Thanksgiving Food Recipes
For the Whole Family

These are quick and easy family recipes that my kids enjoy during Thanksgiving and at the holidays.

Grandma's Best Dressing

2 boxes Jiffey corn bread mix
4 stalks of celery, diced
2 onions, diced
4 slices bread
1/2 cup chicken broth or turkey drippings
sage to taste
salt and pepper to taste

Follow directions and bake cornbread. Then cut up celery, onions and soak about 3-4 pieces of bread in water for about 20 minutes and squeeze out the water. Use spoon to scoop up cornbread. Add the onions, celery, bread to the corn bread. Mix with your hands. Add salt, pepper and turkey drippings or chicken broth. Then add sage to taste. The secret to this dressing is the sage. Grandma likes quite a bit of sage. Mix it all with your hands and it in a large rectangular baking dish. Bake at 350F degrees for about 40 to 45 minutes. Slice into squares and serve on the side with your turkey.

Yummy Corn Bread

1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups yellow cornmeal
1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
3 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
3 tablespoons oil
1 1/2 cups milk

Mix ingredients together in the order listed above. Pour into greased muffin pans or square baking dish. Bake at 425F degrees for 20 to 25 minutes.


Mashed Sweet Potatoes

4 large sweet potatoes
1/2 stick butter
1/4 cup milk
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Carefully peel sweet potatoes and boil until soft (approximately 5 minutes). Let sweet potatoes cool, then mash. Add butter, milk, maple syrup, salt and pepper.


Candied Sweet Potatoes

3 large sweet potatoes
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
6 teaspoons brown sugar
small marshmallows
salt and butter to taste

Wash sweet potatoes and pat dry. Slice through the middle (lengthwise), then rub the whole sweet potato with oil. Lay sweet potatoes in a casserole dish, sliced side up.

Bake at 350F degrees (180C degrees) for 40 minutes until firm but not completely baked. Top with a little butter, brown sugar, marshmallows, and salt to taste. Then bake for another 20 minutes.


Herbed Mashed Potatoes

4 medium potatoes
1 tablespoon milk
1 tablespoon cream
2 tablespoons butter
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon each: thyme, rosemary, sage

Boil potatoes until soft. Drain well, peel and mash. Add milk, cream, and butter. Salt and pepper to taste and stir well. Stir in herbs.

Easy Mashed Peas

1 package frozen peas
2 tablespoons butter, melted
cream
salt and pepper to taste

Boil peas until tender. Melt butter and pour butter and cream in a blender. Add peas 1/2 cup at a time and blend. Peas should be thick and mashed well.

Wild Rice Stuffing

1 onion, diced
1 cup mushrooms, chopped
4 tablespoons olive oil
3 cups wild rice, cooked
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon marjoram
salt and pepper to taste

Saute onions and mushrooms in oil. Stir in wild rice. Add spices and salt and pepper to taste. Loosely stuff the cavity of the turkey. Rub turkey with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.


This is a wonderfully healthy dessert for kids.

Rhubarb Crumbly

6 stalks rhubarb
1 Granny Smith apple
1 pear
2 tablespoons sugar
1/3 cup butter
2 tablespoons brown sugar
3/4 cup whole oats
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup nuts, chopped (walnuts or pecans)

Preheat oven to 375F degrees (190C). Get butter out of fridge. Rinse rhubarb, apple, and pear. Cut rhubarb into 1/4 inch pieces. Peel apple and pear then cut into pieces. Place rhubarb, apple, and pear pieces in a 9 X 11" glass baking dish and sprinkle 2 tablespoons of sugar on top.

Butter should be softened by now. Cut butter into small pieces. In a bowl mix together butter, brown sugar, oats, flour, and nuts. Spoon crumbly mixture over rhubarb, apple, and pear pieces.

Bake for 30 minutes until fruit is soft and crumbly mixture on top is browned and caramelized.

Have your own Thanksgiving recipe? Why not enter the Easy Kids Recipes Holiday Recipe Contest.

Click here for more information about the holiday recipe contest.

The 2009 contest has closed, but you can still share your favorite Thanksgiving, Christmas, or holiday recipe idea. If you're a kid, please tell us your age.