Thanksgiving Letter
Marta Alves © 2011
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.
Psalm 107:1
Thanksgiving Day of 2010 was a blessing as the family gathered around the table to celebrate and give thanks for the year. Thank you for coming. My life is blessed by all of you. I give thanks to God for you.
In answer to my niece's request I am writing the Thanksgiving Day’s recipes and sharing them not only with her but with my family and friends. Enjoy them!
To celebrate Thanksgiving Day at Mama’s in 2010, I went to the grocery store and bought what was needed on Wednesday. That afternoon, I placed the fresh turkey, semi-frozen, on the bottom drawer of the refrigerator.
On Thanksgiving Day, I washed the turkey well and placed two large onions inside of the turkey, and around 11 am I placed the turkey on a rack inside of a turkey pan, covered with two sheet of aluminum foil, one covering half of pan and the other covering the other half with the aluminum sheets overlapping each other but leaving space for steam to escape. Then I placed the turkey pan in the oven. The bird weighed 20 pounds. It was a “baby elephant.” In preparing the casseroles, I spent the next two hours. I fixed sweet yam casserole, green bean casserole and ambrosia. I placed all the casseroles in the refrigerator to keep till an hour before dinner.
By 5 pm, six hours later, the turkey was ready. I placed it on the top of the stove and let it stand for about 20 minutes and then carved it and threw away the bones, placing the carved dark meat on one dish and white meat on another.
My sister fixed the turkey dressing. We had pumpkin pie that my daughter made and pecan pralines I made.
Happy Thanksgiving to y’all!
The recipes for Thanksgiving day are as follows.
Gravy
I took the broth and grease from the turkey pan and added a can of chicken broth and brought it to a boil. I added poultry seasoning to taste and ten minutes before serving I added flour dissolved in cold water to the boiling broth to thicken it. I let it boil slowly for 10 minutes and it was ready to serve.
Sweet Yam Casserole
2 large cans of Sweet Yam without the liquid, cut in small pieces
2 medium cans of pineapple chunks with some liquid
1 cup of brown sugar
Half stick of butter
Dash of cinnamon
Melt butter in pyrex dish, add sweet yam and pineapples
Add brown sugar
Place small amount of cinnamon on top.
Cover with aluminum foil and place in refrigerator till 1 hour before meal
Place in oven at 325 for 20 minutes
Green Bean Casserole
2 cans of regular green beans
2 cans of mushroom soup
One sweet onion
Half a cup of olive oil
Quarter of butter stick
One large can of sliced mushrooms
Melt butter in sauce pan and add live oil
Add onion finely chopped
Add mushroom slices while onion is cooking
Cook until onions are semi-transparent
Add the mushroom soups and stir well till everything blends and the mushroom soups seem to become thinner
Add the green beans and stir
Pour into pyrex rectangular dish
Add French fried onions to cover the top of the casserole
Cover the whole casserole with aluminum foil and place in refrigerator till one hour before meal
Take out of refrigerator and place in oven at 325 degrees for about 20 minutes
Ambrosia
2 cans of pineapple chunks with some liquid
2 cans of mandarin oranges without liquid
Small bottle of maraschino cherries without the stems
One pint of light sour cream
Three cups of small marshmallows
Half a cup of sweet shredded coconut to cover dish
Pour pineapple chunks, mandarin oranges, maraschino cherries, and sour cream and stir
Add marshmallows and shredded coconut
Cover top with shredded coconut and place a cherry in the middle as decoration.
Cranberry Sauce
I bought it in a can and placed it in the refrigerator. When ready to eat, I opened can and pour in on a flat plate and decorated it with parsley.
Bread
I bought bread buns them ready to place in oven. I placed on a cookie sheet and place in 350 degree oven for 10 minutes. I served with butter.
Stuffing
Buy bread crumbs dry dressing and follow direction in package.
May God with His infinite love shower
His graces and peace upon you and your family always!