DENVER — Chef Kevin from Denver Rescue Mission shares some of his staples for your Thanksgiving Dinner. Try it for yourself!
Denver Rescue Mission needs your help to put a turkey on every table this Thanksgiving. Drop off a frozen turkey or donate online. If you just want to text a turkey right now, text "turkey" to 24365.
French Onion Mashed Potatoes
What you need:
16 Potatoes peeled and quartered
3/4C Heavy cream or 2% milk
1Pct Onion soup/dip mix
3tbsp Minced fresh chives
2tbsp Cream cheese
Ground black pepper to taste
Bring a large pot of water to boil, add potatoes, and boil until soft. About 20-25 minutes. Drain and place in a large bowl
Combine milk or heavy cream over low heat until bubbles form around the edge. Remove from heat and mix in the onion soup/ dip mix packet. Whisk until the soup mixture is completely dissolved. Set aside.
After draining potatoes, combine and add in the sour cream, chives, cream cheese, pepper, and cream/soup mixture. Mix until desired consistency, using a potato masher.
If you would like the chives to be a garnish, do not add them to the potatoes and sprinkle over the top.
Scalloped Sweet Potatoes & Apple Casserole
What you need:
6 Sweet Potatoes
1 1/2C Peeled, cored, and sliced apples
1/2C Brown Sugar
1/2tsp Salt
1tsp Ground nutmeg
1/4C Butter
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 X 13-inch baking dish
Place sweet potatoes in a large pot with enough water to cover and bring to a boil. Boil until tender, then cool, peel, and cut into ¼ inch slices.
Arrange half the sweet potatoes in the bottom of the baking dish. Layer half of the apples over the sweet potatoes. In a small bowl, mix the brown sugar, salt, and ground nutmeg, then sprinkle half of the mixture over the apple layer. Dot with half the butter. Repeat layers of sweet potatoes, and apple, then top with the remaining brown sugar mixture, and butter.
Bake in the preheated oven for 50 minutes, until apples are tender, and the top is golden brown.
Mulled Turkey Brine
The secret to a brine is salt, water spices, and time. Brines make the turkey juicier and hold in moisture longer. Sugar is also an item tha tallows for the turkey to soak in the flavors of the brine. Do not brine a turkey or other protein for more than 48 hours. Brining a turkey happens after it is thawed and before it is cooked.
What you need:
1C Salt
1C Brown Sugar
1tbsp Dried sage, dried thyme, dried mustard seed, dried savory
1-2tbsp Juniper berries
1tbsp Lemon or orange zest
Simmer contents in 2 quarts of boiling water. Let it cool and then combine with
2 gallons of ice water and store at 40 ° or less for 10-16 hours.
For larger turkeys you may need to split the brine into multiple containers.
Homemade Pumpkin Pie
What you need:
Pie Crust
1 1/2C All-purpose flour
1/2tsp Salt
1/2C Shortening
3 1/2tbsp Cold water
Filling
2C Mashed, cooked pumpkin
1 Can Evaporated milk
2 eggs, beaten
3/4C Brown Sugar
1/2tsp Ground cinnamon, ground ginger, & ground nutmeg
1/2tsp Salt
Pumpkin Prep:
To prepare the mashed pumpkin: use 1 ½ pounds of skin-on, raw pumpkin to yield 2 cups of mashed pumpkin. Halve the pumpkin to scoop out the seeds and stringy portions. Cut the pumpkin into chunks.
In a saucepan over medium heat, with 1-inch boiling water, heat the pumpkin to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes or until tender. Drain,cook, and remove the peal. Return pumpkin to the saucepan and mash with a food mill or potato masher.
Pie Crust Prep:
Preheat Oven to 400 degrees
Prepare pie crust by mixing the flour and salt. Cut shortening into flour; add cold water 1 tbsp at a time (you may only need 3 tbsp and should need no more than 4 tbsp).Mix dough and repeat until dough is moist enough to hold together.
With lightly floured hands, shape dough into a ball. On a lightly floured board roll dough out to about 1/8-inch thickness. With a sharp knife, cut dough 1 ½ inch larger than the upside-down pie pan. Gently roll the dough around the rolling pin and transfer it right-side up onto the pie pan.Unroll easing dough into the bottom of the pie pan.
In a large bowl, beat pumpkin with evaporated milk, eggs,brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt with an electric mixer. Mix well. Pour onto the prepared crust. Bake for 40 -45 minutes.
Pecan Pie
What you need:
1C Light or dark corn syrup
3 Eggs
1C Sugar
2tbsp Melted butter
1tsp Vanilla extract
1 1/2C Pecan Pieces
1 9inch unbaked or frozen deep-dish pie crust
Preheat oven to 350 °. Place a cookie sheet in the oven while preheating. This will keep the pie from bubbling over into the oven.
Mix corn syrup, eggs, sugar, butter and vanilla together. Stir in pecans. Pour filling into pie crust.
Place in oven and cook for 60 minutes.
Cool for 2 hours on wire cooling rack before serving.
For high altitude adjustments: reduce sugar to 2/3 cup and increase the amount of butter to 3 tablespoons. Reduce the oven temperature to 325 °.
Thanks Chef Kevin for these delicious staples!
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