November 21, 2009

Cranberry Sangria & Other Thanksgiving Favorites

I can't believe it's almost Thanksgiving. I'm not ready for it at all! I think it's because we've had a much warmer--and wetter--fall than usual. It's just doesn't seem like the holidays to me. Then again, it is good that this semester has seemed to fly by. Only a few more weeks of school left until Christmas break!

Every year Jerad's family has lobster & beef tenderloin for Thanksgiving dinner. So, we've started a tradition of cooking turkey with all the fixin's at my house on the Saturday afterwards. This year we're deep frying a fresh turkey again (our favorite way to cook the bird) & I'm also making:


mashed potatoes & gravy
sweet potato-cornbread pudding
shaved brussels sprout salad
real pumpkin pie
(as in, I'm roasting & pureeing a pumpkin myself!)

AND

Cranberry Sangria


1 48-oz bottle cranberry-raspberry juice cocktail
1 bottle dry, full-bodied red wine
1/4 cup Grand Marnier
1 orange, sliced thin
1 lemon, sliced thin
1 cup fresh cranberries
2 cups champagne

Combine first three ingredients in a large pitcher. Add fruit slices & cranberries. Chill. Stir in champagne just before serving. Serve over ice.

Makes about 13 cups.

If you prefer a sweeter drink, add about 1/8-1/4 cup sugar to the first three ingredients, stirring until the sugar dissolves.


Here are some of my other favorite Thanksgiving dishes:

Appetizers:
Honey-Nut Glazed Brie
Roasted Carrot Dip

Soup & Salad:
Butternut-Cider Bisque
Chestnut & Potato Soup
Carrot-Raisin Salad
Grandma Martin's Cranberry Salad
Gingerbread Vinaigrette

Side Dishes:
Scalloped Oysters
Asparagus-Gruyere Tart
Spinach Gratin
Chestnut & Pancetta Stuffing
Potato & Mushroom Gratin

Whole Bird Alternatives:
Turkey Saltimbocca
Turkey Ossobucco

Desserts:
Pumpkin & Pecan Pie
Pumpkin Creme Brulee
Espresso Walnut Cake

2 comments:

Valerie Harrison (bellini) said...

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving with family and friends. The Sangria sounds amazing but then so does everything else.

HBWillman said...

Kelly, this sounds great. I'm going to offer this as my "signature drink" on Thursday to relieve the tedium of beer (for my nephews) and wine (for everyone else). (Funny, I just edited this comment for grammar, knowing I was posting this on an English teacher's blog.)