Side Dishes: It’s Not All About The Turkey

By Nancy K. Crevier

Everyone has his or her favorite side dish for the traditional Thanksgiving Day feast, none more so than those who are involved in the food world, day in and day out. The Newtown Bee was able to convince local foodies, caterers, and restaurateurs to share their favorite accompaniments to the holiday meal. For many, it is the memories that make a recipe a favorite, not necessarily exotic ingredients or the utilization of extraordinary culinary skills.

There is always room for one more at the Thanksgiving table. Perhaps this year, it will be one of these side dishes. Enjoy the fruits of this season.

“Thanksgiving is not Thanksgiving without this side dish,” says Sal e Pepe Contemporary Italian Bistro owner Angelo Marini. “My sister-in-law usually brings it, but when she does not come, [Renia and I] have to make it ourselves,” he said. The Marinis always make an extra pan of Renia’s family corn casserole, because it is so beloved by their guests.

Corn Casserole

1 can (14.5 oz) whole kernel corn, drained

1 can (14.5 oz) creamed corn

1 box Jiffy corn muffin mix

1 cup sour cream (plus a couple of extra tablespoons)

5 to 6 Tbsp butter

Preheat oven to 350°F. Put butter in medium-sized casseroled dish and place in oven to melt. Meanwhile, mix other ingredients together. When butter is melted, pour corn mixture on top, and put it back in the oven.

Bake about 50 minutes, until top is golden brown. Casserole tastes better if it can “sit” for a while before serving, since consistency becomes a little thicker.

Loree Ogan of Newtown and owner of Loree’s Catering in Bethel shared a Jello mold that she has made for Thanksgiving “since I was in high school.” That was in the days before the food processor was in every kitchen, she recalled. “It was lots of dicing and putting the orange through a meat grinder. Oh, how times have changed,” said Loree, “and all for the better in the kitchen!”

Cranberry Gelatin Salad

1 can (9 oz) pineapple tidbits, drained, save the juice

2 packages (3 oz each) cherry Jello

2 cup hot water

1 cup cold water

¾ cup sugar

1½ cups fresh cranberries, chopped in food processor

1 small orange, with peel, chopped in food processor

1 peeled orange, segments diced

¾ cup celery, diced

1/3  cup walnuts, chopped

Dissolve Jello in hot water. Add cold water and reserved pineapple juice and refrigerate until partially thickened.

In a separate bowl, stir sugar with drained pineapple tidbits, cranberries, orange segments, and orange peel. Add celery and nuts.

When Jello is slightly thickened, add the fruit/nut mixture and pour into a mold. Let set overnight.

Joan Velush works for caterers in the area and is well-known among her friends as a fabulous cook. Always on the lookout for new recipes to try, she was hard put to pick a side dish that is repeated year in and year out on the Thanksgiving Day table she sets for friends and family.

“I’m not a big ‘comfort food’ person,” she admitted. “I look for strong flavors to go with the traditional Thanksgiving Day meal, as it can be kind of plain, otherwise,” said Joan. Currently, her favorite side dish is one she garnered from the smittenkitchen.com blog, which blogger Deb Perelman credits to Gourmet.com.

“Zoe, our daughter, and I love these mushrooms, and I will have to make them for Thanksgiving this year,” Joan said.

Smittenkitchen.com Garlic Butter Roasted Mushrooms

1 pound mushrooms such as cremini or white, halved lengthwise if large

2 Tbsp capers, rinsed and chopped

3 large garlic cloves, minced

2 Tbsp vegetable oil

3 Tbsp unsalted butter, cut into pieces

2 tsp fresh lemon juice

¼ cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

Preheat oven to 450°F with rack in middle. Toss mushrooms with capers, garlic, oil, 1/8  teaspoon salt, and several grinds of pepper in a 1½- to 2-qt shallow baking dish. Top with butter and roast, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms are tender and golden and bubbly garlic sauce forms below, 15 to 20 minutes. Stir in lemon juice and parsley. Serve immediately, with crusty bread on the side for swiping up the juices.

Annie Stiefel of Sticks and Stones Farm on Huntingtown Road has three rules for “a very untraditional T-day with my son.” Because she has been spending the winter in Hawaii the last seven years, she can easily apply these rules:

The meal must take place on a beach.

It must be able to fit in two picnic baskets

All organic and as local and fresh as possible.

“My latest incarnation, inspired by autumn’s bounty of herbs and apples, was [the addition of] 2 Tbsp minced fresh rosemary and 1 cup chopped apple,” Annie said. She also suggested savory additions to this gluten-free cornbread, of minced scallions and cilantro or basil. Add ¾ cup spicy jack cheese, if there is no concern about the recipe remaining strictly vegan.

 

Vegan, Gluten-Free Cornbread

Preheat oven to 425°F. Grease muffin tins, or use paper liners, or grease a 9x13 pan.

¼ cup ground flax seeds (an electric coffee grinder works well)

¾ cup water

2 cup organic whole wheat pastry or spelt flour (for gluten free, use 1½ cup brown rice flour, ¼ cup potato starch, ¼ cup tapioca flour and ½ tsp xanthan gum; or a gluten-free flour mix)

2 cup organic cornmeal

2 Tbsp + 2 tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

2 tsp apple cider vinegar

½ cup maple syrup (or ¼ cup agave syrup or 2 Tbsp organic sugar)

2 cup rice, almond, or coconut milk

½ cup olive or coconut oil

Bring water to a boil and add flax. Reduce to low and simmer 3 minutes, or until thickened.

Mix dry ingredients together and set aside.

Mix liquid ingredients together and add flax mixture. Next, add all wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Mix just until combined. Don’t overmix.

Using a large spoon or ice cream scoop, place in muffin tins, or pour into pan. Bake until lightly browned on top, about 20–25 minutes.

From PoorMansFeast.com blogger, Elissa Altman of Newtown, comes this “counterintuitively delicious recipe.” Roughly based on a dish she once heard Carol Peck (Good News Café, Woodbury) talk about on NPR, Ms Altman’s Caramelized Brussels Sprouts and Grapes dish has become a Thanksgiving family favorite. “The sugar released by the grapes caramelizes the Brussels sprouts, resulting in vegetables so delectable that even small children will eat them. Usually,” declared Ms Altman.

Caramelized Brussels Sprouts and Grapes with Garlic, Pancetta, and Thyme

1½ Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2 Tbsp diced pancetta, ¼-inch dice (Ms Altman uses “thick pucks from Steve Ford’s Butcher’s Best in Newtown.”)

4 cloves peeled garlic

1 lb Brussels sprouts, halved it they’re large, stem-end trimmed

1 tsp fresh thyme leaves

¼ tsp sea salt

freshly ground black pepper

½ lb red seedless grapes.

Preheat oven to 400°F. Warm olive oil in a large ovenproof skillet over medium heat until it himmers. Add pancetta, cooking until it just begins to brown, 5–8 minutes. Add garlic, sprouts, thyme, salt, and pepper to taste, stirring well.

Move the pan to the oven, uncovered. Roast 15 minutes, shaking pan every 5–7 minutes to prevent sticking.

Add grapes and stir to combine. Roast for another 20–30 minutes, shaking pan frequently, till sprouts caramelize and are tender enough to yield to a knife. Serve immediately or at room temperature.

Prepare one day ahead: Reheat in low oven, 225 to 300 degrees, 10–15 minutes.

Variations: Omit pancetta, replace with 2 Tbsp minced shallots. Replace thyme with rosemary. Toast ¼ cup walnut meats and fold into dish prior to serving, while still warm.