By DiAnn Mills @DiAnnMills
It’s no secret that I love to cook and bake. The planning and preparation are fun, creative and an stress-reliever. In compiling my favorite recipes for Thanksgiving dinner, I wanted to share a few with you—and these don’t have to be served only on Thanksgiving.
Corn-And-Crab Chowder
This chowder is so easy, and a people-pleaser
Prep Time: 20 mins | Cook Time: 55 mins | Servings: 10 cups
Ingredients:
6 bacon slices
2 celery ribs, diced
1 medium-size green bell pepper, diced
1 medium onion, diced
1 (16-oz.) container chicken broth
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 cups fresh corn kernels (6 ears)
1 pound fresh lump crabmeat, drained and picked*
2 cups milk
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Garnish: chopped fresh cilantro
Directions:
Cook bacon in a Dutch oven over medium heat 8 to 10 minutes or until crisp; remove bacon, and drain on paper towels, reserving 2 Tbsp. drippings in Dutch oven. Crumble bacon.
Sauté celery and next 3 ingredients in hot drippings 5 to 6 minutes or until tender.
Whisk together broth and flour until smooth. Add to celery mixture. Stir in corn. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer, stirring occasionally, 30 minutes. Gently stir in crabmeat and next 4 ingredients; cook 4 to 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Serve warm with crumbled bacon and oyster crackers. Garnish, if desired.
Tuscan Tomato Salad
This recipe came from my Greek friend, and it’s always in-season.
Ingredients:
40 Cherry tomatoes halved or quartered
1 cup sliced green olives
1 cup sliced black olives
2 green onions, diced
½ cup walnuts, chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
Salt and pepper to taste
Garnish
Feta Cheese
Directions:
Combine cherry tomatoes, green olives, black olives, walnuts, and green onions in a big bowl. In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, red wine vinegar sugar, oregano, and basil. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Pour dressing over salad and stir gently to coat. Chill and marinate for 1 hour. I make this the day before. When ready to serve, top with crumbled Feta cheese.
Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Warm Honey Glaze
I suggest doubling this!
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients:
1½ lb. brussels sprouts, trimmed, halved
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
½ tsp. kosher salt, plus more
Freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup honey
⅓ sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar
¾ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
3 Tbsp. unsalted butter
3 scallions, thinly sliced on a diagonal
1 tsp. finely grated lemon zest
Directions:
Place a rimmed baking sheet on bottom rack of oven; preheat to 450°. Toss brussels sprouts and oil in a large bowl; season with salt and black pepper.
Carefully remove baking sheet from oven. Using tongs, arrange brussels cut side down on baking sheet. Roast brussels on bottom rack until softened and deeply browned, 20–25 minutes.
Meanwhile, bring honey to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, stirring often, until honey is a deep amber color but not burnt (it will be foamy, that’s okay), 3–4 minutes.
Remove from heat and add vinegar and red pepper flakes, if using, and whisk until sauce is smooth (it will bubble up quite aggressively when you add the vinegar before settling). Return saucepan to medium heat, add butter and ½ tsp. salt, and cook, whisking constantly, until glaze is glossy, bubbling, and slightly thickened, 3–4 minutes.
Transfer brussels sprouts to a large bowl. Add glaze and scallions and toss to combine. Transfer to a platter and top with lemon zest.
Creamy Baked Mac and Cheese
Definitely a crowd pleaser.
Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 15 minutes | Servings: Servings: 8
Ingredients:
1 lb. dried elbow pasta
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups whole milk
2 1/2 cups half and half
4 cups shredded medium cheddar cheese divided (measured after shredding)
2 cups shredded Gruyere cheese divided (measured after shredding)
1/2 Tbsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. paprika smoked paprika is our favorite!
Directions:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F and grease a 3 qt baking dish or 9×13 inch dish. Set aside.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. When boiling, add dried pasta and cook 1 minute less than the package directs for al dente. Drain and drizzle with a little bit of olive oil to keep from sticking.
While water is coming up to a boil, shred cheeses and toss together to mix, then divide into three piles. Approximately 3 cups for the sauce, 1 1/2 cups for the inner layer, and 1 1/2 cups for the topping.
Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Sprinkle in flour and whisk to combine. Mixture will look like very wet sand. Cook for approximately 1 minute, whisking often. Slowly pour in about 2 cups or so of the half and half, while whisking constantly, until smooth. Slowly pour in the remaining half and half and the whole milk, while whisking constantly, until combined and smooth.
Continue to heat over medium heat, whisking very often, until thickened to a very thick consistency. It should almost be the consistency of a semi-thinned condensed soup.
Remove from the heat and stir in spices and 1 1/2 cups of the cheeses, stirring to melt and combine. Stir in another 1 1/2 cups of cheese and stir until completely melted and smooth.
In a large mixing bowl, combine drained pasta with cheese sauce, stirring to combine fully. Pour half of the pasta mixture into the prepared baking dish. Top with 1 1/2 cups of shredded cheeses, then top that with the remaining pasta mixture.
Sprinkle the top with the last 1 1/2 cups of cheese and bake for 15 minutes, until cheesy is bubbly and lightly golden brown.
Apple Cider Snickerdoodles
This is a fun side dessert that kids and big kids enjoy.
Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 30 min | Servings: Yield: about 1 1/2 dozen
Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups apple cider
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar, plus 3 tablespoons for rolling
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons finely chopped red and green crispy apple chips, plus whole chips for garnish
2 teaspoons apple pie spice
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Heat the cider in a medium skillet over medium-high heat until it comes to a boil. Continue to cook until syrupy and reduced to about 2 tablespoons, 12 to 14 minutes. Set aside to cool slightly.
Whisk the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in a medium bowl until smooth. Beat the butter with 1/2 cup of the granulated sugar and the light brown sugar in a separate bowl on medium-high speed until fluffy and smooth, 2 to 3 minutes. Beat in the reduced cider and the egg (the mixture may look slightly curdled). Stir in the flour mixture and 1/4 cup of the chopped apple chips until combined.
Stir together the remaining 3 tablespoons of granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons of chopped apple chips and the apple pie spice in a small bowl. Roll heaping tablespoons of dough into balls, using lightly moistened hands if the dough is too sticky, and then roll in the spiced sugar mixture. Place the dough balls 3 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets and top with a few pieces of whole apple chips. Bake until the edges are just set but centers are still soft, 11 to 13 minutes, rotating pans halfway through the baking time. Cool 2 to 3 minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Do you have a recipe to share? Honestly, I’m looking for a moist old-fashioned dressing recipe. Can you help me?
Comments 18
Cornbread Dressing
Corn Bread
1-1/2 Cups corn meal mix
3/4 cup self riding flour
1 egg
1 cup buttermilk
Water
Stir all ingredients together and add water until it’s of pouring consistency. Place large iron skillet in oven at 400 * with 2 tablespoons lard. Pour mix I. Skillet and bake 20-25 mins. Let cool then crumble in large bowl.
1 stick butter
1 cup chopped celery
1 medium onion chopped
Melt butter in skillet and add vegetables. Sauté 4-5 mins until soft. Add to crumbled cornbread.
Add
Rubbed sage and black pepper to taste. I add 2- 3 tablespoons sage and 1 teaspoon black pepper. Add drippings from turkey or giblets cooked in turkey broth until moist.
Add 1 medium chopped gala apple.
Stir all to mix well. Enjoy!
Author
Angela, thank you so much! I appreciate your posting of the recipe.
DiAnn and others, these all sound delicious. Thank you for sharing.
This is perfect timing since I’ve been looking for an appetizer recipe for our annual Advent by Candlelight event at church. I’ll use the Tuscan Tomato Salad. And we have a new member potluck lunch in two weeks so I’ll use the Mac ‘n Cheese for that. Isn’t God’s timing perfect?
I make a Southern Living Sweet Potato Casserole for Thanksgiving that is always a hit.
https://www.southernliving.com/recipes/classic-sweet-potato-casserole-with-marshmallows
Something on my laptop won’t let me paste this as a link but if you copy this URL you’ll get to the right recipe. SL has a few different ones but this is the only one I’ve tried.
Author
Thanks, Karen! And your sweet potato casserole looks yummy!
Sounds good! Wish I had a cook. 🙂
Author
LOL, Debbie. I love to cook!
Love these! Here’s a tasty gluten-free carrot souffle recipe you might like.
https://sandykirbyquandt.com/2025/11/11/gluten-free-carrot-souffle-recipe/
Author
Thanks, Sandy, I love anything carrot!
DiAnn, thank you for the amazing recipes. I’m definitely sharing the Mac and cheese with my kids. Brother and sister always compete with Mac and Cheese at our family gatherings. Some are clearly winners, others not so much in this long time family “ competition “.
However it turns out, it doesn’t matter, it’s all the love that goes into it that is absolutely priceless! I’m grateful for this brother and sister unbreakable gooey bond.
Blessings my friend!
Author
Joyce, I agree! It’s the love that goes into a recipe that makes it yummy. Thank you!
Hey DiAnn, Theses recipes look fabulous. I’m going to try a couple next week. I cook old fashioned corn bread dressing. I watched my grandmother and my mother make it all my life. Then I became the one to make it for our family. There wasn’t much of a recipe so I’ve tried to capture it so someone else will make it when I’m gone.
So here’s what they did and me too. :).
Cook some chicken to make broth. I know you can buy broth but this is so much richer. I buy bone in skin on for this so the broth will be even more rich. I try to make a few quarts (like 3) of broth and keep some store bought on hand in case i don’t have enough. I remove the chicken and only use the broth.
Make cornbread: I use 7 packets of CORN KITS (by Morrison). I use this brand because it doesn’t have sugar. Next day I crumble it up as fine as possible. (Mother and Grandmother labored over this part a lot longer than I do 🙂 )
To the crumbled cornbread, I add about 1/2 cup chopped celery , 1 cup green onions , and 5-7 boiled eggs, salt and pepper. Then I heat the broth and start adding the broth. I use a lot to make it really juicy – like soup.
Use 3-4 day old biscuits and soak them in milk. Tear the pieces up and put them in the dressing mixture (don’t add the milk-just the soaked biscuits). (Grandmother said this keeps the dressing from getting gummy….or maybe she just always had leftover biscuits.:) )
After a lot of mixing, I cover it in foil and bake about an hour or until all the liquid has soaked into the cornbread. Then I stir it and remove the foil and bake another 15 minutes or so until browned.
It is moist and delicious. It’s never sticky or gummy or dry.
You can also add poultry seasoning and/or sage. My family doesn’t care for this flavor profile, so I leave it out.
This 7 packets is a big pan full. So you can adjust how much you make by the amount of cornbread you make.
Some people put in raw eggs to bind the dressing together as it cooks. We don’t like the texture when the eggs are raw, but the boiled eggs add a wonderful touch. Some people saute the onions and celery first but I don’t think it’s necessary since the dressing will cook more than an hour.
It’s old fashioned for sure. :). Sending so much love to you dear friend. ——Karen Porter
Author
Karen, you read my mind! I’ve been looking for a good recipe for cornbread dressing, and you did it! Thanks so much. I can’t wait to try it!
All those recipes sound yummy, DiAnn! My mom never had a recipe for her dressing; she just eyeballed every ingredient. I’m still trying to reproduce it (gluten-free for me). But I have a recipe that’s a riff on the familiar broccoli salad. I use broccolini (a milder, easier-to-digest cousin):
For every 2 heads of broccolini:
Mix 1/4 cup mayonnaise + 2 T. maple syrup + 2 T. apple cider vinegar for the dressing. Add 2 T. crumbled, cooked bacon + 2 T. sunflower seeds + 2 T. dried cranberries (sweetened with apple juice). Mix and let sit for just a couple hours. Serves 3 or 4. Easy to remember because everything is multiples of 2!
I like the snickerdoodle variation and the Brussel sprout recipe. Thank you for sharing! We sometimes make a harvest potato casserole where you use bay leaves to boil with potatoes, then put them in the freezer to get the full effect. Then you shred the potatoes, add butter, cheese, green onions, and sour cream.
Crushed cornflakes go on top. It’s from a Southern Living cookbook.
Author
Thanks, Adriane, Southern Living recipes are incredibly good!
Author
Lana, this looks yummy! Thank you.
Wow! You are quite the gourmet cook! 👏 I like to invent when I cook. Some recipes turn out well 🤗 and some don’t. 🥹
I wish I had a recipe to share, but alas, it hasn’t been invented, yet.
Author
Barbara, some of mine aren’t so good either! 🙂