Thanksgiving, a day to be grateful to God for the good things in life, is just around the corner. Thanksgiving for my family means a huge meal for supper with my grandpa. We make all the staples, turkey (or sometimes chicken), mashed potatoes, veggies, gravy, cranberry sauce and sometimes we try new things, too.
Pie is always essential. We always make pumpkin pie, using butternut squash of course. Sometimes we make others — apple, cherry, apple-cranberry and pecan — but always pumpkin. I don’t usually make pies, but I will make an occasional one, and because Thanksgiving is coming up, I have been trying to find a good recipe for pumpkin pie.
I am extremely picky about pumpkin pie. I have this idea in my mind as to how it should taste, and sadly, many recipes just do not add up. Last year, I figured out a near-perfect recipe, but as I neglected to write it down, I forgot it. So, the search began yet again.
I have made this particular pumpkin pie recipe twice, and I think it is a nice recipe now that I’ve adjusted it a little. One thing I particularly like about this recipe is that it uses an entire can of sweetened condensed milk — you don’t have to worry about forgetting the half-used can of milk in the refrigerator. I also like that it makes exactly enough for one pie. It’s very convenient, easy to mix together, and tastes good, too.
The amounts of spices are optional, as is the molasses. The order for mixing the ingredients is not very important, but I do recommend mixing the eggs first to ensure a more even distribution. This does not apply only to pies — unless the recipe expressively states otherwise, mixing the eggs before anything else is always a good idea.
As much as I hate to admit it, this recipe does have one fault. The pie can turn out, to put it plainly, kind of ugly. Because it is baked at a high temperature for a short time, parts can brown too quickly. It still tastes great; it just might not win any awards for beauty.
After-Thanksgiving soup is a more recent recipe that I’ve tried that I will definitely be making again at any time of the year — especially after Thanksgiving, as a way to use up the extra turkey. Other than peeling and chopping the vegetables, it is really simple to throw together. It is colorful and delicious.
I especially enjoy the addition of beans. I would never have thought to add them to a chicken or turkey soup, but I’m glad I tried it. The original recipe called for two cans of cream-style corn and two 8 1/2 oz. cans of lima beans. I don’t like cream-style corn, and I thought two cans of corn a bit much, so I used 1 can of regular corn. As for the beans, it was cheaper to get a 15 oz. can of lima beans, so that’s what I did. As I like great northern beans, I added a can of those as well.
This soup reheats really well. If you want to make it more filling, simply add some mashed potatoes. Not only does it use up extra mashed potatoes, it gives the soup an almost creamy quality.
Happy Thanksgiving.
Francesca Ullmer, the second child of a large homeschooled family, is from the Krakow area. She enjoys baking, reading, knitting, raising goats, and entering numerous items in the Oconto County Fair.
PUMPKIN PIE
1 9-inch pie crust, unbaked
2 cups or a 15 oz. can butternut squash or pumpkin puree
1 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
3 large eggs, room temperature
1 tsp. vanilla extract
A little less than 1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 to 1/2 tsp. cloves
1/4 to 1/2 tsp. ginger
1 tbsp. molasses, optional
Place crust in an ungreased 9-inch pie plate. Dust with a little flour. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Mix the eggs together. Add the rest of the ingredients, and mix thoroughly. Pour into pie crust. Bake for 15 minutes, reduce heat to 350 degrees (cover crust with aluminum foil if it is browning too quickly) and continue baking 30-35 minutes until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely on a wire rack. Serve with whipped cream if desired.
AFTER-THANKSGIVING SOUP
6 cups turkey or chicken broth
3 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
2 celery ribs, diced
1 15 oz. can of whole kernel corn, drained
1 15 oz. can of lima beans, drained
1 15 oz. can of great northern beans, drained
1 to 2 cups chopped, cooked turkey or chicken
1/2 to 1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. parsley
In a large pot or Dutch oven, combine broth, potatoes, carrots, and celery. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer until vegetables are tender, 20-30 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients and heat through. Serve by itself; or add mashed potatoes to individual servings to create a creamy, hearty meal.
