Make Ahead Thanksgiving Dishes

Thanksgiving will be here before we know it! We are probably all beginning to dream about the feast and the time with family. The other question on all of our minds is "How will we get it all done in time?" A few recipes that allow you to make things ahead of time are always helpful. I've rounded up recipes from around my blog that I go to every Thanksgiving. I hope you take the opportunity to make these ahead of time and share them with other friends who need a little help in getting it all done this year.

Banana Cookies

My daughter usually requests traditional chocolate chip cookies. The day I developed this recipe and had them ready for an after school snack, she declared them "the best cookie I had ever made!"

I don't feel so guilty serving these banana cookies to our family and friends because the bananas replace so much of the fat that is in traditional cookies. They work great for anyone with an egg allergy as well since the bananas replace those too. Plus, they are delicious!

Move over banana bread - I think we have a new favorite for our ripe bananas!

Banana Cookies
½ cup butter	1 tsp baking powder
½ cup sugar	1 tsp baking soda
½ cup brown sugar, packed	½ tsp salt
1 ¼ cups mashed banana	½ tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla	1 cup chocolate chips
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
Cream together the butter and sugars. Add bananas and vanilla. Add remaining ingredients. You can use half wheat flour and half white flour. Mix or stir together. Drop by spoonfuls onto greased baking sheet. Bake at 350° F 8–10 minutes. Allow cookies to cool for a couple of minutes on a baking sheet before removing to a wire rack. Makes about 3 dozen cookies. You can freeze the dough and thaw and bake later or you can freeze the cookies once they are baked.

Freezer to Crockpot Mongolian Beef

Notice the lovely paper plate - this is another meal we enjoyed during the weeks of our remodel. It's just taken me a bit to get it posted here on the blog. Now that the nights are getting cooler and the kids are busy every afternoon, I am turning to my crockpot much more. Preparing a few meals all at once and then storing them in the freezer for later is a time saver for me.

Free Holiday Roll Making Class

I love to teach! It is fun to see others get excited about the new things they are learning. This class is a favorite for this time of year. Food 2 Store has a great room set up in the back of their store for learning and they invite me back often. Be sure to sign up - 

Wednesday, November 13th 1:00 p.m.

Holiday Roll Making

Every holiday meal is better with homemade rolls! This class will cover the art of roll making - beginning with how to make an amazing bread dough. I will share a few favorite recipes and have samples for tasting. Set a goal to WOW your friends and family this holiday season. You'll be excited to learn just how easy it really is. Space is limited so call or email Food 2 Store to reserve your place.

Green Tomato Muffins

We enjoyed these delicious muffins for breakfast. I was trying to come up with one more thing to do with my remaining green tomatoes. My kids devoured these and wanted the leftovers for their snack when they came home from school. I can add a new recipe to my success list! They are very similar in taste and texture to zucchini bread. Hopefully, your family will enjoy them too. The tomatoes hide even better than zucchini so even your little picky eaters won't mind.

Halloween Fun From Years Past

I've posted some traditional Halloween goodies in years past and thought that I'd remind you of them. Enjoy this fun week with your kids. Even my middle-schoolers are excited for the events of the week and my first grader can't stop jumping around he's so full of excitement! It's a busy week for moms, but they are memories I will hold onto forever.

Breadstick Bones are a fun "healthy" Halloween snack for school parties or dinners this time of year. We always serve them with "vampire blood" (a.k.a. pizza sauce) for dipping.

Halloween Ghosts are another easy-to-make treat that even my preschoolers love to help with.

Candy Corn Cookie Bites

Remember my All Purpose Christmas Cookie Dough recipe? It's great at other times of year as well. I had a roll of it frozen in the freezer from a previous cooking session. I pulled it out the other day and put these together. The kids loved them!