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Readers share turkey day favorites
Kitchen Mailbox
Thursday, November 13, 2008

Just as we promised, here are our readers' cherished Thanksgiving recipes, part II.

What are you looking for? An appetizer? We have a tasty Chipped Beef and Horseradish Roll, sent by Donna Barr of Mt. Lebanon. Looking for a new side dish? We have two outstanding ones: Corn Pudding sent by Janet Regan of McCandless and Brussels Sprouts and Chestnuts with Blue Cheese from Sue Bumer of Mt. Lebanon.

How about a new cranberry dish? Carolyn Slaugh of West Mifflin sent us her recipe for Frozen Cranberry Salad and Jennifer Onaitis Legler of Great Falls, Va., sent us a cranberry dish with a twist.

Finally, a fabulous dessert: Pumpkin Butter Trifle, sent by Lisa Borrelli Dorn of Mt. Lebanon.

Donna Barr of Mt. Lebanon writes: "I have been making this appetizer for Thanksgiving for more than 20 years. It is a favorite of my son, Aaron, who always finished off the leftovers as a midnight snack on Thanksgiving night. This is the first Thanksgiving he won't be celebrating with us. He became a United States Marine in 2007 and is in training at Fort Sill in Oklahoma this year. We hope he will finish on Dec. 10 and be home on leave for Christmas."

CHIPPED BEEF AND HORSERADISH ROLL

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  • 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
  • 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
  • 1 tablespoon horseradish
  • 4.5-ounce jar dried beef

Mix cream cheese, horseradish and mustard until well blended. Form into a 1 or 2 logs and wrap in wax paper. Chill until firm.

Chop dried beef fine in a food processor.

Saute beef in 2 tablespoons of butter until frizzled.

Roll cheese logs in dried beef and press so it coats the cheese.

Return to refrigerator until ready to serve.

Serve with crackers.

-- Donna Barr



PUMPKIN BUTTER TRIFLE

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Lisa Borrelli Dorn of Mt. Lebanon makes her own pumpkin bread, but we used store-bought to simplify this recipe, which she says "is always a big hit."

  • Store-bought pumpkin bread
  • 2 cups heavy cream
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 cup pumpkin butter
  • 1/2 cup maple syrup
  • 1/4 cup brandy
  • 1/4 cup water minus 1 teaspoon
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 cup pecan halves, toasted or other decoration for top (optional)

Cut bread into 15 slices, about 1/2 inch thick. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat together the cream, vanilla and sugar on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form, 2 to 3 minutes. Fold in the pumpkin butter using a rubber spatula. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Over medium-high heat, bring maple syrup, brandy and water to a simmer; cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Add vanilla. Stir.

To assemble trifle, place 3 slices of bread in the bottom of a trifle bowl or deep souffle dish, cutting the slices in half or into quarters as needed to form a single layer of bread. Using pastry brush, brush bread with some of maple syrup mixture and let it soak in. Using offset spatula, spread  3/4 to 1 cup whipped cream mixture evenly over the bread. Repeat layering process 3 to 4 times. Garnish the trifle with pecan halves or other topper. Serves 12 to 14.

Make-ahead tips

Prepare pumpkin butter whipped cream and maple syrup mixture and refrigerate separately in airtight containers; be sure to rewarm the syrup mixture before using. On Thanksgiving morning, assemble trifle and refrigerate until serving time.

-- Lisa Borrelli Dorn, Mt. Lebanon



FROZEN CRANBERRY SALAD

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Carolyn Slaugh, West Mifflin: "As a church musician, I tend to get busy with rehearsals and services at holiday time. Making this in advance is a plus."

  • 16-ounce can whole cranberry sauce
  • 8-ounce can crushed pineapple, drained
  • 1 cup plain yogurt
  • 1/4 cup confectioners sugar

Break up cranberry sauce in a bowl. Add drained pineapple, yogurt and powdered sugar. Mix well. Put mixture into freezer safe pan. When solid wrap with foil and return to freezer. Remove from freezer 20 minutes before serving. Place sliced on leaf lettuce on salad plates.

-- Carolyn Slaugh, West Mifflin



BRUSSELS SPROUTS AND CHESTNUTS WITH BLUE CHEESE

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Sue Bumer of Mt. Lebanon writes: "I found this recipe in Bon Appetit magazine. It may make 6 servings but does not serve 6 in my household. I have doubled and tripled this recipe."

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 large shallots, halved lengthwise, sliced crosswise
  • 1 pound brussels sprouts, stem end trimmed, halved lengthwise
  • 7.25- to 7.4-ounce jar steamed chestnuts
  • 1 cup low-salt chicken broth
  • 1/3 cup whipping cream
  • 3 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
  • 1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese

Heat olive oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add shallots and saute 1 minute. Add brussels sprouts and chestnuts. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and saute 1 minute.

Add broth and bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until brussels sprouts are almost tender, about 5 minutes. Uncover and boil until almost all liquid evaporates, about 4 minutes.

Add cream and boil until brussels sprouts and chestnuts are coated with cream, stirring frequently, about 3 minutes. Mix in chives. Season with salt and generous amount of pepper. Transfer to bowl. Sprinkle with cheese and serve.

Makes 6 servings.

-- Sue Bumer, Mt. Lebanon



CORN PUDDING

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Janet Regan of McCandless: "This recipe was my grandmother's and she was from Virginia. We called her Grandma Sugar. I think she put sugar in everything she made. My mom and her twin sister still make it all the time. They are 88!"

  • 1 can whole corn (drained)
  • 1 can creamed corn
  • 3 eggs, beaten
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 tablespoons flour
  • Dash of nutmeg
  • Dash of salt

Mix all ingredients together and place in a 1 1/2- to 2-quart baking dish. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter. Drizzle butter over corn. Bake at 300 degrees for about 1 hour.

-- Janet Regan, McCandless


POMEGRANATE AND CRANBERRIES

Jennifer Onaitis Legler of Great Falls, Va.: "I add the meat [seeds] of 1 large pomegranate to my fresh cranberry sauce. I follow the recipe on the bag (boil 1 cup sugar, 1 cup water and cranberries until the berries pop). I find that adding a bit of unflavored gelatin (1/2 package) helps set it up. It's a must at T-Day and my annual Christmas party. Everyone loves it.

"I find the best way to clean the seeds after taking them out of the fruit is to let them float in cool water; the extra pulp is easy to skim off that way."

First published on November 13, 2008 at 12:00 am
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