Thanksgiving Table 2014

This year is my first year in my new home.  After nine Thanksgivings in my old house, this is my tenth year hosting the holiday. I look forward to many more in my forever house.  

Here is what the table looks like this year.

I wanted to stick to some of the old traditions I have for my table. I like to use my gold charger plates and Goldwater.  My turkey center piece has been on every table I have had. It was a gift for my first Thanksigiving dinner hosting.  

I am also using my turkey napkins. They are gold and match my gold color scheme.

I bought new glasses for this year's dinner.  They are a bit whimsical for such a formal setting but I think they are cute and make the table fun. You cannot see it in the picture but they say "Gobble 'till you wobble".  

The two pictures above show a small gold bar underneath the glass.  It is a knife rest.  I found them when I was unpacking my new house.  They were something I inherited from my mom and I decided to use them.  Let's see if anyone knows what they are at dinner.

Butternut Squash Soup with Apples

It has been a while since I have posted.  I sold my home and bought a new one.  In between the sale and purchase, I had to rent for six months.  During that time, I was out of sorts and most of my things were in storage.  I am back and trying to get back into the swing of things.  Here is the first recipe I have created in my new kitchen.  

This recipe uses chicken stock but if you want to make it vegetarian you can use vegetable stock.  If you do not have apple cider on hand, substitute vegetable or chicken stock for it and add an extra apple or two to add more apple flavor and sweetness.  I made this recipe using ingredients from my fridge after a few trips to local farm stands.  I used a red onion because I think it is sweeter when cooked, but you can use any kind you have on hand.  In this recipe the cinnamon is optional, I did not use it but you may want to add some for an additional layer of flavor.  This recipe does not use any dairy to make the soup creamy, it is creamy enough from puréeing it.

Makes 3 pints

Ingredients:

2 TBS olive oil

1 small red onion, diced

1 apple, any kind, peeled, cored and diced

1 large butternut squash, diced

1 garlic clove, minced

2 cups chicken stock, homemade and organic preferred

2 cups apple cider, local preferred

1/4 tsp dried sage, or 1 fresh sage leaf, whole

1 Bay leaf

1/4 - 1/2 tsp cinnamon (optional)

Kosher salt

Pepper

Here's how:

Using a medium to large soup pot or Dutch oven, preheat the olive oil over medium heat.

Add the onion and apple.  Add a pinch of salt and pepper.

Sauté the onion and apples for 10 minutes.

After ten minutes, add the squash and another pinch of salt and pepper.

Sauté the squash for 7 minutes.

Add the garlic and sauté for one minute.

Add the rest of the ingredients, except the cinnamon.

Cover and reduce the heat to a simmer.  Simmer for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, remove the lid, remove the bay leaf and sage leaf if used. Turn off the heat.

Use and immersion blender or a regular batches to purée the soup.  Do it in batches if using a blender.

Add the cinnamon now, if using, and serve.  You can freeze this for future use.