Today I’m sharing some of my favorite Thanksgiving recipes in case you haven’t finalized your menu or are still trying to come up with a side dish to take to your family or friend’s house. For me, Thanksgiving has always been more about the side dishes and less about the turkey. And, of course, there are plenty of delicious dessert options!

Appetizers

Southwest Cheesecake

This baked cream cheese spread includes green chiles, taco seasoning and salsa. It’s always a hit at parties!

Ranch House Cheese Spread

This creamy cheese has a touch of horseradish, which gives it an addicting kick.

Curried Cashews

These can easily be made a couple of days in advance and also make great hostess gifts when put inside a pretty package for the holidays.

Parmesan Truffle Popcorn

We usually double this recipe when making it because it always disappears so quickly!

Creamy Pimento Cheese Spread

This is a thicker version of a traditional pimento cheese spread, which tastes amazing on pretty much everything.

Creamy Curry Chip Dip

This may be one of the most simple, yet most popular appetizers I make. There’s something about the combination of curry powder and cream cheese that is absolutely delicious!

Side Dishes

Lightened-up Corn Casserole

Traditional corn casserole gets lightened up with the help of egg whites and Greek yogurt. The result is a delicious, rich side dish that tastes just as good as the original.

Cheesy Garlic Kale

This cheesy garlic kale is sautéed on the stovetop, leaving precious oven space open for other holiday dishes. It takes only ten minutes to throw together!

Grandma’s Cheesy Green Bean Casserole

This is my absolute favorite holiday dish. My grandmother’s recipe is a spin on classic green bean casserole, with the addition of cheese and homemade croutons. For me, it tastes like home.

Honey Oat Bread

My dad made this bread frequently when I was growing up and I love the chewy texture the oats give it, along with the slight sweetness from the honey. While rolls or biscuits are common on many Thanksgiving tables, your family or friends will gobble this loaf up!

Everyday Salad With Homemade Croutons

I always like to have some veggies that aren’t drenched in butter or cheese for our holiday meals. It’s all about balance, right? This salad is so easy to throw together but delicious.

Desserts

Maple-Walnut Cranberry Pie with Whiskey Whipped Cream

This is my all-time favorite pie! It’s like a grown-up version of pecan pie that uses walnuts instead. The cranberries and whiskey whipped cream provide the perfect, tart balance to the maple syrup, making for a delicious dessert that isn’t overly sweet.

Thanksgiving Pumpkin Bars

These pumpkin bars have a yellow cake crust and a creamy, pumpkin filling. They’re the perfect cross between cake and pie — who says you have to have one or the other?!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

These pumpkin chocolate chip cookies are super soft and full of the best fall flavors. Hints of nutmeg, cloves and cinnamon make them a delicious seasonal treat.

Pumpkin Ale Ice Cream

If you have some pumpkin beer hiding in the back of your fridge, this is the best way to use it. This ice cream needs to be made at least one day in advance, but it’s so worth the extra effort!

White Texas Sheet Cake

If you’re pressed for time but trying to feed a crowd, this is the perfect dessert. The cake is frosted while warm, which means you can have this out of the oven and at your Thanksgiving feast in under an hour.

Coconut-citrus Upside Down Cake

If you really want to impress people with the beauty and taste of a dessert, this upside down cake won’t disappoint. While it doesn’t include traditional Thanksgiving flavors, it’s a welcome, light dessert compared to some of the heavier, traditional holiday foods.

The post Thanksgiving Recipes appeared first on The Broadcasting Baker.

Our weekend was spent preparing for and hosting our annual Christmas cookie and craft beer exchange, which has become our favorite event of the year. The tradition started with just a few girlfriends when I was living in South Bend and keeps getting bigger and bigger every year. It’s a great way to unwind and spend time with friends during the hectic holiday season.

Here’s how it works: everyone brings either a six-pack of craft beer or a dozen cookies to share. We spend the night sampling everyone’s creations and the person who baked the crowd favorite takes home a small prize.

We stocked our fridge with a variety of my dad’s homebrew, New Belgium and Upland beers before everyone arrived. We also got a growler of Krampus from Bloomington Brewing Company, which is our favorite seasonal beer. We had to make a beer run halfway through the party last year, so we wanted to make sure we had more than enough beer in case most guests decided to bring cookies. But, most people actually brought both! We still have dozens of beers in our fridge leftover from the party. Luckily, there’s no such thing as too much beer.

I made Doubletree cookies, Oreo truffles, pretzel cookies and almond cut-out cookies for the party. I also put out a cheese plate and some salty snacks to help balance out all of the sugar. That table quickly became covered in cookies when guests arrived. I think we’re going to need a bigger one for next year’s party!

There seriously wasn’t enough room for all of the delicious cookies people brought. What’s so fun about the party is somehow no two people ever bring the same cookies. We had everything from classic spritz cookies to ombre cookies. I only sampled a couple because I was so busy mingling — and I didn’t want an awful stomach ache this morning.

There were lots of favorites, but our friend Stacy won the cookie competition this year. She brought two kinds that were delicious, but the salted caramel cookies were the biggest hit. I also loved the coffee cheesecake tartlets and Snickers-stuffed snickerdoodles other friends brought. We tried to send everyone off with bags of cookies, but we still somehow ended up with the majority of the leftovers. I threw them in the freezer so we won’t be tempted to eat ourselves into cookie comas!

The party was an absolute blast and I’m kind of sad it’s already over. It’s become one of our favorite holiday traditions and it was especially fun being able to throw it in a home of our own this year. I’m already dreaming up cookie recipes for next year’s party!

What’s your favorite holiday tradition? Chime in by posting a comment below!

The post 5th Annual Christmas Cookie And Craft Beer Exchange appeared first on The Broadcasting Baker.

I love hosting friends and look for just about any excuse to throw a party. That means we’ve hosted quite a few over the years — and I’d like to think we have it down to a science. That hasn’t always been the case. When you’re trying to juggle food, drink and entertainment for a crowd, a lot can go wrong. So I’m sharing a few tips for how to host an impressive party without all of the stress.

1. Keep it simple. 

When it comes to planning a menu for a party, don’t be overly ambitious. Homemade meatballs are great for a date night at home, but no one will know you used the frozen version when you smother them in a delicious sauce and throw them on a Hawaiian roll. You can keep your menu sophisticated without having to spend hours slaving away in the kitchen. Take shortcuts if they won’t compromise the deliciousness of a dish and don’t be afraid to serve some semi-homemade or store-bought foods. Nancy’s quiche and deli spirals are staples at many of our parties because they’re absolutely delicious and effortless to prepare. I also almost always serve two-ingredient creamy salsa dip, sangria and ranch house cheese spread because they’re crowd pleasers that take hardly any time to put together.

2. Prep the day before. 

I don’t know how I hosted parties before I started embracing this tip. It makes life so much easier. No one wants to spend the entirety of their own kickass party in the kitchen, so prepare as much as you can the night before. I actually plan my menu around what types of foods can be prepared ahead of time so all I have to do the day of the party is pop a couple things in the oven and put out some plates. Crockpot recipes, chilled salads and baked dips are always popular among guests and easy on the hosts.

3. Be clear about what’s expected of guests — and vice versa. 

If people ask what they can bring to the party, be truthful. If you’re counting on guests to help stock the bar or feed the crowd, be clear about those expectations from the beginning. And let people know when they’re invited whether it’s OK for them to bring their significant others, kids or friends. This will help ensure there’s enough food and drink for everyone and will ensure you avoid the awkwardness of unexpected guests. You should also be sure to let guests know whether you’ll be serving a full meal, light appetizers, or just drinks. That way they’ll know whether to come hungry or eat before the event.

4. Have some entertainment planned. 

Most of the time our parties just involve everyone catching up, enjoying some good food and beers and a whole lot of laughing. But, we always have some entertainment planned just in case we need to help people break the ice. It can be something as simple as having card games handy or a makeshift photo booth setup.

5. Have fun!

This is the whole point of having a party, after all. While it can be easy to get caught up in all the duties of hosting, it’s important to spend lots of time mingling with guests and partaking in the festivities. If you don’t, your guests will feel awkward and you won’t want to throw another shindig anytime soon. Have a blast!

The post How To Throw A Stress-Free Party appeared first on The Broadcasting Baker.