I’ll let you in on a little secret. Most years, I don’t do a whole turkey on Thanksgiving. It has happened, but it’s rare that I host a large gathering for this holiday. Maybe it’s just the five of us in our immediate family, perhaps we’ll get together with friends at their place, and some years we travel. What this means is I rarely want to cook a huge turkey. I like a day or two of leftovers, sure, but I don’t get stoked for days-on-end of roast turkey meat. 

Once I discovered the turkey roulade, I didn’t look back. Quite simply, a turkey roulade is only the breast meat, flattened out and topped with various seasonings, then rolled up tightly and secured with kitchen twine. It bakes up evenly and quickly, compared to a whole bird, and the leftovers are just as good tucked into a sandwich smeared with cranberry sauce and cheese. 

This year, I’ll be making my roulade stuffed with wild mushrooms, prosciutto and herbs. And alongside the turkey, our family’s favorite, olive oil mashed potatoes. They end up just as smooth and creamy as the butter and milk version, but have such great flavor from the extra virgin olive oil and garlic. 

And if you think miso paste doesn’t have a place on a Thanksgiving table, wait until you try my miso gravy green beans. It’s not enough miso to take them in an Asian direction, but just enough to give them a deep, rich flavor, heightened by the crispy shallots. 

I’m always looking for ways to make my stuffing more interesting, and never dry, and I’ve decided to go back to an old recipe of mine for a butternut squash and sourdough bake. This recipe actually won me a contest a number of years back, and it couldn’t be simpler to put together. It’s more like a savory bread pudding than a stuffing, which keeps it moist and creamy.

My table wouldn’t be complete without a wild rice dish. For several years, I’ve made Smitten Kitchen’s wild rice and broccoli casserole, but this year I wanted to keep it on the lighter side, with no cheesy bechamel sauce. Slow roasting the beets and carrots in broth, then stirring in the cooked wild rice and sprinkling it all with a garlicky panko and parmesan bread crumb topping will have you coming back for seconds. 

Last but not least, Brussels sprouts are an important part of many Thanksgiving dinners, and my version is going to be this pan roasted brussels with orange pomegranate glaze. My favorite part of this dish is (okay second favorite -first is how good it is) that it can be prepared ahead of time and gently reheated in a warm oven to serve. 

Wishing you all a happy and joyous Thanksgiving holiday!

Orange Pomegranate Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Buttered Hazelnuts

These oven roasted brussels, tossed with an orange and pomegranate molasses glaze and seasoned with thyme and ground allspice, are almost too good to be true. My favorite part of the dish is how the buttered and sugared hazelnuts bring a sweet and savory note, with tons of crunch, to the earthy and flavorful vegetables. This dish can be made ahead and rewarmed in a low oven, but don’t top with the nuts until just before serving.

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Cheesy Butternut Squash & Sourdough Strata

Tender butternut squash, cheesy egg-soaked sourdough bread, and sauteed Swiss chard make this savory casserole a star. If you are not familiar with strata's, you can think of them akin to bread pudding. This recipe is short on ingredients, and big on comfort. Make it for Thanksgiving, or serve it throughout the winter months as a main alongside a light salad or cozy soup. This dish can be assembled ahead and baked off to serve, making it a convenient side dish for a holiday celebration meal.

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Baked Wild Rice, Beets & Carrots with Garlicky Breadcrumbs

There are a few separate steps to putting this dish together, but you can get ahead with a few simple do-ahead preparations. Par-cook the wild rice, cook the breadcrumb topping, and assemble the beets and carrots in the baking dish with their seasonings and broth. Then it’s just a matter of roasting the vegetables, stirring in the rice half way through, and sprinkling on the topping to serve.

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Do-Ahead Olive Oil Parmesan Mashed Potatoes

When I’m planning a Thanksgiving meal, or any dinner party for that matter, do-ahead dishes reign supreme. These creamy, creamless mashers get their flavor from extra virgin olive oil and garlic, and are warmed in the oven to brown the layer of cheese and olive oil that covers the top. It’s like a delicious, Italian version of everyone’s favorite side.

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Miso Gravy Green Beans with Caramelized & Crispy Onions

I’m always looking for a way to jazz up my green beans, and this dish delivers. Adding a smidge of white miso paste to a caramelized onion bechamel really amps up the flavor. You can present this dish in a few different ways: stir the green beans into the sauce, top with onions and serve immediately; plate the green beans, spoon the sauce over top, and sprinkle with the crispy onions; or, do this dish ahead. Place the cooked green beans and sauce together in a baking dish, stirring to combine, then cover and refrigerate. To reheat, bake it, covered in a hot oven until warm throughout, then top with the crispy onions.

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Wild Mushroom & Prosciutto Stuffed Turkey Roulade

If you are looking for a paired down version of a turkey main for Thanksgiving, one that won’t have you swimming in leftovers, cooks in about an hour and a half's time, and stays moist and delicious throughout, this is your dish. I also love that you can prepare it ahead, timing it to be warm out of the oven and ready for your feast. Follow the instructions through step 6, but don’t pour the broth in until you are ready to bake it, keeping the turkey refrigerated until you are ready to proceed. The mushroom filling is not only flavorful, but aids in adding moisture to the breast meat.

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