A New World of Food: Happy #Thanksgiving #recipe

Roasted Turkey On Harvest Table - c. evgenyb

Roasted Turkey On Harvest Table – c. evgenyb

Thanksgiving has always been one of my favorite holidays, if only for the wonderful food. And as a history freak, I love that so much of the traditional Thanksgiving food are native to the Americas.

The food supply expanded when Europeans “discovered” the New World. Prior to Columbus’s first voyage, there were no turkeys, potatoes, yams and sweet potatoes, tomatoes, pumpkins, cranberries or maize, i.e. Indian corn, in the Middle Ages. There was a cereal grain called corn, but it’s more like wheat, not like the ears of corn we’re used to.

holiday pumpkinAnd there was no chocolate. Chocolate is native to the Americas, so the Spaniards were the first Europeans to encounter it. It became popular at court after the Spanish added sugar or honey to sweeten the natural bitterness. From there, chocolate spread through Europe in the 1600’s and grew into the international obsession is has become today.

Can you imagine a world without chocolate? I really wouldn’t like that at all!

Nor would I like a world without pumpkins or cranberries, two of my favorite ingredients for fall goodies. I even came up with my own recipe for a cranberry salad.

cranberry salad

Lyndi’s Cranberry-Blueberry Delight

Here’s my original recipe:

Lyndi’s Cranberry-Blueberry Delight

Ingredients:
1 14 oz. can of Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce
1 package of fresh blueberries (about 4 oz.)
1 cup of golden raisins

Mix, chill and serve. That’s it!

The recipe serves 8-10 ladies. (The attached photo doesn’t reflect the full recipe. It’s what is left over after a couple of days of snacking on it.) I’ve also spread it on turkey sandwiches in lieu of regular cranberry sauce.

Since it’s so simple, it’s easy to experiment. Add nuts for crunch or sweeten to taste, if it’s too tart. I’m thinking about adding some of those little marshmallows next time for color and sweetness.

I’ve been dieting for months and I’ve lost sixteen pounds so far, but I won’t be counting calories on Thanksgiving Day.

Wishing you all a Happy Turkey Day! What’s your favorite Thanksgiving treat?

Linda / Lyndi

There are only a few days left in the month, so if you haven’t entered the Rafflecopter for November’s giveaway, details are below. The prize is a $10 Amazon gift card, a copy of Vicki Batman’s Man Theory…and Other Stories and a mouse pad with a 2015 calendar on it.

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An American Holiday by Bobbi Romans

I’m turning the blog over to Bobbi Romans today to tell us about her holiday release, An American Holiday.

An American Holiday coverAhh, Thanksgiving… complete with ghosts of holidays past. Those being humiliating memories of last year’s revelry gone wild: jail cells, a tattoo and rose left on Kristi James pillow by someone she can’t remember.

Toss in two brothers who, while loving, had needled her with vivid imagery on what might have happened during that fateful rendezvous at the local HoJo’s. Seriously, what’s a girl to do? She’d run like hell from Harpers Ferry back to her apartment and job in Alexandria.

She’s praying this year’s holiday ends a bit more traditional. But between exploding turkey’s, cranberry fights, and the winter storm threatening to lock them all together for God only knew how long, she’s fairly certain her Norman Rockwell hopes have flown the coop.

Adding another layer to this casserole of disaster, the high school boyfriend—who’d cheated on her two days before prom—returns, claiming to have made a horrid mistake all those years prior.

Amid all this, what has her heart flip-flopping is catching her best friend Simon getting cozy with his latest girlfriend.

Thing is, she isn’t sure why its bothering her so badly.

Sometimes it takes coming home again… to discover how lost we’ve really been.

Buy at Amazon *Available in BOTH Ebook & Print*

From Amazon

Reviewer Crystal says “It’s a perfect story to read around Thanksgiving and be thankful when things go right for your holiday dinner.”

Reviewer gpangel says “I laughed out loud in some places and felt all warm and sappy in others.”

Reviewer Mary King says “Hilarious Holiday Fun that Brings Back Memories”

A personal note about the story… the recipe within, is in fact, my great grandmother Obaughs that I make every Thanksgiving and Christmas upon the begging of my family.

I’ll give away (1) Ebook to commenters who simply tell me what their favorite Thanksgiving Day Dish is and whether its a new something or an old family recipe.

                     ~ Happy Upcoming Holiday Season ~

Bobbi Romans

Website: www.bobbiromans.com

Leave a comment below with your favorite Thanksgiving dish. I’m going with candied yams, since it’s something I eat once a year.

And don’t forget to enter this month’s Rafflecopter for a chance to win a $10 Amazon gift card and an e-book copy of Man Theory…and Other Stories by Vicki Batman.

Linda / Lyndi

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