For many people, including myself, stuffing, or dressing as it is sometimes called, is one of the highlights of any holiday meal. Countless recipes exist offering different variations of this classic dish; some with vegetables, others with fruit, some relatively plain with only dried bread and spices, others rather elaborate with such things as sausage, meat and oysters. My favorite has always tended to be somewhere in the middle, simple but flavorful, heavier on herbs and spices, than sugar or fat. Continue reading
Side Dishes
Our Favorite Cranberry Sauce
Throughout North America, cranberries are a familiar staple on most Thanksgiving, or Christmas dinner tables. Everyone naturally has their own favorite recipe and preference as to how to prepare them. Some just like to keep it simple and buy it ready made in the form of jelly, or preserves. But many of us still prefer to make it using fresh cranberries. We love their beautiful vibrant red color, which the fruit only develops late in the Fall, when fully ripe. Continue reading
Sweet Potato Hashbrowns
When I first learned to cook, one of the first things I learned to make was scrambled eggs, mainly because I liked the idea of being able to help make breakfast. It’s a dish, that for many people is something of a weekend tradition. Most everyone has the extra time in the morning without rushing off to school or work, so thoughts turn to making eggs, or sometimes pancakes, omelettes, or waffles. I don’t know why, but I never really cared for the flavor of old fashioned fried eggs. I know what your thinking, unless they are hard or soft boiled, or poached, most ways of cooking eggs are prepared with oil and fried to some degree. But I am talking about eggs over medium, or sunny side up. Maybe it’s the fact that they always form a sort of crunchy crust, or the taste of the oil that was never really appealing. However, scrambled eggs I liked, and thought would be easy to make; deceptively easy. It took me a while to figure out that every time my mom would make them, they came out perfect, light and fluffy, while every time I made them, fairly large amounts stuck to the pan. Too impatient to eat, I never let the pan get hot enough, resulting in a sort of underdone, or half burned mess. Ooops! Continue reading

