Every fourth Thursday in November, the tradition of giving thanks appears in many American homes. Today’s tradition’s are patterned after a feast of the Pilgrims in 1621 after their first harvest. Many people travel across the country to visit with relatives and friends; however, with only a few days off of school, many students do not have time to go home. Many students also stay in town to watch the traditional Egg Bowl between Mississippi State University and the University of Mississippi.
Pat Wallace, MSU ticket manager, estimated that there will be around 11,033 students in attendance, an increase of over 2,700 from last time MSU hosted the Egg Bowl.
Here are some traditional recipes so students will not be left out of the holiday fixins.
Holiday Turkey
Ingredients:
– turkey roasting oven bag
– turkey
– stick of butter, melted
– seasoned salt
– pepper
Directions:
Pour melted butter inside and outside of the turkey. Sprinkle the seasoned salt and pepper onto the turkey. Put the turkey in the oven bag and bake the turkey at 350 degrees. The length of the baking is dependent upon the weight of the turkey. For 12-16 pounds, bake 2 hours and 15 minutes. For 17-20 pounds, bake for 2 hours and 45 minutes. For 21-24 pounds, bake for 3 hours and 15 minutes.
Homemade Cornbread
Ingredients:
– 2 cups of self-rising flour
– 1 egg
– 1 1/2 cup of buttermilk
– 2 teaspoons of sugar
– 1/4 cut of heated vegetable oil
Directions:
Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Pour into a cornbread pan and bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes.
Cornbread Dressing
Ingredients:
– 4 pans of cornbread
– 1 large onion, chopped
– 1 stalk of celery, chopped
– 8 boiled eggs, chopped
– 3/4 stick of butter, chopped
– chicken broth
Directions:
Crumble cornbread into large roasting pan. Mix in onion, celery, eggs and butter. Pour just enough chicken broth to come to the top of the dressing mix. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for about two hours.
Gravy
Mix 1 can of cream of chicken soup to every 3/4 cup of chicken broth. Warm on low heat. Spoon in about two teaspoons of cornbread dressing to thicken the gravy.
Sweet Potato Casserole
Ingredients:
– 1 large can of sweet potatoes
– 1/2 stick of butter
– 1 egg, beaten
– 3/4 cup of sugar
– 1/2 cup of milk
Directions:
Cut the sweet potatoes into small pieces and put in a casserole dish. Mix the egg, sugar and milk and pour over the sweet potatoes. Then, prepare the topping.
Topping:
– 1 cup of brown sugar
– 1/2 cup of pecans, chopped
– 1/2 cup of self-rising flour
– 1/2 stick of butter
Directions:
Combine ingredients until crumbly, pour over potatoes and bake the potatoes and topping for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.