From My Mother’s Recipe Box: Breads for Thanksgiving

Last year for Thanksgiving I posted some quick bread recipes from My Mother’s Recipe Box. Orange Date Bread and Apple Bread sounded like good choices for both Thanksgiving dinner and breakfast the following day—a little sweet, a little fruity.

This year I wanted to share two breads that I thought would go well with the meal. The first one, Fluffy Golden Corn Bread, might be something you have lots of recipes for. I know I do!

The second one, Buttermilk Brown Bread, is something I haven’t had in a long time. It’s similar to the Boston Brown Bread my grandma used to make in a can. Epicurious.com claims, “It is no coincidence that the method used to bake this bread, steaming, is similar to one used by the native Indians of New England, who taught us how to use corn as a grain for bread.” How apropos, then, to make it for Thanksgiving dinner!

Enjoy all your cooking and baking efforts in the upcoming week. And Happy Thanksgiving!

From My Mother’s Recipe Box: Quick Breads for Thanksgiving

If you’re looking for some easy breads for Thanksgiving that double as breakfast food, check out these two recipes from My Mother’s Recipe Box. Who doesn’t like slicing off a warm piece of apple bread in the morning after being stuffed from dinner the night before?

They’re delicious to eat and easy for the cook. And they transport well.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Giving Thanks Locally: A Tribute to West Michigan Farmers

I didn’t go nuts searching for new recipes to prepare for Thanksgiving yesterday. Instead, I focused on seasonal recipes I enjoy but don’t often make because of time constraints. Because it was a holiday, I indulged in more time to be creative by cooking a range of dishes. And the goal at our house isn’t to eat until you’re stuffed: It’s to enjoy a sampling of many ingredients that were grown or raised locally and with passion by people we know.

This year on Thanksgiving I’d like to recognize all the farmers who contributed to the meal that Bill, our friend Sue, and I enjoyed. Many are regular vendors at the Holland Farmers Market. Thank you, farmers, for braving the cold temperatures at the market this time of year so we can conveniently purchase local produce!

Here’s what our Thanksgiving menu looked like:

Soups

Celery Root Bisque – made with celery root, shallots, and celery from Visser Farms

Roasted Onion and Carrot Soup – made with onions, carrots, and garlic from Visser Farms

Mixed Greens Salad with Pear, Pomegranate, and Warm Goat Cheese Croutons – made with fresh greens from my CSA, Mud Lake Farm

A Real Simple Roast Chicken – made with a happy, four-pound pastured chicken from Grassfields

Roasted Root Vegetables – with turnips, rutabagas, carrots and parsnips from Visser Farms

Oven-Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Onions – with sweet potatoes and red onions from Visser Farms

Leek and Potato Casserole – with leeks from Boeve Farm and potatoes from Visser Farms

Cabernet Cranberries – with fresh, local cranberries from The Berry Bunch

Cinnamon-Spiced Applesauce – with Empire apples from Skinner Homestead Acres.

Pear Crumble – with Anjou pears from Cosgrove Orchards

And thanks to Sue for bringing Creamed Onions, Mincemeat Pie from Crane’s Pie Pantry, and wine!

The Thanksgiving Turkey Dilemma: Watery, Chemical-Laden Grocery Store Bird, or Happy Heritage Breed?

Photo by Matt Billings via Wikipedia

Earlier this month, I was reading a health magazine that comes in our local paper, the Grand Rapids Press, and saw an article on heritage turkeys. Since the 1960′s grocery stores have been selling broad-breasted turkeys, which is apparently what poultry processors wanted to develop back then, putting the heritage turkey (such as the Bourbon Red turkey, shown above) out of demand. Once considered “old-fashioned,” heritage breeds are making a comeback.

Heritage turkey breeder Mari Krebs of Steinbacher Poultry Farm in St. Joseph, Michigan, along with her family, is bringing back the savory flavor of old-fashioned birds with Bourbon Reds.

Photo via MLive.com

And they’re doing it the right way: At Steinbacher Poultry Farm, all of their birds are bred naturally, pastured, and fed non-GMO feed without antibiotics.

Why would you want one of those water-injected, factory farm birds from the local grocery store?

You can order your turkey in advance from the farm at $5.50 per pound, according to the article. And, you can even raise your own by purchasing eggs or poults.