) jarred roasted chestnuts (1 1/4 cups)

* 1 tablespoon(s) white-wine vinegar

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine thyme, salt and pepper in a small bowl.

2. Remove giblets (if included) from game hens and trim any excess skin. Loosen the skin over the breast and thigh meat and rub half the thyme mixture under the skin. Tie legs together with kitchen string.

3. Heat butter and oil in a large roasting pan set over 2 burners on medium heat. Add the game hens and brown on all sides, turning occasionally, 10 to 12 minutes.

4. Add onion to the pan, transfer to the oven and roast for 10 minutes. Add Brussels sprouts and roast for 20 minutes. Stir chestnuts and the remaining thyme mixture into the pan. Continue roasting until an instant-read thermometer inserted into a thigh registers 165 degrees, 10 to 15 minutes more.

5. Transfer the game hens to a large cutting board and let rest for 10 minutes. Place the roasting pan over 2 burners on medium heat. Toss the vegetables with vinegar and bring to a simmer, gently stirring and scraping up any browned bits. Remove the string from the game hens, turn breast-side down and slice in half lengthwise using a large heavy knife, cutting straight through to the breast side. Serve the game hens with the vegetables.