Thanksgiving dinner for friends

I had a great time celebrating Thanksgiving with friends from Brugge, Belgium.   They joined our family and friends this year to celebrate what I think is the best celebration of America.  Other than July 4, I think Thanksgiving is such a special holiday because it is the one day of the year in which we all celebrate the same holiday.  I always think of Thanksgiving as a day to give thanks to this great country of ours.   I also like to celebrate my family and friends and it is even more special when you can share this holiday with friends from other countries.   It is also that time of the year  in which we give thanks for the memories and experiences we received during this 2010.
My traditional recipes for Thanksgiving always include a sweet potato casserole, individual stuffing muffins, cranberry relish, herb roasted turkey and gravy.  For dessert I like the seasonal flavors of pumpkin, pecans and cranberry.   I served individual pumpkin pies covered with roasted pecans and  cranberry shots.  The pumpkin pies were served with a scoop of cinnamon ice cream.  These are some ideas for your celebration next year.  You will find these recipes by viewing my blog.
Martha Greenwald

Cranberry shots (Easy Thanksgiving dessert)

Cranberry Shots:

1             Lb. Fresh Cranberries

1             Cup fat free milk (Soy milk optional)

½            Sugar

½            Cup agave

Instructions: Cook the cranberries with sugar and agave for about five minutes or until the cranberries start to pop open.  Refrigerate for 30 minutes.  In a small bowl combine about ½ cup fresh cranberries with sugar.  Place the sugar coated cranberries in the freezer to decorate each glass.  When the cranberry is cool enough blend the fat free milk and cranberries until smooth.  Refrigerate and keep overnight.  They will become firm almost like a jelly.  This is a great dessert for Thanksgiving or fall.  

Roasted Salmon and Greek Salad

ROASTED SALMON WITH GREEK SALAD

Ingredients:

2             Salmon Filet with skin on (6 to 8 ounces)

¼            Cup feta cheese

¼            Cup Greek yogurt

¼            Kalamata olives

1             Cup cherry tomatoes

1             Cup English cucumbers

               Basil

               Salt & Pepper

1             Lemon

Instructions:

Season the salmon fillets with salt and pepper.

Heat up a pan at high temperature, add olive oil and seared filet with the skin down first for about two minutes until golden brown.  Turn fish and cook for about two minutes.   Remove fish and bake in oven at 450 degrees 6 minutes for medium rare, 10 minutes for medium well.

While fish cooks dice a cucumber, cut cherry tomatoes and kalamata olives.   In a small food processor or blender, combine ¼ cup yogurt and about ¼ cup feta cheese with a dash of black pepper.  Blend to a creamy sauce.  Serve over fish.  Top with basil leaves and lemon wedge.

Remove fish and serve on top of Greek salad.  Top Fish with the feta cream sauce.  (Optional)

Rissotto and Tiger Prawns

SAFFRON RISOTTO WITH TIGER PRAWNS

Serves (4)

8             Tiger Prawns

1             Cup risotto

1             12 oz. Carton of organic chicken stock

½            Cup carrots

½            Yellow or purple onion

1             Teaspoon butter

1             Clove garlic (optional)

½            White wines

2             Tablespoons Herbs de Provence. 

2             Tablespoons olive oil

Instructions:

Simply sauté the onion and carrots in butter and olive oil, for approximately five (5) minutes or until onions are translucent.  Add 1 cup of risotto and stir well to allow the risotto absorb the flavors of the carrots and onions.   Reduce the heat to medium temperature, then add ½ cup of white wine and let the wine absorb.  In another pot, heat up the chicken stock.  Keep hot but do not bring to a boil.   Once the wine is absorbed into the risotto add a cup of chicken stock and stir slowly.  Once the liquid is absorbed keep adding the chicken stock until the risotto is creamy and  al dente. (Not too soft or too tender).    

Season tiger prawns with salt, pepper and herbs the Provence.  (When using frozen shrimp you need to place the shrimp under cool running water until tender).  Heat a pan at high temperature and cook shrimp about 1 minute on each side.  Remove the shrimp from the pan and set aside.  Deglaze the pan with about ¼ cup white wine until reduced.  Add this sauce to the risotto and stir well. 

Plate the risotto and top each plate with two shrimp per person.  Serve as a first course using three tiger prawns or an appetizer using two tiger prawns per person.

 Recipe Courtesy of

Martha Greenwald

Martha's Good Nature

Carrot and red bell pepper soup

CARROT & RED BELL PEPPER SOUP

Ingredients:

1 Lb.      Carrots

4             Red bell peppers

½ Yellow Onions

2             Cups chicken or vegetable stock

2 Tbs.    Ginger

2 Tbs.    Olive Oil

Instructions:

Dice carrots and peppers.  (For faster cooking, you can rough chop the carrots and peppers in a food processor for two or three pulses). 

Saute onions until golden brown add salt & peppers.  Then add the carrot/red bell peppers into the pot.  Combine all the ingredients.  Add chicken stock to deglaze the bottom of the pot.  Put enough liquid to almost cover the vegetables, but not entirely.  You can always add more liquid to get the thickness you prefer.  Using a grader, add the ginger and check for salt.  Cook for about 20 minutes.  Using a hand held blender, immerse the blender into the pot and mix until smooth and silky.  This can be served at room temperature, hot or cold. 

Enjoy it!

Recipe courtesy of

Martha Greenwald

Martha's Good Nature

Grilled Mahi Mahi and Avocado and corn salsa

Grilled Mahi Mahi and Avocado corn salsa

Mahi Mahi and corn avocado salsa

Serves (2)

2             Mahi Mahi fillets, Approximately 6 ounces per fillet

2             Appx. 2 tablespoons

               Salt & Pepper

For Salsa:

1             Avocado

1             Can Organic Corn

½            Tomatoes – Cherry or campari

               Salt & Pepper

Instructions:

Grill the salmon for about 4 minutes on each side or until you can see it starts to flake. 

While the fish is cooking, chop your tomatoes, avocados and mix with corn.  Season with salt and pepper and set aside to marinate for a few minutes. 

Let the fish rest for about 3 minutes before serving or cutting. 

 Recipe courtesy of

Martha Greenwald

Martha's Good Nature

Celery Root Soup

Celery root is often overlooked and under appreciated when we see it at the produce department of our local supermarkets, it has a great fragrant flavor and a rich texture.  It is very easy to prepare.  This is a great new discovery for me, great comfort food!

Celery Root Soup

1             Large head of Celery root

1/2         Carton organic chicken broth      

Salt and pepper

1             Tablespoon butter

2             Tablespoons cream  (Optional)

Instructions:

Cut the celery in quarters, then peel the skin off the celery root.  Chop into small pieces and sauté with butter until light golden brown.  Add the chicken broth and cook for about 15 minutes until tender.  Use a hand blender to cream the soup.   You can add more chicken soup if you find that the soup has a puree consistency.   If you wish you can add the cream at the end.  However, the soup does taste great on its own.   Serve hot or cold.

Recipe courtesy of

Martha Greenwald

Martha’s Good Nature