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Thanksgiving

Crockpot Southern-Style Green Beans

Southern-Style Green Beans

Southern-Style Green Beans made in the crockpot slow cooked to side dish heaven. Made with fresh green beans and loads of delicious bacon for all my bacon lovers out there!

Crockpot Southern-Style Green Beans

Thanksgiving and Christmas are officially on a countdown now. I started my Christmas shopping and holiday menu planning. One dish that is typically on the table for holidays with my family is a green bean dish and these Southern-style Green Beans are always a huge hit!

Crockpot Southern-Style Green BeansThis side dish goes well beyond just the holidays. Make these any time for a bright, fresh comfort food paired with anything from ham to chicken, baked potatoes to rice. This is a simple dish with delicious flavor and a must make!

Crockpot Southern-Style Green Beans

Crockpot Southern-Style Green Beans

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Crockpot Southern-Style Green Beans

Southern-Style Green Beans made in the crockpot slow cooked to side dish heaven. Made with fresh green beans and loads of delicious bacon for all my bacon lovers out there!

  • 2 pounds fresh green beans, trimmed
  • 1 pound thick cut bacon
  • 1 medium yellow onion
  • 1/4 cup chicken broth
  • 4 sprigs thyme
  • salt
  • pepper
  1. Chop the yellow onion.
  2. Wash and trim the green beans.
  3. Chop your bacon and cook in a pan on a medium heat until crispy.
  4. Place on a paper towels to the side.
  5. Dispose of excess bacon grease. I always place my bacon grease into a mug and let it harden before throwing away.
  6. Place the same pan back on the burner and cook your onion for 3 minutes.
  7. Add the green beans for another 2 minutes tossing often.
  8. Place the green beans and onion into the crockpot. Add in a dash of salt, pepper, HALF the cooked bacon, broth and thyme.
  9. Cook on high for 3 hours.
  10. Stir in other half of cooked bacon and serve.

Crockpot Southern-Style Green BeansCrockpot Southern-Style Green Beans

Cheesy Mashed Potato Casserole

Cheesy Mashed Potato Casserole

Cheesy Mashed Potato Casserole with russet potatoes, sour cream, butter, crispy bacon, cheddar cheese and green onion.

The cool weather is approaching and holidays are near which means comfort foods are on the menu! Mashed potatoes is a favorite comfort food in this house. Add cheese and bacon and it is a huge hit! This is one of those dishes that you just cannot stop eating. So make sure there will be plenty for everyone. Big crowds will probably need two of these casseroles!

For the holidays, we always serve mashed potatoes of some sort. Cheesy Mashed Potato Casserole pairs perfectly ham. Try our Crockpot Holiday Ham for an easy main dish!

Cheesy Mashed Potato Casserole

Should we get cooking?

You want to start by peeling all your potatoes and cutting them into quarters before dropping them into a large pot of boiling water. Also cook your bacon at this time until crispy and set to the side. Cook potatoes until soft which takes about 20-25 minutes. Drain and add all the goodies. Loads of cheddar cheese, some butter, milk, sour cream and crispy bacon are added in and mixed. Sprinkle some of the cheese and bacon on top.

Place the Cheesy Potato Casserole into the oven at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Take the casserole out of the oven and place green onion on top before serving.

Cheesy Mashed Potato Casserole

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Cheesy Mashed Potato Casserole, side dishes, holiday recipes

Cheesy Mashed Potato Casserole with russet potatoes, sour cream, butter, crispy bacon, cheddar cheese and green onion.

  • 5 pounds russet potatoes
  • 1 cup sour cream
  • .5 cup milk
  • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 3 cups shredded cheddar cheese
  • .5 pound cooked, crispy bacon
  • 2 green onions
  • Salt
  • Pepper
  1. Peel the potatoes, quarter and place in a large pot of boiling water for 25 minutes.
  2. While potatoes are on the stovetop, cook the bacon until crispy and chop into small pieces. Set to the side.
  3. Once the potatoes are softened, drain and place into a large bowl (or use the same pot you cooked in). Add the butter, sour cream, milk and desired amount of salt and pepper.
  4. Use a hand mixer to mix until creamy.
  5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  6. Add 2 cups shredded cheese and most of the cooked bacon. Mix again.
  7. Transfer the mashed potatoes to a large casserole dish and sprinkle the remaining cheese and bacon on top.
  8. Place the mashed potatoes into oven for 20 minutes.
  9. Chop up the green onion and sprinkle over top.
  10. Let sit for 5 minutes and serve!

What are some dishes that your family must have during the holidays? Are mashed potatoes on the menu?

Slow Cooker Honey Pineapple Holiday Ham

Slow Cooker Honey Pineapple Holiday Ham is a must have recipe for holiday parties. Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter or any get together is a perfect occasion for Slow Cooker Honey Pineapple Holiday Ham ! Occasionally, I even throw this ham in on a Sunday afternoon so to make ham sandwiches for the week’s lunches or a  Slow Cooker Ham and Bean Soup.

This recipe is inspired by my grandmother. My grandmother would always make ham with brown sugar, honey or mustard and pineapple slices. She would cook hers in the oven and I prefer the crockpot, especially if you have a turkey and casseroles going in the oven then there just isn’t much room for a ham. The crockpot also lets you cook the ham on a low temperature for a longer time to ensure the juices are soaking in.

 

Slow Cooker Honey Pineapple Holiday Ham

 

Pick a pre cooked ham that is 8-10 pounds and I prefer to buy with bone in so I can make a soup with the leftovers. A ham over 10 pounds may be difficult to squeeze into your crockpot so keep that in mind. Make sure to buy a spiraled pre sliced ham also so the flavors of the honey, pineapple, and brown sugar can really soak in and give you a really tasty ham.

I always recommend buying locally made honey, especially if you suffer from seasonal allergies. Honey is known to help with pollen sensitivities when consumed on a regular basis. I think this is a controversial topic in regards to honey helping fight against seasonal allergies but I believe it and always buy local. Plus, you are helping support a small business in your community which is always a great idea.

 

Slow Cooker Honey Pineapple Holiday Ham

 

Have leftover ham? Try the Slow Cooker Ham and Bean Soup!

 

Slow Cooker Honey Pineapple Holiday Ham

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Slow Cooker Honey Pineapple Holiday Ham
  • 8-10 pound pre cooked spiral ham
  • 1 can pineapple slices
  • 3 cups brown sugar
  • .5 cup honey
  1. Add 1.5 cups brown sugar to the bottom of the crock pot.
  2. Place ham on top.
  3. Add .5 cup honey. I eye ball half a cup and drizzle over the top of ham.
  4. Add the other 1.5 cup of brown sugar.
  5. Place pineapple slices on top of ham and you can hold them in place with toothpicks if you wish.
  6. Add the remainder of the juices of the pineapple can into crock pot.
  7. Cook on low 5-6 hours.

 

Slow Cooker Honey Pineapple Holiday Ham

 

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Thanksgiving 2016

Simply Made Recipes is having a simple family Thanksgiving dinner this year for 2016. I want to share with you our menu and shopping list! Links below for items you can find full recipes for here at Simply Made Recipes. What are you cooking this year?

 

Thanksgiving 2016

 

I always make the cheesecake the night before, set the dining room table and get out all dishes that I will be using in the morning. I chop vegetables, slice the bread and set to the side. Also, I make the dough for rolls and let rest to the side. One item that is still undecided for us is the drinks. Possibly an apple cider and an adult version apple cider for this year.

 

fallfestival-list

 

Thanksgiving Leftovers CasseroleThanksgiving Leftover Casserole because you will need something for the day after for all those leftovers!

 

 

 

 

Apple PieClassic Apple Pie is a Thanksgiving must!

 

 

 

 

pumpkin-cheesecakePumpkin Cheesecake is a beautiful dessert that your guests will love!

In the comments Samantha says, “This was the best pumpkin cheesecake ever! I’m not a huge fan of cheesecake but this was phenomenal! I can’t wait to make this for our family thanksgiving this weekend.
Thanks!!”

 

 

Perfect Mashed PotatoesPerfect Mashed Potatoes for the entire crowd!

 

 

 

 

Happy holidays and have a wonderful Thanksgiving! We are thankful for all our followers and the support we have received in the past 6 months of Simply Made Recipes and hope you stick by us in the future!

Thanksgiving Leftovers Casserole

Thanksgiving Leftovers Casserole is a recipe I am super excited to share with everyone. This casserole utilizes all your favorite Thanksgiving day leftovers into one amazing dish. It begins with a layer of stuffing, topped with a mixture of turkey, vegetables and cream of mushroom soup, with a heaping layer of mashed potatoes, topped with more delicious stuffing and gravy drizzled on top.

 

Thanksgiving Leftovers Casserole

 

Thanksgiving Leftovers Casserole

 

Your family may be like my own. The day after Thanksgiving is like a rush to fridge to call out what leftovers are yours. Mine are Pumpkin Cheesecake and Perfect Mashed Potatoes so don’t even think about it. I know my husband hides the leftover turkey and peanut butter pie every single year. Thanksgiving leftovers Casserole fixes this mad rush to consume your favorites the day after the holiday. We have a nice lunch and I put together this really easy and crazy good casserole. Feel free to exchange ingredients, maybe do some carrots and celery instead of green beans, try mashed sweet potatoes, ham instead of turkey. Use what you have… which brings up ingredient amounts. If you don’t have the exact amount of an ingredient, it’s not the end of the world just simply use what you have left.

 

Thanksgiving Leftovers Casserole

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Thanksgivings leftover Casserole
  • 3 cups favorite stuffing
  • 4 cups leftover turkey shredded slightly
  • 1 can cream of mushroom
  • .5 cup milk
  • 2 cups green beans
  • 4 cups mashed potatoes
  • gravy to drizzle
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Gather all leftover ingredients.
  3. Place 1.5 cups stuffing on bottom of a casserole dish ( I used the 8 by 11).
  4. In a mixing bowl, place 4 cups turkey, 1 can of cream of mushroom, 2 cups green beans and .5 cups milk and give a good mix. I shred the turkey a little bit as I mix.
  5. Place the turkey and vegetable layer on top in casserole dish on top of stuffing layer.
  6. Heat up the mashed potatoes for 2 minutes in the microwave. They don't need to be hot. Give a good stir and layer in casserole dish.
  7. Add another 1.5 cups stuffing on top.
  8. Place in oven for 30 minutes uncovered, you want the stuffing on top to get slightly crisp.
  9. Reheat gravy on the stovetop to drizzle on top.

 

 

Thanksgiving Leftovers Casserole

 

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Apple Pie

There is no fall time dessert that matches up to a classic, homemade, fresh Apple Pie. The cinnamon apple aroma that fills the entire house and sitting down with family to cut into a warm pie with some vanilla ice cream is just about perfection. This particular Apple Pie is very simple and the most difficult part is taking the time to peel and slice the apples. For the top crust, you are open to do whatever you would like. I see so many fancy lattice patterns and braids and all type of fun ways to decorate pies. Be creative and see what you can come up with or keep it simple and classic, just like Apple Pie.

 

Apple Pie

Apple Pie

 

Prepping everything before you begin to cook the sauce will help keep you organized. Put the apple slices in a big bowl, another bowl of sugar and seasonings, with the pie crusts on the side ready to be completed.

 

Apple Pie

Apple Pie

 

Apple Pie

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Apple Pie

Recipe adapted from Audrey’s Apron

  • 7 Granny Smith Apples
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 3 tablespoons flour
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2 pie crusts, preferably homemade but we used store bought deep dish crust for today
  1. Gather ingredients, large bowl, pan, measuring cups, foil, baking sheet, whisk, basic kitchen utensils, pastry wheel or pizza cutter, knife, and cutting board.
  2. Peel 7 Granny Smith apples, remove core and slice evenly. I recommend the Granny Smith apples because of how tart they are and these apples bake perfectly. Place in large bowl.
  3. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
  4. Over medium heat on the stove top, melt .5 cups butter. Add 3 tablespoons flour and whisk until thickened. Add the 1/4 cup water, 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. Whisk until blended and let simmer for a minute.
  5. Remove mixture from heat and mix with the sliced apples in the bowl and mix well. Set aside a small amount of sauce mixture to put on top of the pie as a drizzle.
  6. Pour apples into pie crust.
  7. Using the second pie crust, make a lattice or any other design now to cover over top using the pastry wheel.
  8. Pour the remaining sauce that was earlier set aside on top of crust and cover pie with foil.
  9. Put pie into oven for 12 minutes. On the rack below pie, set a baking sheet down to catch any pie drippings.
  10. After 12 minutes, reduce heat to 350 degrees and cook 50-60 minutes. I remove the foil the final 15 minutes of cooking to brown the crust nicely.
  11. Remove pie from oven and let cool.
  12. Serve with cool whip or vanilla ice cream.

 

 

apple-pie

 

Simply Made Recipes is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising. If you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase, we may receive a small commission. This costs nothing extra to you and helps keep Simply Made Recipes running!

 

 

 

Pumpkin Cheesecake

Pumpkin Cheesecake is a must have fall dessert recipe. Perfect for special occasions like Thanksgiving or a special family treat. We have two big tips to get that perfectly smooth cheesecake texture and that is to make sure the cream cheese is at room temperature before prepping this dessert and to put foil around the edges of your springform pan to keep the cheesecake edges from burning while in the oven. A great cheesecake takes time so be patient because you have to wait for the cream cheese to be at the right temperature, cook an hour and half and let cool so we always cook the cheesecake the day before a party or get together and decorate the day of.

 

 

 

Pumpkin Cheesecake

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pumpkin-cheesecake
  • Cheesecake filling
  • 24 ounces room temperature cream cheese
  • 1.5 cups sugar
  • 1/4 cup sour cream
  • 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
  • 15 ounce can pumpkin pie filling
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3 eggs
  • Graham cracker crust
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 1/4 cup crushed graham crackers
  • 6 tablespoons room temperature butter
  • Topping
  • 2 cups cool whip
  • 1/4 cup caramel
  1. Gather ingredients, measuring cups, mixing bowls, foil, kitchen utensils, hand mixer and springform pan.
  2. Pre heat oven to 350 degrees.
  3. In the large ziplock bag, place one sleeve of graham crackers. You can use anything to paddle the bag to break up the graham crackers into crumbs. We use a rolling pin. A food processor can also be used but I don't like cleaning up the extra mess.
  4. Place graham cracker crumbs (1 1/4 cup) in the bowl with 6 tablespoons of room temperature butter(I have even melted the butter and it mixes much easier) and 1/4 cup of sugar. Mix with hands and place into the springform pan. Work the crumb mixture until nice and even and pressed firmly. You can just put the graham crust on the bottom of the pan or you can also come up the sides.
  5. Add the 24 ounces of cream cheese to mixing bowl and blend well with hand mixer. Make sure the cream has had time to sit to bring temperature down before this or you may get a chunky cheesecake and we don't want that.
  6. Add 1.5 cups sugar, 1/4 cup sour cream, 15 ounces pumpkin pie filling, 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and 3 eggs to the cream cheese and blend until smooth and creamy.
  7. Pour mixture into the springform pan and cover sides with foil.
  8. Place in oven for 1.5 hours.
  9. Remove from oven and let cool before placing in fridge to chill for minimum of 2 hours.
  10. Remove from fridge and release spring sides.
  11. Cover cheesecake with a cool whip layer, followed by drizzle of caramel. We use the caramel from the squeeze bottle to make this step a cinch.
  12. Serve. We always do a drizzle of caramel on a plate, then place a slice of pumpkin cheesecake on top for a nice presentation and the caramel sets into the graham cracker crust. Oh so delicious!

 

pumpkin-cheesecake

 

 

Simply Made Recipes is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising. If you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase, we may receive a small commission. This costs nothing extra to you and helps keep Simply Made Recipes running!

 


Perfect Mashed Potatoes

Perfect Mashed Potatoes are the ultimate side dish. This family loves, loves, loves potatoes and this is the recipe we use for special occasions feeding a large group of people. Sometimes, we just have a major craving for these potatoes and make a big batch to eat throughout the week with Lemon Garlic Salmon or with some Shepherd’s Pie.  Perfect Mashed Potatoes are thick, creamy and hold in gravy just right.

Perfect Mashed Potatoes

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Perfect Mashed Potatoes
  • 5 pounds potatoes
  • 1.5 cups butter
  • 8 ounces cream cheese
  • .5 cup sour cream
  • .5 cup heavy cream
  • salt
  • pepper
  1. Gather ingredients, large pot, strainer, measuring cups, knife, cutting board, potato peeler, and hand mixer.
  2. Peel 5 pounds of potatoes. Cut into quarters.
  3. Fill large pot with water and boil, add potatoes.
  4. Cook 40 minutes and strain. Place drained potatoes back into pot.
  5. In the pot, add 1.5 cups butter, 8 ounces cream cheese, .5 cup sour cream, salt and pepper to taste and .5 cups heavy cream. Mix until creamy.
  6. Taste test. You may need to add more salt or thin the potatoes slightly with more heavy cream or milk.
  7. Finish mixing and serve!

Perfect Mashed Potatoes

 

 

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