It’s upon us, that magical time of year for baking and sharing good food with great friends and family. Use your traditional recipes for either the baking, appetizers, turkey or sides that are expected or for a change, throw in a new recipe for this season. It may become a tradition!
Honey Mustard Sausages
This is an easy appetizer to make. You can make them ahead and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Our local butchers do an awesome job on homemade sausages. A spicy Italian or gutsy garlic works well in this recipe. I have also used this recipe to go with the waffles that I make Christmas morning.
1 lb fresh flavourful sausages
1/4 cup grainy mustard
1 Tbsp honey or maple syrup
1/4 tsp dried thyme
In a skillet, cook sausages over medium heat, turning occasionally, until golden and firm. Let cool.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk together grainy mustard, honey and thyme. Cut sausages into 1/2-inch pieces; place in ovenproof dish. Pour mustard mixture over top and toss to coat.
Bake in 350°F oven for 15 minutes or until juices run clear.
Serve with small skewers.
Mashed Sweet Potato Casserole
The rich flavour of this colourful casserole complements any meat dish. It is simple to make and can be made well ahead of time.
6 sweet potatoes
1/4 cup chicken or vegetable stock
Pinch each salt and pepper
TOPPING:
1 Tbsp sunflower seed oil
1 cup thinly sliced red onion
1/2 cup toasted chopped cashews or your favourite nut or pumpkin seeds
Pierce each sweet potato in several places. Bake in 350°F oven for about 45 minutes or until softened. While still hot, peel off skins. Place potatoes in large bowl.
Add stock to potatoes; mash with potato masher until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.
Spoon potato mixture into greased casserole dish, smoothing top.
*Make-ahead: Cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days; add an extra 30 minutes to reheating.
Cover and bake in 350°F oven for about 30 minutes or until potatoes are hot.
TOPPING: Just before serving casserole, in skillet heat oil and cook thinly sliced red onion, stirring often, until softened.
Add toasted cashews to onion in skillet; cook for about 1 minute. Spoon over potatoes.
Onion Cranberry Brisket
Keeping it simple is always in the back of my mind—how to make food “shine” without spending hours in the kitchen. If you would like a change and don’t want to struggle with turkey and all the trimmings try this recipe. This recipe needs to be made ahead of time—a bonus.
1 beef brisket, about 4lb/2kg
1 can (398 ml) jellied cranberry sauce
1 envelope onion soup mix
1 small onion, sliced thinly
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup water
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
In large roasting pan, whisk together cranberry sauce, onion soup mix, minced garlic, onion, water and cayenne pepper.
Add beef brisket to pan; spoon cranberry mixture over top. Cover with plastic wrap; refrigerate for at least 12 hours or for up to 24 hours.
Cover pan with foil or lid; cook in 325°F oven, basting every 30 minutes for about four hours or until brisket is fall-apart tender. Let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes; cover and refrigerate for at least 12 hours or up to 3 days.
Skim fat from surface. Slice brisket thinly across the grain. Arrange slices in gravy. Cover. Heat in 325°F oven for 1 hour or until hot.
Makes 10 servings.
