For the distinctive taste of the Lone Star State on Thanksgiving, we reached out to our dear friend, Karen, an award-winning veteran food writer from Texas. She responded with recipes from columns she wrote for her hometown newspaper and on old index cards scribbled with sweet notes like “Yummy!” and “Family Thanksgiving must since 1990!”
Thanksgiving is, after all, a sentimental holiday, and the handiwork here harks back to old Texas family traditions. Today, your new Lennar home makes the old-fashioned effort a breeze.
For instance, many new homes in Dallas, TX, feature The World’s First Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ Home Design, so you can ask Alexa to do just about everything but mix the ingredients. In your new home in one of Lennar’s 95 communities in the Metroplex, Everything’s Included® to help you entertain, including such standard features as a generous island kitchen with top-of-the-line GE® appliances.
To get your mouth watering and your grocery list going, here are some of Karen’s picks for your own Texas-flavored holiday feast:
Karen’s Favorite Sweet Potatoes
8 cups peeled sweet potatoes (3 very long potatoes)
Cut into ½” cubes
Cover sweet potatoes with water, boil until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain and mash.
½ cup sugar
3 eggs beaten
11/8 tsp salt
Scant 1 cup whole milk
½ tsp vanilla
2 sticks butter, softened
Mix together, beat with mixer. Put in buttered 9×13 dish. Bake 325° for 20 minutes.
Top with topping and bake an additional 15-20 minutes
Topping
¼ cup brown sugar
1/3 cup flour
½ stick butter, softened
½ cup chopped pecans
Combine sprinkle on top. Bake until knife comes out clean.
Gertrude’s Pumpkin Chiffon Pie
1 cup canned pumpkin
3 eggs, separated
½ cup sugar
1 cup milk
½ tsp salt
½ tsp powdered ginger
¼ tsp nutmeg
1 tsp cinnamon
2 Tablespoons melted butter
1 Tablespoons unflavored gelatin
¼ cup cold water
½ cup sugar
Crust (recipe follows)
Sweetened whipped cream
Cook pumpkin in top of double boiler 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Mix egg yolks, ½ cup sugar and milk. Add to cooked pumpkin and spices and 2 tablespoons melted butter. Stir and cook until mixture is consistency of custard. Remove from heat and add gelatin, which has been softened in cold water. Stir until dissolved. Chill. When mixture begins to stiffen, fold in stiffly beaten egg whites to which has been added ½ cup sugar. Pour into crust. Chill 3 hours. Top with whipped cream.
Crust
12/3 cup (51/3 oz) graham cracker crumbs
¼ cup sugar
6 Tablespoons butter
Heat oven to 350°. Combine all ingredients well. Press evenly over bottom and sides of pie pan. Bake 7-9 mins.
Texas Corn Casserole
1 16-oz. can creamed corn
1 cup Bisquick
1 beaten egg
2 Tablespoons melted butter
2 Tablespoons sugar
½ cup milk
½ cup chopped onion
4-oz. can chopped green chilies
½-pound (16-oz package is okay) sliced Monterrey Jack
Combine corn, Bisquick, eggs, butter, sugar, onion, milk. Mix well. Turn half of batter into greased 8×8 pan, cover with chilies and cheese. Spread rest of batter on top. Bake at 400° for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown.
Scalloped Eggplant
(Karen’s scribbled note: “My favorite!”)
2 medium eggplants
Salted water
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 stick butter, divided
1 egg, beaten
¼ cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
Salt, to taste
Pepper, to taste
24 saltine cracker squares, crumbled, divided
Peel eggplants and cut into 1-inch pieces. Boil in salted water until very tender, 10-15 minutes. Drain very well. Sauté onion in ¼ stick butter until tender. Mix onion-butter mixture with well-drained eggplant and let cool about 45 minutes. Preheat oven to 350°.
Add beaten egg, cheese, salt and pepper and half of the cracker crumbs. Put in casserole dish (fluted quiche pan works well). Put remaining cracker crumbs on top and dot with remaining butter. Bake 1 hour or until very hot and crumbs are golden.
Note: Casserole can be made ahead and refrigerated before baking. Do not add crumbs/butter topping until just before you bake it.
Central Market’s Tamale Stuffing
Karen’s note: “This is one of the easiest dressings to make and buy.”
24 cooked beef and pork tamales (husks removed)
4 cups 3-cheese blend (grated cheddar, mozzarella, and Jack cheeses)
28-oz. can tomatoes with diced green chilies
2 cups chopped onions
1 tsp granulated garlic
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp dark chili powder
1 to 3 tsp kosher salt, to taste
In a large bowl, crumble tamales by hand into bite-size pieces. (Do not use a mixer or food processor or the stuffing will be too dense.) Toss all the remaining ingredients and add the tamales. Place in a large greased baking pan or two 9-inch ovenproof dishes and bake at 350° for 20-30 minutes, until brown and hot throughout. (Serves 12)
Happy holidays from all of us to all our dear friends throughout the Lennar family. For more information about Lennar, your community or new homes in Dallas, TX, from Flower Mound to Little Elm and from Forney to Frisco, visit our Dallas-Fort Worth home on the web.
