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You Cannot Lose With This Fantastic Recipe

I am looking forward to getting back to the usual, everyday dinner rotation after all these festive holiday meals! Don’t get me wrong; we all love a delicious, special dinner for Thanksgiving or Christmas, but after eating ham, smoked salmon, roast, red wine gravy and a gazillion different kinds of creamy salads for a few days in a row, you start missing the regular weeknight meals. Or at least that’s what’s happening to me.

I still have the New Year’s feast to deal with but I’m already planning for my first full week of soups, salads and casseroles. “Nothing special” sounds really special to me, at this point!

I asked my family what they would like for their first non-holiday meal and two out of three said meatloaf, so that’s what it’s going to be then! I have a really good recipe I’ve trusted for years – it’s from canarybird01 over at GardenWeb. My family is crazy about this recipe and I’ve shared it with so many people – now I wanted to share it with you, too!

Visit GardenWeb for canarybird01’s delicious recipes!

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Quick Tip: Use condensed tomato soup or tomato puré – never ketchup!

Forget Boring Mashed Potatoes And Go For This AWESOME Gratin Instead!

Here’s a dish that will knock your socks off! And your dinner guests, too! This potato gratin is something I make for every special occasion, whether it’s Thanksgiving, Easter or just a birthday celebration dinner. It’s a dish so yummy that you could probably serve it as the main course, and you wouldn’t hear any complaints. However, so far I’ve just served it as a side dish.

Except on those rare occasions when we’ve had leftovers. Then I’ve just enjoyed those for lunch the next day – and my family knows I won’t share! I’ve reserved the right to eat any leftovers of this potato gratin, unless they have helped me make it.

Not that it’s a difficult dish to make – it isn’t, but it does take a little time to peel and slice those potatoes. I recommend getting a mandolin slicer; it will make the task a lot faster and easier! Plus, it’s such a fun tool that I wouldn’t mind slicing potatoes all days long, haha!

Serve this gratin at your next family gathering and watch it disappear in minutes!

Image credit Dreamyshade.

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Quick Tip: This potato gratin makes the perfect side to any entree, but I especially enjoy this with a good steak.

Would You Pick One Or Make a Combination Of All 3 Of Them?

It’s always the same thing for me when it comes to holiday meals.

I start planning really early, to make sure there is no last minute panic. But then I simply find way too many great recipes and I start rethinking my choices. After about 3 weeks of hopping back and forth between ten different recipes, my husband picks one for me. I know, it’s sad!

But this year I don’t have to rethink anything. This sweet potato casserole recipe that I found on Recipes For Our Daily Bread is brilliant. Basically, you get an awesome sweet potato casserole with three topping options in one! We all have that favorite topping we like better than others, so now you can make something for everyone.

I actually can’t believe I hadn’t thought of this myself. This is great for anyone like me, who are having a hard time deciding what to serve at Christmas dinner!

Recipe and image courtesy of Recipes For Our Daily Bread.

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Quick Tip: The basic topping in the recipe is delicious, as is, even if you don’t want to add the extras!

Spread The Holiday Cheer By Making This Amazing Dessert (Works Really Well As Breakfast, Too…)

Over the years I’ve tried quite a bunch of dessert recipes – as well as breakfast ones, especially when it comes to the holidays. We’ve had so many cranberry cakes, pies and pastries that my husband threatened to move into the garage if we were having cranberry-anything this year… So I gave in and decided to try something totally different.

There are no cranberries, or any berries, involved in this recipe that I found on That Winsome Girl. I think it’s refreshing, even though some of you may feel gingerbread is kind of a “safe” flavor for the holidays, too. However, I thought this cheesecake looked adorable with those little gingerbread men on top, so I decided to give it a test run.

I have to say, I don’t miss the cranberries at all! This cake turned out super flavorful and yummy, and I am SO having this for breakfast on Christmas morning! I might even make this my regular breakfast dish… but don’t tell the kids I said that.

Recipe and image courtesy of That Winsome Girl.

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Quick Tip: If you’d like to make this look “less Christmassy”, leave out the gingerbread men.

So Yummy, You’ll Forget Your Manners

Now that we are in the middle of the Holiday season, I think it’s time to share some of my family’s favorite Thanksgiving and Christmas dishes.

This super scrumptious sweet potato casserole from Tablespoon is definitely one of them – and it’s so tasty, I tend to make this year ’round (even though some people consider this Holiday food!) I really don’t care if something is traditionally a Christmas dish. If it’s delicious, I will make it any time of year!

What makes this sweet potato casserole extra special, is the splash of Grand Marnier (you could use Cointreau, if preferred). I think it really gives this side dish a very sophisticated touch, and makes it fancy enough for any occasion. The flavor is not too strong, no need to worry about that! And this dish definitely won’t make you tipsy.

This recipe makes eight servings – maybe six, if you like this as much as I do! It’s very easy to double, if you’re cooking for a crowd, and you’ll even get make-ahead directions for it.

Recipe and image courtesy of Tablespoon.

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Quick Tip: This recipe makes 8 servings.

I Could Eat That Praline Topping With A Spoon!

I will never forget Thanksgiving dinners at our house, as they were quite the extravagant event while I was growing up.

We had so many family members and friends packed into our house for hours and hours. People would always stay for lunch and dinner, both. My favorite part of this food fest were the incredible desserts, and there were always many. I especially loved the pumpkin pie! My mom would make the best one on the planet. She always served hers with some whipped cream and each slice was better than the next.

The other day I was browsing through my favorite food blogs for some pumpkin pie recipes that might differ from the classic versions. I came across this adorable pumpkin pie with pecan praline topping over at I Sing In The Kitchen, and I couldn’t be happier! This pie looks so stunning. And guess what? It tastes like a dream come true. Have you tried this version of pumpkin pie yet?

Recipe and image courtesy of I Sing In The Kitchen.

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Quick Tip: Add lots of whipped cream to this pie or eat it with ice cream. Both are equally yummy.

You May Want To Keep The Whole Pie To Yourself

Have you ever heard of chess pie? No, it’s not a pie crust filled with Velveeta or slices of waxy cheese.

It’s a heavenly dish filled with fluffy mixed eggs, sugar, milk, flour, and cornmeal. I also said “chess” not “cheese” hehehe! This pie is truly something special and you gotta try it as soon as possible. In my opinion, chess pie is a checkmate! Even my children liked it and they typically do not care for new things. When I said “chess pie” to them my youngest replied, “checkers?” LOL!

One of the greatest things about this chess pie is how easy it is to make. You simply whip the ingredients together and bake it in the oven for x-amount of time and there you have it! Total yumminess! I am in love with this pie and will continue to make it time and time again. Are you ready to make my favorite recipe? Let’s get to it!

Image credit: Kimberly Vardeman.

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Quick Tip: This chess pie is excellent all by itself. Yum!