Turkey Pot Pie

 We're a week out from Thanksgiving and we still have a bit of turkey left in the fridge.  Time to use it up with this delicious dish.  It's also a cold, snowy day so what better to warm up with?  It's simple, makes your house smell good and is so tasty!

Turkey Pot Pie
2 pie crusts
1/2 stick butter
1/2 cup finely diced onion
1/2 cup finely diced carrot
1/2 cup finely diced celery
2 small russet potatoes, diced
2 cups leftover turkey
1/4 cup flour
3 cups low- chicken or turkey broth (more if needed!)
3/4 cup heavy cream
Thyme, fresh or dry, to taste
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Melt butter in a skillet . Add onion, carrots, and celery, and cook until translucent (a couple of minutes.)
Add turkey and stir. Sprinkle flour over mixture and stir. Cook over medium heat for a couple of minutes, stirring constantly.
Pour in chicken or turkey broth, stirring constantly. Add potatoes.  Pour in cream. Bring to a slow boil and allow mixture to cook and thicken for a few minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste, and thyme to taste.

This is where you have to decide if you want pie crust on both the bottom and top or just the top.  I personally like to have it on top and bottom.  If you want both as well, then be sure to roll out your crust and place in the bottom of your pan.
 Pour mixture into a casserole dish or deep pie pan.
Roll out other crust so that it’s about 1 inch larger than the pan you’re using.
Place the crust on top of the pot pie mixture, and press crust into the sides of the dish. Cut vents in the top of the crust.
Bake for 30-40 minutes or until very golden and bubbly and the crust is done.
Allow to cool for a little bit before serving.

Candy Cane Chocolate Chip Cookies

I felt all sorts of creative taking this picture!

One of my guilty pleasures is reading People Magazine weekly.  They always have some type of recipe in there and I always admire them but rarely try them.  They had this recipe in there by Chef Kathleen King and it looked so yummy, I just had to try it out for a cookie exchange/surprise birthday party I attended last night.  These cookies were easy to make and quite tasty.  Daniel really liked the little crunch from the candy canes mixed with the chocolate.


Candy Cane Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 cups plus 2 Tablespoons flour (I used all-purpose flour)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 lb (2 sticks) salted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon water
2 cups (12 oz) semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup crushed candy canes or peppermint chips (I used candy canes I crushed in a food processor)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.  Whisk together flour, baking soda and salt.  Beat butter, sugar and brown sugar with an electric mixer on high about 1 minute.  Beat in eggs, followed by vanilla and water.  On low speed, mix in flour just combined.  Mix in chips and crushed candy.

Using about 2 tablespoons per cookies, drop dough 3 inches apart.  Bake until cookies are golden brown...about 20 minutes.  Cool 5 minutes.  Transfer to rack; cook completely.  Repeat with remaining dough on cool sheets.

Makes about 42 cookies.

Sweet Potato Bake

Growing up, my mom always made the marshmallow covered sweet potatoes. I never ate them (unless you consider picking off the toasted marshmallows, eating them). I don't like my sweet potatoes, overly sweet. Since I didn't eat them, I continued making them the way I saw my mom make them when I got married. Kevin enjoyed them. Quite a few years ago, I stumbled across this recipe in one of my Taste of Home magazines and it has been a staple on our table every Thanksgiving and Christmas ever since. Everyone loves it and I've been known to sample a spoonful every now and again.

Sweet Potato Bake
3 cups cold mashed sweet potatoes (prepared without milk or butter)
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
3 eggs
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Topping:
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons cold butter or margarine

In a mixing bowl, beat sweet potatoes, sugar, milk, butter, eggs, salt and vanilla until smooth. Transfer to a greased 2 qt baking dish. In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, pecans and flour; cut in butter until crumbly. Sprinkle over potato mixture. Bake uncovered at 325 degrees for 45-50 minutes or until golden brown!

Armed Forces Day: Patriotic Drink

Today is Armed Forces Day. Check out my family blog if you want to know the history behind it.

We decided to have a patriotic drink to celebrate! I found this in a Family Fun magazine years ago.

You'll need:

Cranberry juice
Blue Gatorade
Lemon-lime soda
Ice

1. Fill a clear glass with ice cubes. Pour the drink with the most sugar (check the nutrition label) into the glass. For our red, white, and blue recipe, start with the cranberry juice.

2. Very slowly add a beverage that contains less sugar -- in this case, Frost Glacier Freeze flavor Gatorade. Be careful to pour it onto an ice cube -- not directly into the other drink -- to keep them from mixing.

3. Use the same technique to add a layer of lemon-lime soda (many people use Diet for this but I can't stand the taste of diet and the regular works just as well).

Enjoy and be sure to toast our amazing men and women who serve our nation willingly!