Sweet Potatoe Casserole

Yum, this is so good. And, it's from Cooking Light. Everytime I've made this for Thanksgiving, we run out. Last time, I made double and we still ran out.



14 cups (1-inch) cubed peeled sweet potato (about 5 pounds)
1/2 cup half-and-half
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 large egg, lightly beaten
Cooking spray
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup chilled butter, cut into small pieces
1/2 cup chopped pecans
Preparation
Preheat oven to 375°.
Place potato in a Dutch oven, and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer 12 minutes or until tender. Drain.
Combine the half-and-half and next 4 ingredients (half-and-half through egg) in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk. Add potato to egg mixture; beat with a mixer at medium speed until smooth. Spoon potato mixture into a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.
Combine flour and sugar in a food processor; pulse to combine. Add chilled butter; pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in pecans; sprinkle over potato mixture.
Cover and bake at 375° for 15 minutes. Uncover and bake an additional 25 minutes or until the topping is browned and the potatoes are thoroughly heated.

Blue Cranberry Sauce

I love Thanksgiving dinner, so it was hard for me to pick a favorite recipe. And, I didn't cook this year, so I wasn't really thinking about recipes. And, I know Thanksgiving has passed, so maybe you can use this for Christmas or next year. I'm going to post a few. This picture dosen't do it justice, it really is quite pretty.

Blue Cranberry Sauce

1 (12 ounce) package fresh cranberries
1 cup water
½ cup sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
1 pint fresh blueberries

1. Wash and pick over cranberries. Place in a medium saucepan with water and sugar. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, stir and simmer for 10 minutes or until cranberries pop.
2. Slightly mash the cranberries with the back of a wooden spoon to insure all skins are broken. Add the cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice. Mix well.
3. Removed from heat and mix in the blueberries (don’t be afraid to break a few, but don’t over mash). The sauce will thicken as it cools.
4. Transfer to a bowl, cool slightly.

This can be made up to 2 days ahead.

Carrots....

Now that I did Septembers and Octobers posts, I thought I'd finish off with a Thanksgiving post for November. The only problem is I don't really have any thanksgiving recipes!! But I do have a a recipe I've been wanting to share. I buy carrots to munch on every now and then, but sometimes I need to get rid of them in bulk, so I'll throw this together and it tastes SO good. But I am a cooked carrot fan, so I may be biased...

Honey Glazed Carrots
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 Tablespoons butter
4 Cups thinly sliced and peeled carrots
Salt and pepper
2 Tablespoons honey

Heat oil and butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add carrots, a pinch of salt, pepper and the honey. Stir and let cook for 10-12 minutes, or until softened to your liking. Transfer to a serving bowl and serve.