Happy Thanksgiving From The EMM Family

I hope your turkey is in the refrigerator thawing and your shopping list has been conquered. It is almost time! Thanksgiving is only a few days away, and I'm starting to drool! 

After last year's holiday being very different for many of us, I pray your gatherings involve more family, hugs and laughter this year. I know I'm looking forward to hosting again and have my to-do lists made!

What lists you ask? Let me tell you, making lists for every step of the Turkey Day process can save your sanity. Here are the lists I currently have:

• Things to make ahead
• Times things need to go into oven
• Serving dishes I need for every course
• Order of preparation day of

I'm telling you, out of all of them the oven times is the one I will rely on most! Since my turkey will take up most of my oven space, I need to time other things to fit and then to finish once the turkey is resting. No guess work when it come time for that Green Bean Casserole- just check the list!  

I tested this recipe over a month ago and as soon as I shared the picture with friends they were going nuts over it! "Is that squash with a PRALINE topping??" Yes, yes it is! 

This side dish is as easy as can be, and is a real showstopper coming out of the oven. Now, in full disclosure, if you are serving a huge crowd, making a half for each person would never work, but if you just have a few coming to dinner, I love serving them just like this, giving each person a pretty squash half on their plate. 

If you do need to serve many, the preparation would still be the same, except when they came out of the oven, I would carefully pour the pecan topping from each into a separate bowl, scrape the cooked squash into a large bowl and then top with the reserved praline topping. 

This is the perfect autumn pairing of sweet and savory. We love squash, and the addition of brown sugar and pecans takes it over the top. 

I hope you and yours have a truly Happy Thanksgiving! Take a minute between the cooking and entertaining to look around and thank God for all the blessings you have in your life. And for our family, you, my faithful fans and followers, are definitely on that list!

 Praline Roasted Acorn Squash

2 large acorn squash, halved and cleaned

4 TBS butter, room temp

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup chopped pecans

Salt and Pepper

Preheat oven to 400. Once the squash is halved, cut a small piece of flesh off bottom of each halve. This makes them more stable to sit without falling over. In a bowl combine softened butter and brown sugar until smooth. Rub mixture over each squash halve, covering edges and middle. Equally divide pecans into each squash. Line a large baking sheet with foil. Place squash on baking sheet. Bake for 1 hour- 1 hour 20 minutes until squash is tender when poked with fork. Serve as is.

 

Shared at Weekend Potluck
 

An EMM Update

If you have been an EMM fan for a while now, you will remember a cucumber recipe I posted years ago. Like before I understood how food photos should look! I've shared that recipe numerous times over the life of this blog, but have always wanted to go back to not only update the photo, but also rewrite the recipe to match the tweaks I've added over time. Well, today is the day! 

First, let's talk about lemon extract. Every time I share this recipe, be it online or in person, I always get the "I don't have lemon extract, can't I just use lemon juice?" To be short and sweet, no. 

Believe me, I know how annoying it is to read a recipe and realize you are going to have to buy a "special" ingredient for it. It's one thing to have to add things to your grocery list, but it is a whole other to have to purchase something you are only going to use for one recipe. I try very hard not to write recipes that require specialty ingredients; but there is no way around it this time. 

However, it's not that bad. See, lemon extract is easily found in the same baking aisle at most grocery stores. It will be right there next to the vanilla and almond extracts. Plus, it's not the expensive. I think the last bottle I bought was around $3. Last, your bottle is probably going to last for quite a while, if this is the only recipe you use it for. Since each batch only takes 1 teaspoon, my bottle usually takes me a year to use and I make these a lot during the summer months. 

The extract is made from the lemon rind, where the essential oils are. The flavor is more intense than any amount of juice. You will notice it right away when you take the lid off! Smell that lemon goodness! 

These are a copycat recipe from a Chinese restaurant we used to love. Unfortunately that restaurant has been gone for a while now, but these cucumbers live on! They used to serve these with their lunch specials, along with a chicken wing, egg roll and crab rangoon. Seriously- by the time your entree came, you were almost full from the appetziers. Oh, I miss that place so much! 

These are Alex's favorite way to enjoy cucumbers in the summer, and when gardens are overflowing with them, they are so inexpensive to make too! Our local farmers' market usually has beautiful cukes for less than a buck each. 

I love these for summer too because they can go anywhere, staying fresh in a cooler. Plus, no mayo or sour cream means easier for fun in the sun! They are perfect for picnics, cookouts, backyard barbecues, graduation parties or a burger night on the deck! 

If you enjoy lemon flavored anything, as much as I do, especially in the hot summer months, this recipe needs to be on repeat from now until September!

 Lemon Marinated Cucumbers

3 large cucumbers, peeled and sliced into semicircles

2/3 c. white vinegar

6 TBS sugar

1 tsp. lemon extract

Salt and Pepper

 In a small bowl whisk together vinegar, sugar, lemon extract, salt and pepper. In a large bowl pour dressing over sliced cucumbers. Stir well. Add extra salt and pepper if needed. Cover and chill several hours before serving.  

Shared at Weekend Potluck

Our New Normal

Every day when I wake up these days, I find myself holding my breath as I reach for my phone to read the latest headlines and see what latest development has occurred.

We are living in uncertain, and for many, scary times. Being told to stay in place, shelter at home, quarantine ourselves. Restaurants are closed. Businesses have sent workers home. Grocery store shelves are empty. I could go on and on about so many things that are causing anxiety of every single minute of the day.

As I was going through the few recipes I have to choose from to post this week, I chose this for one reason. It is filled with ingredients that you could maybe have on hand already or hopefully find easily at the store, and not spend a fortune.

The thing I notice when I venture out to buy groceries, besides the vast amount of empty shelves, is that fact that for many like me who shop on a budget, and know the brands to buy every week to stretch a buck...that is out the window. We are all in survival mode, and buying whatever we can find, no matter what brand, and in many cases, no matter what the cost. I know I spent more money at the store yesterday than I normally would because I had to substitute pricier brands for the generics I usually buy. Don't get me wrong, I was happy to find what I did and felt blessed to be able to buy every single item on my list (okay, I couldn't find any tomato soup, but that is very minor) but it got me thinking about how much extra money we might have to spend on groceries over the next few weeks.

Don't worry when you see the amount of ingredients on the list. They are simple. They are pretty inexpensive. And many of them might be in your pantry or fridge right now. We are heading into the end of March, and I wish I could say it's warming up so stew doesn't really sound that good, but as I type this, snow is falling outside, so soups and stews are definitely still on the menu.

The other great thing about this? Make it for supper one night, and have leftovers for lunch for a few days! You know with the kids home from school, lunches need to be easy too!

I wish I had some encouraging words for all of us to make our new normal actually seem normal. I will leave you with something our pastor said during our virtual church service today.

"Asking why is okay in times of trouble. Rest assured, while we might not have the answer, God is doing is work all the time, and we can have peace knowing His plan is always right." 

Smoked Sausage Stew

3 TBS butter

1 lb. smoked sausage, chopped

4 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed

1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped

2 carrots, peeled and finely chopped

2 ribs celery, finely chopped  

1 (32 oz.) box beef broth

3 c. water

3 beef bouillon cubes

1 (12 oz.) bag frozen mixed veggies

1 tsp. dried thyme

1 tsp. garlic powder

2 tsp. dried parsley, extra for garnish

1 1/2 c. heavy cream

4 TBS cornstarch

Salt and Pepper

In a large stock pot over medium high heat, melt butter. Saute sausage, onion, celery, carrots and potatoes for 5-7 minutes until vegetables begin to soften. Add frozen veggies, broth, water, bouillon, thyme, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 15 minutes. Whisk cornstarch into cream until smooth. Increase heat high. Add cream mixture. Stir constantly. Boil for 1 minute. Reduce heat to low and cook 10 minutes until desired consistency. Garnish with extra parsley.