getting organized

With the holidays coming upon us rather quickly, I thought it best to get organized as far as menus go. I sent an email to my family to get their input for the Thanksgiving menu. I’m still waiting on one of my children to confirm they are definitely coming for dinner because if they are, here’s my tentative menu:

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Salad?
Pasta - manicotti, cheese ravioli (3-4 per person) or butternut squash ravioli with brown sugar walnut glaze (much lighter than something with ricotta)
Turkey with Great Grandma Freid’s dressing
Bourbon glazed carrots
Sweet potatoes
A recipe for Short Rib Pot Pie
Dessert - mini cupcakes or suggestions

I purchase my produce and white bread for turkey dressing from Delicious Orchards in Colts Neck. Just before Thanksgiving, they’ll stop baking loaves of bread and switch to 24 hour baking of holiday pies. I’ve already purchased two loaves of white bread and placed them in my freezer. Bourbon glazed carrots was requested by my husband. I haven’t made them before.  The short rib pot pie was brought to my attention by my son-in-law. For the pot pie I would make my own pie crust and short rib filling ahead of time. The pot pie would be assembled the night before. In fact, wherever I could, I would prep as much ahead of time and just keep it in my extra refrigerator. Recipes for different varieties of the aforementioned items can be find on my recipe page.

One that I’ll be adding is a breakfast item called German apple pancakes. I tried this recipe this morning and it was delicious. It can be baked in either two 9-inch pie plates, or if you double the recipe, a 9x13-inch baking dish. This is a great recipe to prepare if you have family staying with you over the holidays. The batter consists of eggs, flour, milk and salt. I prepped the pancake batter the night before. This morning I sliced two apples and assembled it before baking. It took approximately 25 minutes to bake. What a wonderful early morning treat! The pancake was delicious, so light too. I cut the cinnamon and sugar topping in half and used only a portion on top of the apples before placing in the oven. If you’re looking for something quick and easy to make for breakfast, add this to your go to list.