choosing sides three
easy Thanksgiving side dishes
by Yee-Fan Sun | 1 2
continued from page 1
maple mashed sweet
potatoes
I’ve never understood the traditional sweet potato casserole, in which perfectly
lovely sweet potatoes are smothered in a sticky mess of marshmallow goo. Sweet
potatoes are so good on their own that I think they’re really best served without
a lot of fuss -- as in this recipe, which relies on some milk and butter to
smooth out the mash, and a drizzle of maple syrup to accent the vegetables’
natural flavor.
3 lbs. sweet potatoes,
or about 3 big ones (get an orange-fleshed variety; you can lightly
scrape a bit of the skin with your nail to check)
1/4 cup milk, half-and-half
or cream
1/4 cup butter
1-1/2 Tbsp. real maple syrup
salt to taste
serves 6 as a side 1 Preheat oven
to 400F. Wash and scrub the potatoes clean, then prick each one a
few times with a fork. Toss onto a foil-lined baking pan, and bake
for about an hour (or longer, depending upon how fat your potatoes
are), until very tender.
2 Insert
the tip of a paring knife just below the skin and peel off all the skin (yes;
it’s hot … you can let the potatoes cool a bit if you like, or just
work quickly). Place the peeled potatoes in a big bowl or pot.
3 Mash
with the butter using a potato masher, then switch to a fork or wooden spoon
and stir in the remaining ingredients. Add salt to taste. You can make these
ahead of time, and reheat on the stove or in the microwave.
creamed spinach
Diet-friendly it’s not, but this creamy-rich spinach dish will turn even the
most avowed greens-hater into a fan. As creamed spinach isn’t the prettiest
food in the world, try sprinkling some crushed cashews on top to make it
more presentable at the Thanksgiving table.
2 ten-oz. packages
of frozen chopped spinach
1 cup cream
¼ cup milk
1 cup finely minced onion, preferably sweet onion like Vidalia or Spanish (about ¼ of
a very large onion)
2 fat cloves garlic
2 Tbsp. butter
pinch of nutmeg
salt and pepper
serves 6 as a side 1 Cook up the spinach
according to the package directions and drain in a fine-mesh sieve.
Use the back of spoon to press out the water, then spread out the
spinach into a thinnish layer. Let cool. Press out the water some
more to drain it as well as you possibly can.
2 Mince up
the garlic and onion and finely as you can.
3 In
a saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Sauté the
onion and garlic until soft.
4 Pour
in the cream and milk, then bring the heat down to med-low. Cook for about
5 minutes or so, until steaming-hot and gently bubbling.
5 Stir
in the spinach, along with a pinch of nutmeg; bring heat down to low. Let
the whole thing simmer gently, stirring from time to time, until you
have a creamy-soft spinach mixture (about 10-15 minutes). If the mixture
starts
to seem too dry as it cooks, add some more milk.You can make this
ahead of time, and reheat on the stove over a low heat, stirring
frequently and adding a splash more milk if the mixture dries out,
until warmed through.
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pies |
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