3 Classic Movies for the Thanksgiving Season

In the United States, Thanksgiving is about giving thanks for the things we appreciate. It also typically includes traveling long distances, large family gatherings, a feast, and televisions tuned to football games. Thanksgiving can be a hectic time of year. It is good to find time to relax during the down time between traveling, visiting, eating, shopping, and watching sporting events. Whether you are taking a break from the hustle and bustle, or just enjoying a long weekend, relaxing with a classic movie is a wonderful choice. These 3 movies are my favorites for lounging around and relaxing during this season.

 The Wizard of Oz 

The Wizard of Oz is a classic and has been shown on television nearly every year since the 1950s. While it has been televised at different times of the year, I get the urge to watch Dorothy find her way home every year around Thanksgiving. 

Dorothy and her dog Toto are whisked away by a violent tornado. They land in unfamiliar territory and embark on a sometimes frightening adventure in which the value of friendships and the threats of foes are the themes that are explored.  In this new land they find the help (and hindrance) of strangers along the way. 

While "home" is not perfect for most of us, there is some truth in the message that "there's no place like home" and the love that can be found there. And there's not much that is more soothing that caring, familiar faces surrounding us.

The Wizard of Oz

The Other Sister

The Other Sister is one of my favorite movies, ever. I am listing it here because it takes place around Thanksgiving but more importantly, because it reminds me of the important of love, independence, and being grateful for others - despite their perceived weaknesses. This movie is about acceptance, love, and family.

Carla Tate (Juliette Lewis) returns home after an extended stay in an out-of-home placement, a place where people are trained to address her special needs.  She returns sometimes misguided, but loving, family as a young adult. 

We watch this family try to both take care of Carla while helping her become independent.  Inevitably, conflict arises as some family members are more willing than others to let her spread her wings. Carla meets Danny (Giovanni Ribisi) and they traverse the bumpy road of falling in love. 

This movie has made me laugh and cry, as well as feel like a schmuck for not experiencing life more fully and being more thankful for the small moments in life. 

The cast is amazing - Juliette Lewis, Giovanni Ribisi, Diane Keaton, Tom Skerritt are the main four characters and in my opinion they give amazing performances. The other characters are believable and memorable.

The Other Sister

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles 

Perhaps Planes, Trains, and Automobiles is not a classic movie by definition, but the struggles related to holiday travel, especially toward the snow-prone areas of our country, is a classic theme. Blizzards, cancelled flights, and finding alternative modes of travel are problematic, but throw in to the mix a traveling buddy that makes you absolutely crazy, and we have fun entertainment (as long as we are only the viewers and not the participants!)

Neal Page (Steve Martin) just wants to get home to his family in Chicago for Thanksgiving but his flight is cancelled. He is faced with dilemma after dilemma; one of the dilemmas is being paired up with a travel companion who is his polar opposite. Del Griffith (John Candy) is a goodhearted but highly annoying travel buddy. If you've ever traveled and experienced tantrum-inducing delays and cancellations due to weather, this movie may be fun to see.  A word of caution though: there is one brief scene that includes an adult tantrum with many adult words i.e. f-bombs.

The comedy of Steve Martin and John Candy with the topic of the travel stress of the holidays is a great combination.  

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

These three movies are the three that I think of when I think of the Thanksgiving season. I also think of Charlie Brown's Thanksgiving and I am aware that many people think of Miracle on 34th Street since it's story line spans from Thanksgiving to Christmas. 

For an in-depth and loving review of Miracle on 34th Street, be sure to see the post from our own Susan. Believe it or not, I've never seen the movie. But I'll be sure to watch this year, after reading her review.

Does your family have any movie traditions? Are there any movies you make sure to see during this time of year? 

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Music to Prepare Your Heart for Thanksgiving: A Review

Thanksgiving and Praise Music Go Together

When our hearts are especially thankful, we can often express our thanksgiving and praise best with music. Even when our hearts are heavy, music can remind us of all God has done for us and help us remember his faithfulness during times stress. Songs of praise can often bring gratitude back to our hearts. Today I'd like to share some music and verses that help my own heart give thanks for God's many blessings.

Prepare Your Heart to Praise the Lord with Music - Photo Courtesy of Pixabay

Let's get started with a song I first heard back in the seventies when I had many albums by the St. Louis Jesuits. I think I had all of them. Even though I'm Protestant, the Catholic Church was more innovative in writing music that expressed what was in  my young adult heart. Here's a sample I found on YouTube so you could hear the complete song, "Glory and Praise to Our God."




Even though  I'm now old, I still appreciate the simple melodies and beautiful harmony of many of the St. Louis Jesuits' songs.

The Music in This Thanksgiving Album Has All I the Qualities I Want

When I started searching Amazon for some of my favorite songs of thanksgiving and praise, I wanted to find an album with a variety of styles and artists. If I'm going to listen for a while, my attention wanders if the voices or music styles don't change periodically.  It's especially important to me that the rhythm changes. Even creators of albums by a single artist try to vary the rhythms as they put an album together.

I also wanted music with understandable words. All you need to do is listen to YouTube for a while to know that some choirs and smaller groups enunciate their words more clearly than others. It's wonderful that some videos show the words as they are sung, but most of us aren't able to watch our music on video when we are driving or doing the dishes. I don't know about you, but I normally listen to music to keep from getting bored while I'm doing some physical task

My personal music preference is songs with strong melody that beg me to sing along, and at least some harmony as the music flows. I want music that will lift my spirit, and tunes work with the words to do that.

This album meets all my criteria. There are a few songs included I wouldn't buy separately, but they work in the album to vary the styles and rhythms.  Click through to see a complete listing of all the songs and sample them right from the page. Although the thumbnails featured on the videos show different covers, the songs are the same ones by the same artists you will find on this video. OCP puts many of the songs in several different albums. If a song is only from a different album, I will tell you.

Glory & Praise: Third Edition, Vol. 26

What's in the Glory & Praise: Third Edition, Vol. 26 Album?

Here are some of the videos I've found that will let you hear more complete recordings of some of the artists featured on the album. Most of the traditional hymns included are sung by the OCP Session Choir. Here is their YouTube presentation of one of the most popular Thanksgiving songs you will find in the album -- "Now Thank We All Our God." It dates all the way back to Pilgrim times and I grew up singing it every Thanksgiving.



I'll be the first to admit that the cover of this album is not very exciting, but one isn't going to listen to the cover.

There are also many songs associated with the St. Louis Jesuits which you can stream or still get on CD's.  Among them was the song in the first video I showed you above. This next one, also on the album, is by Bob Dufford and the St. Louis Jesuits. I'm giving you the visual version here. It's prettier than the album cover.






The album also features another of my favorite Thanksgiving songs: "Let All Things Now Living." It's sung to the popular folk tune of "The Ash Grove" by the OCP Session Choir.







Now let's vary the style and the rhythm a bit. This one is bilingual:
"Alabaré / O Come and Sing" by Manuel José Alonso and  José Pagán. It will start you dancing. It's also on the album.

The songs by Grayson Warren Brown are a bit slower and reflect a different cultural style.  Here's "Been So Busy." This artist was new to me.

If you'd like to sample more of this artist, which I did, you can not only steam his music, but also buy his CD. I like that, because I don't have an MP3 Player. Actually, I do, but it's ancient and I never figured out how to work it.

Greatness and Glory Are Yours [CD]Check Price

While checking out all this music, I see that to get the music I really want to buy and play it in a portable form I may need to invest in an MP3 Player. I'm checking out this one.

Still More Songs to Check out from More Artists on this Album

"Grateful" by Tom Tomaszek is also included in the album. Here it is complete. It's yet another style.




All these new styles are getting to me. I need to calm down a bit with another traditional hymn by the choir. Here's another of my favorites: "All Creatures of Our God and King." It dates back to St. Francis of Assisi in 1225 and was translated into English by William Draper in 1926. It appears some of the words have been modernized since then. The tune dates back to 1623. This version is from the Cambridge Singers and a different album, but the song is also sung by the OCP Session Choir on the Glory and Praise Album linked to above. I put this version here because I like the extra organ and trumpet music in many of the selections.



The O Praise the Lord of Heaven album it comes from features only a couple of the Thanksgiving hymns in my featured album. Most of the selections in O Praise the Lord of Heaven will appeal more to those who are "high church" or who enjoy classical music. If that's you, try the downloads from this album.

O Praise the Lord of HeavenCheck Price

Let's change the style again with "Lift Up Your Hearts" by Roc O'Connor - a song that comes from our featured album:



Now we'll bring in a female vocalist, Sarah Hart.  She sings "Hallelujah is Our Song" in our featured album.

If you enjoy this artist and style, you can buy the CD or stream the songs by clicking the link below.

Above Earths LamentationCheck Price

We've almost got this album covered. I haven't shown you all the songs, but you can sample the rest on the Amazon site. I do want to leave you with one last song from the album by an artist who was new to me and I'm glad to have met. It's another song I love, "Alle, Alle, Alleluia" by Richard Ho Lung. It will wake you back up if the slower songs were making you drift off.

If you enjoyed that song, you might want to check out others by the same artist and a couple of others on Working for the Lord. Most feature the faster rhythms, and some of the songs include female vocalists.

Working for the LordCheck Price

We've Come to the End of the Album

At least we've reached the last song from it I want to share with you in video. This is the version you will find on our featured album. The hymn has been around  with many different tunes. The English translation by Jane Campbell has been around since 1861. This version of "All Good Gifts" is by Kevin Keil.




I hope you've enjoyed our video tour of Glory & Praise: Third Edition, Vol. 26. If you'd like to purchase the album or individual songs just click the link to see the Amazon listing where you can listen to parts of each song. You can stream 13 of them for free if you Try Amazon Music Unlimited 30-Day Free Trial. That membership will also allow you to listen to many of the songs in the other albums featured here. If you'd like to do that, I'd really appreciate it if you'd click the affiliate link above to look at the offer instead of the one on whatever Amazon page you land on if you go to look at the music.

Glory & Praise: Third Edition, Vol. 26

I hope this music will help you nurture a grateful heart and teach you more songs to help you praise the Lord.

Photo Adapted from Pixabay Photo

For more Thanksgiving music, check out what our contributor Heather Burns, wrote: Thanksgiving Canon, A Hymn for the Ages

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Sharing Thanks With Handmade Crafts for Thanksgiving

Source

 

Thanksgiving is a time for expressing thankfulness for all of the good things we've received in our lives. Some families have traditions where they express their gratitude during dinner while other families may find it hard to share these feelings verbally. Sometimes it takes a little creativity to find just the right words and the right way to express those sentiments.


Here are four DIY handmade crafts for Thanksgiving that will make it easy for you to express your love and gratitude to your family and friends. These crafts are easy to make and most of the materials can be found in your recycle bin or backyard.

Hang Your Gratefulness on a Tree

Simply Vintage Girl designed The Thankful Tree, With Chalk using items found in her backyard. This tree is made from a broken branch that is used as the tree form. Small wooden discs are painted with chalkboard paint and suspended from the branches. Before your guests arrive, place a piece of chalk under the tree so that family and friends can write down those things for which they give thanks when the spirit moves them.

Stuff Your Thanks in a Turkey

I {Heart} Crafty Things created a Thankful Turkey Box Tutorial from an upcycled tissue box. This is an awesome craft for kids because it is so easy and downright adorable. The kids can explore their creativity and when the crafting fun is done, they can write their thanks on a slip of paper. During Thanksgiving dinner, have everyone take a turn at pulling a slip of paper out of the box and reading the words of thankfulness.

Set a Place Mat for Giving Thanks

Abby M. Interiors has 8 Ideas for Creating Your Thanksgiving Table that will show your gratefulness all through dinner. I especially like number 7 on her list. Make place mats out of upcycled paper bags or kraft paper and draw lines on the mats for guests to write down the good things in their life.

Spread a Garland of Thanksgiving

Carina Gardner shares her gratefulness with a Giving Thanks - Free Thankful Banner Download that makes it easy for family and friends to write their reasons to be thankful on a decorative garland strung near the dinner table. Use your own creative skills or download the free printout to make leaf shapes for the garland. Put the shapes in a jar with a pen and clothespins, find a convenient place to hang the garland string, and encourage your family to write their thanks on a leaf and pin it to the garland.

May the holiday season bring you comfort, joy, and good tidings.
Coletta

Posted by Coletta Teske

About This Contributor

Coletta Teske writes reviews on books, business management, writing, crafting, cooking, and gardening. She is also an avid recycler and shares her tips on recycling. She delights in upcycling an old object, recycling or transforming discarded items into a new treasure.

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A Turkey Platter for your Family's Thanksgiving Table

Since the turkey is the centerpiece of most Thanksgiving celebrations and makes an appearance on Christmas dinner menus as well, a beautiful turkey platter is a must for most families. While some have heirloom platters (and family stories to go along with them), others are looking for a new tradition. Let's review a few popular platter choices to see what might work best for your family.

Spode Woodland Design Turkey Platter

This design reminds me of my childhood, growing up in the 1950s and 60s. The Spode company has been designing and making dinnerware and serving pieces for nearly 200 years. Their timeless designs are favorites in many homes and this "Woodland" pattern is very recognizable.

Perhaps you've had a Spode Woodland platter handed down through the family. Or maybe it's time to start your own family tradition. This is a perfect piece to start with.

This is a classic pattern, very old-fashioned in design but modern in that Spode's earthenware material, Imperialware, is both dishwasher and microwave safe.

A tidbit of turkey platter trivia for you: This turkey platter was featured on the Thanksgiving 2011 episode of the show Blue Bloods on CBS television. I recognized it right away.

You can find this Spode rectangular turkey platter on Amazon. Or see what's available right now when you look for a Spode Woodland Turkey Platter on eBay.

Lenox Turkey Platter with Handy Handles

This beautiful, sturdy turkey platter from Lenox features a classic turkey shape and autumn designs with pumpkins, fruit, and leaves. Large at 16 x 24 inches, you'll be able to bring the biggest roast turkey to the table. Or pile on the turkey slices and drumsticks, plenty to feed extended family and friends. 

The design is beautiful; click on the link then mouseover to see the details in the feathers. Gorgeous! 

Since this is aluminum alloy with the look of pewter, it goes with any china pattern or color. The price is excellent, too. If I were in the market for another platter right now, this would be my choice. 

Colorful Turkey Design Ceramic Platter

Who doesn't love the beautiful colors of autumn? This is the perfect ceramic platter for any Thanksgiving table, but especially pretty when you need to add some color to the decor. 

It's a bit smaller than the platters above at 18 x almost 13 inches, still plenty big enough for a small or medium-sized roast turkey. 

Hand wash this one to maintain the bright colors. You can read more or order it here.

Any of these turkey platters would be wonderful to hand down to future generations, to help pass along old family stories or make new memories around the Thanksgiving table. If you still have another style in mind, perhaps one that reminds you of your family's Thanksgiving platter, just visit this link to find exactly what you're looking for, whether a stainless steel turkey platter, a white Corelle or Corningware platter, or a solid color turkey platter in the round, oval, or oblong shape that your heart desires. 

Does your family have a turkey platter that holds a special place in your heart? Or are you looking for something new? Feel free to tell us about your family's Thanksgiving turkey platter or share another, similar holiday tradition. I love traditions almost as much as I love turkey!

Quick Links:
Find a turkey platter at amazon.com
Or search for one on eBay  

--Susan Deppner

Meet the reviewer

Posted by Susan Deppner

About the Author

Susan Deppner is a baby boomer, a cancer survivor, and a Southerner who believes in the Golden Rule. She enjoys writing about food, faith, and fitness; health, home, and holidays; people, places, pets, and patriotism, and more. Follow Susan on Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest.

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Being Thankful Reviewed

Celebrating Thanksgiving

Give Thanks every day (image courtesy of pixabay.com)

Instead of spending this morning reviewing a product, I choose instead to review being thankful instead. This emotion is not something that can be purchased but instead is a choice that we make every single day, not just on Thanksgiving Day. Well, at least that is what I think. It is a choice whether we realize it or not. 

For me, every morning when my eyes open I humbly say a prayer of thanksgiving for being on this side of the dirt for at least one more day. I do look at each day as a precious gift and promise each morning to try to make the best of that day as is humanly possible for me to do. 

Sometimes our lives seem to be filled with obstacles that could make us choose to be bitter, sad, angry and lost. Holidays, often times, bring our negative emotions closer to the surface. We find ourselves being depressed due to the loss of someone close to us that won't share the holiday with us. Perhaps we are far away from home and family and are heart broken with the thought of being alone during the holiday. I know those feelings well, more than I like to remember. I can empathize and sympathize with all who feel that way as Thanksgiving approaches with Christmas not far on the horizon. 

There was a time in my life when I wasn't sure that Thanksgiving, in particular, would ever be a happy time for me again. At the time my life was forever altered just two days before the holiday. I feared that this time of the year would forever be darkened by that horrible event. I realized the following year that it would only be darkened if I let it. I could sit around and feel depressed or I could make the choice to look for the people and things in my life to be thankful for. It wasn't hard to see hundreds of reasons to feel grateful and thankful. I made up my mind that year to always look for the good and wonderful things in my life.

So, this year as every year, I am most thankful for my beautiful family. My children, my grandchildren and my loving husband fill my life with joy every day. I am thankful for a roof over my head and food on my table. I am thankful for good health and an abundance of friends. I am thankful for each day that my eyes open. There are people who are not on this earth to share the day with me this year but I am thankful for the time that I did get to share with them and I know that they are here in spirit and will always be in my heart. I won't be saddened by the things that are lost but will be happy with what is here and look forward to what is to be found. I am thankful for it all.

For those of you who are reading this, my wish is that your Thanksgiving will be filled with joy and happiness. Actually, my wish is that you find something to be thankful for every day. Just remember to look, it shouldn't be too difficult to find if you open your heart.

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Thanksgiving Blessings

Today is Thanksgiving in the United States.  I would like to take this opportunity to wish each of you a Happy Thanksgiving.  May you find a few minutes today to reflect on your many blessings and each in your own way give Thanks. 

I have been very blessed and thank God for my faith, my family, my health, and the love He has surrounded me with.

May You and Your Family have a Blessed Thanksgiving Day!

Thanksgiving Blessing Postcards by mbgphoto

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How to Create a Positive Environment for Your Thanksgiving Dinner

It's the Time of Year we Gather to Give Thanks

In a cynical and often condescending world, it's easier to descend into typical family battles that tend to swallow up the purpose of our assembly: to give thanks and acknowledge and remember those who have been there for us through it all. It's cliche, but 'when push came to shove,' who did we turn to, and who loved us unconditionally?

We live in divided times, and many families who reunite for dinner rest at polar opposites in their beliefs, likes, dislikes, tolerance levels, and education. These differences are fast becoming the virus that devours the most important reason we take the hand of the person next to us at that dinner table: love. Again, call it cliche, call it corny, call 'love' overly simplistic, but John Lennon got it right, 'all you need is love.'

So how do you survive a Thanksgiving Dinner with people who sit at the opposite of your beliefs? Like any assembly, setting ground rules is the best place to start. Here are 10 ways to create a positive environment for your Thanksgiving Dinner:

1. Let everyone know there will be no discussions about Politics, Religion, or Current News Affairs.
2. As the dinner host, have the evening planned in advance: Plan to play games before and after dinner. If it's a larger gathering, have teams set up to play against each other for a grand championship.
3. Do not turn on a TV set. If a sporting event is on that the entire family wants to watch, then go ahead and gather around the 'game' in front of the TV if need be. But don't allow any News shows or channel flipping to take away the fun of the game.
4. If someone in the family breaks the rule about conversation and starts into a diatribe of their opinions and beliefs about an issue, as the host, politely remind them about the rules and do not engage them in a discussion about their point. Remember that no minds or opinions will change in one night anyway, so keep the evening and dinner on a strict track of fun.
5. Have music playing in the background in as many rooms as possible. Best of all, if you know the favorite songs of the people attending, plan ahead and have a CD compilation of everyone's favorite song! When the song for that special someone in the house begins to play, turn it up, walk over to them, kiss them on the cheek, and let them know, 'We did this for you.'
6. If you're hosting a large gathering and certain people are best not sitting beside each other, use name/place tags on each plate to direct people where to sit. 
7. Toast the Senior members of the family. Often, seniors feel excluded, unwanted, and unappreciated, and no matter how ornery they are or aren't, give them a few minutes of special thanks. You'll make their day.
8. Go out of your way to be friendly and especially to be kind. Set the tone. Set the pace, and you may be surprised how everyone follows.
9. Find reasons to smile and laugh. Laughter and smiles are much more infectious than anger and fear.
10. Lastly, remember a famous quote, 'When given a choice to be right or kind, always choose Kind.'

 Have a joyous Thanksgiving <3

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Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving

Today is Thanksgiving Day in the United States and I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has supported the Review This Blog over the past year.  We, the writers of Review This, truly appreciate you and wish you and yours a very Happy Thanksgiving Day.

My Photography

One of the things I am very thankful for is my hobby of photography, so today I thought I would share with you some of the photographs I have taken over the past year.

This photo was taken at my backyard birdbath where a Robin stopped for a drink on a cool November morning.  Birds are one of my favorite things to photograph.

Here us a hummingbird that I photographed at a feeder in my backyard.

I love to visit local parks and photograph all of the beautiful wildflowers that are growing there.

The photo above was taken at a local park where I went for an outing.  The colorful boats on the shoreline caught my eye.

The bandstand in the photo below stands in Forest Park in St. Louis where I took my granddaughters to see a musical at the Muny Opera.

Sometimes I only need to go into my own yard to capture the beauty in nature.  The raindrops on these Pink Primrose make a pretty photo.

 Sunflowers are always a favorite photograph of mine.  I visited a local sunflower field several times this summer.

I will leave you with several fall photos from my neighborhood.  Fall is my favorite time of the year.

May You and Your Family Enjoy the Beauty this Season has to Offer.  Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.

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Recipes for Thanksgiving Leftovers

After days of cooking in preparation for Thanksgiving, it seems like no matter how well we plan or how many years of experience we have, there are always leftovers.  I hate throwing out leftovers, but I very much enjoy having a recipe on hand that makes good use of leftovers.  After all, few of us really want the exact same meal several days in a roll, so having a recipe for a totally different meal is simply awesome.

Cheeseburger Soup Recipe 

Cheeseburger Soup Recipe by Mbgphoto

I want to start with a recipe that sounds delicious!  Not only will it make good use of our leftovers, but most of us don't need or even want a very heavy meal on the days immediately following Thanksgiving and soup is more than sufficient.   

This Cheeseburger Soup recipe by Mbgphoto is the perfect recipe for leftover turkey!   It gives us a great alternative meal for what is otherwise plain turkey.  I do love turkey, but after a day or two of eating it, I am ready for something different and Cheeseburger soup is most definitely different.

Curry in a Hurry

Susan Deppner offers another fast and easy recipe that uses the leftover turkey.  What I really love about this recipe is just how fast it is to prepare.  I looks like in less than 20 minutes, you could have a delicious meal without having to spend any more money for the meat. 

This also helps you make good use of that leftover apple from the fruit basket!  This recipe makes me doubly happy because it uses double the leftovers.

 

A Variety of Recipes for Leftover Turkey

For a real variety of salad and sandwich recipes for your leftover turkey, please visit AllRecipes.com.  Turkey sandwiches are my husband's favorite creation to make with turkey leftovers.  I have no doubt he will find several suggestions in this group of recipes that he will want to try this year.

A Delicious Fruit Salad with Leftover Fruit
 

I have personally committed several times about how much I have having a fruit basket for the holidays.  It is so easy for guest to grab a healthy snack between meals if I have a fruit basket available.  However, I inevitably have a few pieces of fruit left over, which means it is time for me to make a fruit salad.

Tossing the leftover cut-up pieces of fruit in a bowl together is perfect for leftover fruit.

 

More Recipes for Thanksgiving Leftovers

If you have a published recipe that would be great for Thanksgiving leftovers, we would love to have you share it with us.  Please leave the link to your recipe in the guestbook below.



Recommended by Our Readers!  (Thank you for sharing with us!)

Healthy Vegetable Soup with Cannellini Beans and Optional Chicken Sausage

 

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Happy Canadian Thanksgiving! Here's My Mom's Stuffing Recipe

For those who don't know, it's Canadian Thanksgiving this weekend.

Growing up, early October was always a time when we planned to be together as a family.

For me, heading to my mom and dad's house with the kids was a wonderful weekend: Time with my brothers and their families, as well as a great time with mom and dad.

Since mom and dad are both passed on now (I still can't believe I'm typing that!) I miss and treasure those memories to the core of my being.

I must say, I'm looking forward to dinner tomorrow with the kids. Unfortunately, it won't be with all the kids, as I have seven (4 sons, 2 stepsons, and a stepdaughter). I only use the word "Step" to respect their mom. My stepkids have been a part of my life for 40 years - I consider them my kids, but I hold back on that declaration out of respect for their mom. Being a mom myself, I understand that 'feeling.' - the feeling of being 'the mom.'

Anyway, I digress!

So in honor of Canadian Thanksgiving, I wanted to share my mother's turkey stuffing recipe. It has long since been my recipe; I just made it today for our Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow.

My Mother's Turkey Stuffing Recipe:

Ingredients for My Mom's Stuffing Recipe:

• Celery
• Onion
• Stuffing Bread OR
• Regular Bread Cut-Up with Spices
• Spices if adding on your own: Sage, Poultry Seasoning,
• Sausage (I use breakfast sausage)
• 3 Tablespoons of Rice (Basically a handful)

How to Prepare Mom's Stuffing:

1) In a bowl, add cut the bread up into chewable cubes (sometimes you can get stuffing bread already cut up)

2) If you don't have cut-up stuffing bread and need to make your own stuffing bread, here's what to do:

• In a large mixing bowl, cut bread (any bread that is your favorite, although heavier bread is better) into cubes
• Add Sage - be liberal with the Sage - I add about two or so tablespoons, depending on how big the turkey is and how much stuffing there is
• Add Poultry Seasoning - probably about 2 tablespoons

3) Fry the sausage separately - I buy breakfast sausage - and, after cooked, cut the breakfast sausage into bite-sized pieces

4) In a Frying Pan, in Butter:

• Fry one chopped onion
• Add one entire stock of celery (chopped into bite-sized pieces)

5) Add the celery/onion fried mixture and the cut-up sausages to the bread/sage/poultry seasoning bread mixture

6) Add the rice to the bread mixture

Mix it all together until it sticks together nicely. 

It should look 'wet' and be compacted together.

By the way, what's the secret ingredient to stuffing that makes it stuffing - it's the Sage! But that's been a flavor I've been used to my entire life when it comes to stuffing!

If you've never added Sage, give it a try - by the way, that's ground sage! You can find it in the spice aisle of your local grocer.

NOTE:

I prepare this the night before, put it in a ziplock bag, keep it in the fridge, then stuff the turkey in the morning <---- Mom taught me that trick too.

My number three son, Joshua, loves this recipe as much as I do, and that alone makes me so happy! Thank you, Joshie, for being a kindred stuffing lover!

Happy Thanksgiving to all - These times haven't been easy, so it's essential to live in the moment and enjoy spending time with the ones you love.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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A Review of Three Lower Calorie Thanksgiving Recipes

 

Thanksgiving is right around the corner, and if you are like me, you worry that all that luscious food will be taking up residence on your hips after the event.  Over the years I have found a few recipes that help reduce this possibility, and are just as delicious as their full calorie counterparts.  I even started sneaking them into potluck events around the holidays, and not a single person has ever noticed that the calories have been trimmed.  

Substitute one or more of these recipes at your family feast, and see if anyone notices.  I can practically guarantee they won't!

  

Low Sugar Cranberry Relish 

 

Ingredients:

12 ounce cranberries - fresh or frozen cranberries. 

1 whole orange with skin  If you are not a fan of oranges, they can be changed out with any crispy, tart apple that is cored, peeled and sliced.

1/2 cup almonds, chopped medium. If you aren't partial to almonds, you can use walnuts or if you prefer softer nuts, use pecans.

1/2 cup to 3/4 cups sweetener. I use Splenda, not in packages, but loose.

Instructions:

1.  Wash the orange and cut it in half.  Peel one half and discard the peel.  Peel the other half and put the peel into the food processor or blender.   Separate the orange sections and cut each in half and set aside.

2.  Turn on the food processor or blender and chop the orange peel as small as you can without pureeing it.

3.  Wash and drain the cranberries well. Make sure they are all firm. Put in the food processor or blender.  

4.  Put the almonds and 1/2 cup sweetener in the food processor or blender.  

5.  Pulse the food processor or blender until the pieces of the mixture are smallish chunky, and the sweetener is well mixed in.  

6.  Add the orange pieces and pulse a few more times till the oranges are well mixed in with the other ingredients.

7.  Try the relish for sweetness and and add more if needed.  

8.  This relish should be stored in a covered bowl in the refrigerator for 8 hours before serving.

Green Bean Casserole

Ingredients:

1/3 cup chopped onions

1/3 cup bread crumbs

4 slices turkey bacon

1 can (10 ounce) of 99%fat free cream of mushroom soup

1/2 cup plain fat free yogurt

1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke (I use Stubbs Hickory Liquid Smoke from Amazon)

3 9 ounce packages of frozen French cut green beans, frozen

Instructions:

1.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees

2.  Lightly spray a cookie sheet with no stick spray

3.  In a small bowl, stir together the onions and bread crumbs.

4.  Evenly spread the mixture on the cookie sheet and bake about 12 minutes until golden brown.

  

5.  Remove from oven and set aside.

6.  Cook the the turkey bacon (I use the original Makin Bacon Microwave Dish to make mine)

7.  Chop the bacon and set aside.

8.  In a large bowl, stir together the condensed soup, yogurt and liquid smoke.

 

9.  Then stir in the beans and bacon.

10.  Lightly spray a glass baking dish (11" x 7" or 9" x 13") with no stick spray.

11.  Transfer the bean mixture to the backing dish.

  
12.  Top with the onion mixture to the glass dish.

13.  Top with the onion mixture and back for 25 to 30 minutes or until bubbly.

Makes 6 servings, 103 calories per serving.

Pumpkin Pie

If you prefer, you can make your pie shell from scratch.  I always use a premade pie shell to save time.

Pumpkin Pie Filling:

15 ounce can of pure pumpkin - Not pumpkin pie filling

12 ounces of fat free evaporated skim milk

2 eggs or 1/2 cup of Egg Beaters 

1/2 cup granulated sugar - I substitute Splenda for this

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp powdered ginger

1/4 tsp ground cloves - this is optional, as some don't like the taste

1/4 tsp nutmeg

Instructions:

1.  Preheat oven to 425 degrees

2.  Combine sugar, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves in a small bowl.

3.  Beat eggs lightly in a large bowl.  

4.  Stir in pumpkin and spice mixture. 

5.  Gradually stir in evaporated skim milk.

6.  Pour in to a pre-prepared pie shell.

7.  Bake pie in the oven for 15 minutes.

8.  Reduce temperature to 350 degrees and bake for 40-50 minutes or until a  knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

9.  Remove from oven and let cool for at least two hours, serve immediately or refrigerate before serving.  DO NOT chill before the pie has set, if you do it can begin to weep moisture on the top of the pie.  If this happens, blot the top lightly with a paper towel.

Makes 8 servings, about 150 calories each.

I especially love the relish.  It is so sweet and crunchy!  I always had eaten regular jellied cranberry sauce until about 10 years ago when my sister brought some relish to our Thanksgiving dinner.  I tried it and just never looked back.  It is YUMMY!!

The pumpkin pie is a recipe that I made myself when my husband developed diabetes and could not have sugar anymore.  While I was tweaking the recipe I decided to try to cut some calories too which is why I started using fat free evaporated skim milk.  I really cannot taste the difference.  

I hope you enjoy these recipes as much as I have and you and yours have a

Happy Thanksgiving!

Photos by Pixabay and eatloveeats

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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