The Best Sweet Potatoes

What's your favorite Thanksgiving dish? Some people like dressing, some people are all about green bean casserole, and some people just come for the turkey. I really like it all, but what I look forward to the most are the sweet potatoes. I'm not talking about canned yams topped with melted marshmallows; I crave sweet potatoes baked to fluffy perfection, mashed with butter and sugar, and topped with a crunchy pecan topping. Sweet enough for dessert but served as a side dish: this is the only sweet potato recipe you need.

Mini Cranberry Pear Streusel Pies

Last year I made apple and chocolate pecan pies for Friendsgiving, and while they turned out great, I really wanted to try something completely different this year. A pear and cranberry streusel pie seemed like just the thing, perfect for Thanksgiving but a little outside the norm. Individual mini pies are just the right amount of dessert after a big meal, plus its hard to say no to a dessert that's already portioned out. While making mini pies is a little more work than making one big pie, this recipe will also serve a lot more people than a single pie will, making up to 24 individual mini pies.

Your New Favorite Thanksgiving Dishes

Everyone has their favorite Thanksgiving dish, the one they look forward to making and eating every year (I'll be sharing mine soon!). But it's also fun to experiment with new recipes, on the off-chance you might discover a new favorite. The same can be said for your serving dishes. You always want to use grandma's china or the platter you got as a wedding present, but there's still plenty of room at the table for something new.  

Two Pies to Try for Thanksgiving: Salted Chocolate Pecan and "Perfect Apple Pie"

Still finalizing your Thanksgiving menu? Or maybe just looking for some new pie recipes? Here are two crowd pleasers.

This apple pie from Serious Eats may live up to its title of "perfect." I used a combination of Granny Smith and Gala Apples. Both stayed crisp thanks to a unique technique of soaking them in hot apple cider. This was my first time making an apple pie, and I was pretty pleased with how it turned out. 

This salted chocolate pecan pie, also from Serious Eats, is as rich and decadent as you might imagine. But it is also as easy to make as a regular pecan pie. I always love the combination of sweet and salty and this pie was no exception. I toasted my pecans before adding them to the rest of the ingredients to bring out their full flavor.

Here are the recipes:

Perfect Apple Pie

Ingredients

4 to 4 1/2 pounds of baking apples, peeled cored, and sliced into 1/4-inch slices
3 quarts boiling water or cider
10 tablespoons granulated sugar, plus 1 tablespoon for sprinkling over crust
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon (or more, to taste)
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons cornstarch (or more, if needed)
1 egg white, lightly beaten

Directions

Adjust oven rack to lower middle position and place a heavy rimmed baking sheet on it. Preheat the oven to 425°F. Place apple slices in a large bowl or pot. Pour boiling water or cider directly over top. Cover and set aside at room temperature for ten minutes. Drain apples well and let sit in a colander in the sink, tossing occasionally until completely dry, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl and add 10 tablespoons sugar, cinnamon, salt, and cornstarch, and toss until apples are evenly coated. Set mixture aside. If you find that your apples become too juicy, add another tablespoon of cornstarch to thicken.

Roll one disk of pie dough into a circle roughly 12-inches in diameter. Transfer to a 9-inch pie plate. Add filling. Roll remaining disk of pie dough into a circle roughly 12-inches in diameter. Transfer to top of pie. Or you can do like I did and use scraps to make a lattice. Using a pair of kitchen shears, trim the edges of both pie crusts until they overhang the edge of the pie plate by 1/2 an inch all the way around. Fold edges of both pie crusts down together, tucking them in between the bottom crust and the pie plate and working your way all the way around the pie plate until everything is well tucked. Use the forefinger on your left hand and the thumb and forefinger on your right hand to crimp the edges. If using the double crust method, cut 5 slits in the top with a sharp knife for ventilation.

Use a pastry brush to brush an even coat of lightly beaten egg white all over the top surface of the pie. Sprinkle evenly with a tablespoon of sugar. Transfer pie to sheet tray in the oven and bake until light golden brown, about 20 minutes. Reduce heat to 375°F and continue baking until deep golden brown, about 25 minutes longer. Remove from oven and allow to cool at room temperature for at least 2 hours before serving.

Salted Chocolate Pecan Pie

4 eggs, lightly beaten
14 ounces (about 1 2/3 cups) light corn syrup
3 1/2 ounces (about 1/3 cup) dark brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
8 ounces toasted pecan pieces (or whole pecans, roughly chopped, about 2 cups)
4 ounces semisweet chocolate, roughly chopped into 1/4 inch pieces, (about 1 cup) divided
Sprinkle of Maldon sea salt crystals or other coarse salt

Directions

Adjust oven rack to lower middle position and preheat oven to 425°F. When oven is ready, line chilled pie shell with foil or parchment paper and fill with weights and bake for 15 minutes. Remove weights and liner, rotate pie, and bake until the bottom crust is a golden brown (or slightly lighter, if you prefer that style), about 10 minutes. Remove pie shell from oven and allow to cool completely. Meanwhile, adjust the over rack to the lowest position and reduce heat to 350°F.

In a medium sized bowl, gently whisk the eggs enough to beat them up without making them frothy. Add the corn syrup and whisk immediately to combine. Add the sugar, salt, and vanilla to whisk to combine. Using a rubber spatula, stir in the pecans and half the chocolate. Pour the mixture into the cooled pie shell and sprinkle the remaining chocolate over the top. Bake until the filling puffs from the edges to the center, about 45 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack before serving. This pie can be made up to two days in advance and held in the fridge. Sprinkle with sea salt before serving.

I used my favorite recipe from Martha Stewart for the pie crusts.

Friendsgiving Table Inspirations

I'm preparing to host Friendsgiving (or Thanksgiving with friends for the uninitiated) for the very first time, and I'm super excited about it. One of the major responsibilities of the person hosting Friendsgiving, outside of making the turkey, is decorating for the event. So, I've been combing the internet and Pinterest looking for some tablescape inspirations. Here are a few that I'm into:

Source: isuwanne

I really love the nontraditional Thanksgiving color scheme incorporated by this one as well as the use of what appear to be thank you cards as part of the decor. They could be used as place cards or for sharing individualized words thanks to each of your guests. Either way, I am totally stealing the idea! Plus, I'm obsessed with milk glass, which is what the candle holder and the covered serving dish in the picture above are made of. The light fixtures in my kitchen and dining room, which are original to our house, are made of milk glass. I also have some milk glass vases I scavenged from a friend's wedding a few years back. I'm definitely looking for any ways I can incorporate things I already own to keep costs down.

Source: The Kitchn

I'm also really loving this one from The Kitchn. Again, note the nontraditional color scheme. The eye-catching centerpiece consists of fruits, vegetables, and gourds, which again is a great way to reduce costs while also keeping with the spirit of the occasion. I happen to have picked up some decorative gourds a few weekends back and have been debating about whether I should use them in a centerpiece like this one or scattered around the table. This centerpiece definitely has a big impact, but it also takes up some valuable table real estate.

Source: Making Lemonade

I'm always drawn to using metallics for table settings. Nothing says festive quite like silver and gold. When shopping for my table I'm hoping to find some gold items to add some razzle dazzle, perhaps some votives or a gold embellished table runner or tablecloth like the one pictured above. Or I just might paint some of the previously mentioned gourds.

Source: Uma Stewart

Patterns are not necessarily the first thing that comes to mind when I think of Thanksgiving, but there is no denying that they add a richness to the proceedings that complements abundance of food. Also: flowers. Flowers are a must for a great tablescape in my opinion.

I hope these pictures have provided you with as much inspiration for your Thanksgiving or Friendsgiving table as they have for me. You can see more of my Friendsgiving ideas on Pinterest. And if you are thinking about starting a Friendsgiving tradition of your own, check out this post on "The 17 Rules of Friendsgiving" from Buzzfeed.