Ok everyone, help me out. This is the 7th Thanksgiving we have hosted at our house. And my family likes all the traditional Thanksgiving side dishes. But I need some new ideas. I'm done with that green bean/mushroom soup/dried onion topping thing. Anyone got any favorites that are not the ones we probably all grew up with?

None of the following please:

Cranberries that keep the contour of the can
Pepperidge Farms Crescent Rolls
Sweet potatoes with slightly burnt mini marshmallows

I already have "mastered" these.....

Here is one of my holidays favorites;

Oven-roasted Roots

Notes: Other root vegetables (baby turnips, parsnips, chunks of leeks) can be used; vegetable weight should total about 4 1/2 pounds. Up to 4 hours ahead, roast vegetables; let stand at room temperature. To warm, set roasting pan over medium heat, add remaining ingredients, and stir until steaming. Garnish with rosemary sprigs or roasted garlic.

1 1/2 pounds blue, Yukon Gold, or red thin-skinned potatoes (or a mixture of colors), 2 inches wide
1 1/2 pounds short, slender carrots (1/2 in. thick), ends trimmed
1 1/2 pounds pearl onions (3/4 in. wide)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary leaves or 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1/2 teaspoon fresh-ground pepper
1/3 cup dry red wine (yippee !)
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
1/3 cup chicken broth
Salt

1. Scrub potatoes and carrots. Cut potatoes in half. Peel onions. In a 12- by 15-inch roasting pan, mix potatoes, carrots, onions, oil, thyme, rosemary, and pepper.
2. Roast vegetables in a 450° oven, stirring occasionally, until tender when pierced, 40 to 50 minutes.

3. Transfer pan from oven to rangetop and set over medium heat. Add red wine, balsamic vinegar, and chicken broth. Stir until brown drippings are scraped free and vegetables are coated, 2 to 4 minutes.

4. Spoon vegetables into a bowl. Add salt to taste.

Yield: Makes 10 to 12 servings

NUTRITION PER SERVING
CALORIES 117(20% from fat); FAT 2.5g (sat 0.3g); PROTEIN 2.3g; CHOLESTEROL 0.1mg; SODIUM 33mg; FIBER 2.8g; CARBOHYDRATE 21g

Source: Sunset Magazine, DECEMBER 1997

take a few dozen pitted dates, stuff them with goat cheese and an almond, wrap them with 1/2 strip of bacon each, bake on 350 for 20 minutes(or until bacon is crispy) or so, serve. yum!

Red Wine....wait what am I saying that's a main course.

Sounds great, TBird

I'm addicted to Chorizo and Cornbread Stuffing.

CROQUETTE BATTER
1 1/4 cups lentils
3 3/4 cups water, preferably spring or filtered
2 bay leaves
1/2 cup uncooked oatmeal
3 cloves garlic, peeled and quartered
1 large egg
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon Tabasco or similar hot sauce
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
FOR SHAPING AND BAKING
1 cup crisp, fine breadcrumbs
1/2 cup crushed Nutri-Grain or other no-sugar-added corn- or wheat flakes
1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast (see tip, below)
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon dried leaf sage, crumbled
Salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil
1 large egg (optional)
Cooking spray or olive oil spray

1. Combine the lentils, water, and bay leaves in a medium pot. Bring to a boil, turn down to a simmer, & cook, half-covered, until tender, 35 to 45 minutes. Cool, then drain off any excess liquid and set aside.
2. To complete the croquette batter, combine the lentils with all the other batter ingredients in a food processor. Buzz until the garlic is pureed and a soft, somewhat goopy paste is formed. Let the batter rest, covered and refrigerated, for at least 4 hours, or up to 2 days.
3. To bake the croquettes, preheat the oven to 400°F. Set up a breading station: Combine the breadcrumbs and cornflake crumbs in a bowl. In a second bowl, make a seasoned flour by combining the flour, nutritional yeast, paprika, sage, salt and black pepper, thyme, and olive oil and tossing together well. In a third bowl, beat the egg, if using, with a tablespoon of water. Place the bowl of croquette mixture next to all this, along with a nonstick baking sheet or one that has been sprayed with cooking spray.
4. Using 2 large spoons, form a slightly flattened fat oval 3 to 4 inches long and 1/2 inch thick. Drop it into the seasoned flour. Sprinkle the top of the oval of batter with more flour and lift it out of the flour with your fingers. Dip the batter oval into the egg, which will coat it, though it will resist in spots. Drop the egg-coated ball into the crumbs, and, with your fingers, roll it around. When coated with this second jacket of crumbs, place on the baking sheet. Repeat with the rest of the batter.
5. Spray the crumbed croquettes very lightly with olive oil (if you have some in a spray bottle) or cooking spray. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, turn very gently using a thin-bladed spatula, and bake for another 10 to 12 minutes. The crumb coating should be crisping up nicely; if it's not, run the croquettes under the broiler for a few moments.

I love making croquettas...here is the recipe I use for chicken or salmon croquettas:


2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large shallot, minced
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, plus more for dredging
1 cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more
Freshly ground black pepper
Pinch freshly grated nutmeg
4 cups finely chopped poached chicken breasts, recipe follows
2 tablespoons minced flat-leaf parsley leaves
1 tablespoon thinly sliced fresh chives
2 large eggs
1 1/4 cups fresh breadcrumbs
Vegetable oil for shallow frying



Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat, add the shallots and saute until softened, about 3 to 4 minutes.
Add the 2 tablespoons of flour, stir it into the butter with a wooden spoon, and cook for 2 minutes more.
Whisk in the cream, bring to a simmer, stirring until the mixture thickens and pulls away from the sides of the pan.
Pour the sauce into a medium bowl; season with 1 teaspoon of the salt, pepper to taste, and nutmeg.
Set aside to cool, stirring occasionally.
Stir the chicken, parsley, and chives into the cooled sauce.
By hand, form the chicken mixture into eight 3-inch long torpedo-shaped croquettes. Put the croquettes on a pan or large plate, cover, and refrigerate for 2 hours or until set and firm.
Put a heaping cup of flour in a shallow bowl or lipped plate. In another small bowl whisk the eggs with the remaining salt and pepper to taste. Spread the breadcrumbs into a third shallow bowl.
Bread the croquettes. Roll them in the flour, taking care to shake off any excess.
Next, dip them in the egg mixture, and finally roll in the breadcrumbs until evenly coated. Place on a plate.
Pour enough oil into a large skillet to come about halfway up the sides of the croquettes, and heat over medium heat.
Shallow-fry the croquettes until golden brown, about 2 to 3 minutes on each side.

There are no limits to side dishes at Thanksgiving. For sweet potatoes, there are an endless number of choices. I like bourbon sweet potatoes, but it is not a kiddie dish.

One of my favorite sides isEmeril's Holiday Salad

The flavors are outstanding, and it can be prepared a couple hours ahead of everything else, making it an easy first dish. If you are like the vast majority of people, the timing of Thanksgiving Dinner is the hardest part. I have a good friend that cannot time a meal to save his life, even though he can cook some good things. We've gone for dinner at 6 PM, ended up being served at 8:30. He is making Thanksgiving dinner this year... so we'll be eating something before heading over there.

Creamed pearl onions.

Last year's thread