Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Holiday Recipes

The holiday crunch has begun! Need holiday recipes? Know how to carve a turkey? Use a meat thermometer? Set the holiday table?  See our collection of delicious recipes and cooking tips. It's a helping of tradition from now until the end of the year!

Recipes

Main Dish

• Rib Roast with Potatoes
• Best-Ever Beef Roast
• Roast Goose
• Pork Crown Roast With Cherry Cornbread Stuffing
• Grill Roasted Turkey
• Bagged Roast Turkey With Cornbread, Chestnut, and Sage Stuffing
• Nanna's Baked Ham
• Roast Leg of Lamb with Potatoes and Rutabaga
• Roasted Chicken With Root Vegetables
• Cranberry and Port-Braised Short Ribs
• Artichoke, Leek, and Mushroom Ragout
• Curried Butternut Squash (vegetarian)
• Curried Kwanzaa Stew (vegetarian)
• Quinoa Stirfry (vegetarian)

Stuffing

• Traditional English Dressing (Stuffing)
• Stuffing of Jerusalem Artichokes, Currants, and Grapes
• Cornbread Stuffing
• Memere's Pork Stuffing for Turkey

Side Dishes

• Yorkshire Pudding
• Curried Apple Squash Soup
• Roasted Chestnut Soup With Wild Mushrooms
• Spiced Cranberry Sauce
• Pumpkin Biscuits
• Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Bacon
• Baby Carrots With Cranberries
• Maple Squash Souffle
• Rutabaga and Sweet Potato Puree
• Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes
• Classic Green Bean Casserole
• Creamed Onions
• Dinner Rolls

Desserts

• Apple Pie with Cider Pecan Crust
• Blue Ribbon Pumpkin Pie
• Sadie Anson's Scottish Shortbread
• Maine Pecan Pie
  
• Old Fashioned Gingerbread
  
• Plum Pudding
  
• Cranberry Surprise Pie
• Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pie
• Best Fruitcake Ever
• Buche de Noel

Beverages

• Traditional Wassail
• Non-Alcoholic Light Wassail
• Mulled Wine
• George Washington's Christmas Eggnog
• Non-Alcoholic Eggnog
• Classic Christmas Punch

Holiday Cookies and Sweets

• Candy Cane Dessert Squares
• Snowball Cookies
• White Chocolate Chip Cranberry Cookies
• Stuffed Cookies
• Gingerbread Boys
• Pistachio-Cranberry Icebox Cookies
• Never-Fail Christmas Fudge
• Jelly-Filled Thumbprint Cookies

Timely Tips

• Holiday Cooking and Cleaning Checklist
• The Holiday Table: Setting and Decorating
• Setting the Table for a Buffet
• Setting the Table for a Dinner Party
• Potluck Dinner Recipes and Tips
• How to Cook the Perfect Roast
• How to Roast a Turkey
• How to Use a Meat Thermometer: Cooking Temperatures for Meat and Poultry
  
• Christmas Tree Care Tips
  
• Party Planner: Cooking for a Crowd
• How to Care for Table Linens
• Holiday Napkin Folding
• Holiday Punch Hints and Recipes
• Tips for Baking Pies
• 10 Tips for Cookie Baking

Crafts & Gifts

• Cinnamon Dough Ornaments
• How to Make a Cranberry Wreath
• Make Your Own Gift Jars
• Great Gifts from the Kitchen
• How to Make a Nut Wreath
• Make Your Own Fire Starters
• Gingerbread House Tips

Just for Fun

• America's Christmas Firsts
• Christmas Questions and Answers
• Turkey Trivia
• Cranberry Trivia
• The Great Yam Scam: Are sweet potatoes really "yams"?

Weather Folklore

November

• If the geese on St. Martin's Day (November 11) stand on ice, they will walk in mud at Christmas.
  
• If the first snow sticks to the trees, it foretells a bountiful harvest. 
  
• If sheep feed facing downhill, watch for a snowstorm.
  
• If on All Saints Day the beech acorn is dry we will stick behind the stove in winter, but if it is wet and not light the winter will not be dry, but wet. 
  
• Thunder in November indicates a fertile year to come.
  
• If there be ice in November that will bear a duck, there will be nothing thereafter but sleet and muck.
  
• As November 21st, so the winter.
  
• When the winter is early, it will not be late.
  

December

• Lengthened winter and tardy spring are both good for hay and grain, but bad for corn and garden. 
  
• December changeable and mild, the whole winter will remain a child. 
  
• A warm Christmas, a cold Easter.
  
• A green Christmas, a white Easter.
  
• December cold, with snow, brings rye everywhere.