I'm mostly known for my baking, so there is a big list there. Probably the most requested is my chocolate peanut butter pie and caramel apple cheesecake pie. Back when I had a little baking business, my best seller was a red velvet cheesecake cake, which was 2 layers of red velvet cake with a layer of creamy cheesecake between, all frosted with cream cheese icing. Mostly though it's just requested that I bring a dessert.

At Thanksgiving - corn casserole, whiskey glazed carrots, roasted Brussels sprouts, honey yeast rolls, cognac gravy.

I made cookie baskets for co-workers last year and they still talk about the chipotle and rosemary nuts that I made as well as the cream cheese cherry brandy balls.

I don't know anyone else who cooks!

The extended family likes my grandmother's cornbread dressing (now made by my mother). My mother, who doesn't cook well, learned to make this one dish because my father was so insistent that it be on the menu every Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Chi, I NEED your honey yeast roll recipe please!!!

Thanksgiving must have chestnut dressing. It was my father’s recipe. (He was a chef) Kids never like it (I wouldn’t touch it) but now that my kids are older they love it too.

Here it's the sage/onion dressing, and it must be inside the turkey. Homemade rolls, although it can be Grandma's Farmhouse White, my own butternut squash yeast rolls or Sol's Honey Rolls. And, of course, pumpkin pie. I can have any other desserts I want, and it's run the gamut from banana cream to red velvet cake pops to pumpkin cheesecake with a gingersnap crust, but there has to be that pumpkin pie in there somewhere.

I can change the vegetables however I want, but I have to keep the rolls, the stuffing and the pumpkin pie, my family are carboholics, I swear!

Annie

barbarians *grin*

Michele, what is your father's chestnut dressing like? It sounds delicious. I love anything with chestnuts.

Ooops. Put this in the wrong thread. :) 'Scuse please. I deleted it and posted it in the right thread.

The real must have is borekes. Since I"m the only one left who makes them, however, they don't always get them. They're Middle Eastern filo pastries filled with cheese or spinach (or meat, but no one wants that much meat anymore).

Prime Rib for the Christmas Feast.

I used to make buttermilk yeast rolls but that was before nursing school, and working long hours at the hospital. Now I buy Sister Shubert rolls in the freezer section. No one cares. I grew up with my dad's homemade cornbread stuffing, tried to duplicate it but never quite as good. I just started using boxed cornbread stuffing mix. Again, my kids couldn't care less. Our Thanksgiving food is pretty basic, turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, baked sweet potatoes (sometimes canned yams but not normally), peas, jellied canned cranberry sauce (for me), gravy and the veggie platter of carrots, celery and black olives. Sometimes I will make something different like Glenda's pineapple casserole, oyster casserole or ham (for Lauren). Oh and whatever pie the kids want that year, from the frozen section of the grocery store. It's been years since I've made homemade pies. I also used to make my gravy from the giblets like my mom used to do, then one year my daughter made a comment about my weird gravy so I started buying it in jars. lol

Cranberry Jezebel and Mrs Avery's rolls, and mashed potatoes and gravy. My DIL makes mashed potatoes with a sweet potato and some garlic thrown in, but the rest of us just make mashed potatoes. Vegetab;les may vary, the stuffing may vary, there may or may not be a salad...or 2 or 3....sometimes 2 pies, sometimes a cake is added but Cranberry Jezabel and Mrs Avery's rolls are a must.

Turkey, candied sweet potatoes, yeast rolls of some kind, pumpkin pie. Mashed potatoes, sometimes they request other things too.

Sue

My pumpkin chiffon pie. Always requested. This year I am also adding a caramel macchiato cheesecake. Can't go wrong with that.

My SIL or I usually make the cornbread dressing and it’s like what our mother’s and aunt’s made it and cooked in a pan, never in the bird. My adult kids always want corn casserole and the grands love it too. and we always have deviled eggs and sweet potatoes with praline topping. My DIL makes the best mac and cheese, and DD or I will make either green beans or roasted Brussels sprouts with bacon. We will have a couple of pies but haven’t decided on what yet. DH likes cherry (not my favorite) so I may make a cheesecake this year.

pillog, bourekas? I made some a few years ago and everybody loved them. Thanks for the reminder, as I am compiling recipes for my annual holiday cocktail party.

My must haves for T-day include my cornbread dressing, made with my rustic, not sweet cornbread, onions, celery, mushrooms and sometimes sausage, baked in the oven. I haven't stuffed a turkey in thirty years

I am always reminded to make a turnip/rutabaga puff as one of the vegetables. Even the kids present at the table love it.

Green beans are one of my favorite vegetables and we love a simple green bean almondine, with butter toasted almonds and shallots.

Those three items appear every year without fail while a plethora of other dishes come and go. My table is always laden with more vegetable dishes than bread or potatoes but there's something for everyone. Except sweet potato casserole or anything else with marshmallows.

Oh, I agree that yeast rolls are a must. I make cloverleaf and parkerhouse rolls ahead of time, stick them in the freezer before baking......then pull them out to bake just as guests arrive. That's just for show, the aroma of baking yeast bread is memorable!

Must have Chocolate Bread Pudding...my Mom's old recipe. Could eat the

whole bowl myself. And, my sister's Texas Sheet Cake.

Since we moved, all big feasts are at my DIL's brother's home. His wife is not a great cook, but the company makes up for that. We come home and fix ourselves a real turkey the following weekend to atone for Liz's awful one. DIL recently lost her mother, who always made potato salad. For every event. It was ok potato salad, I've had better from the deli at the grocery store, but I am NOT going to say a word. Anyway, Dot died in August, and the talk at the celebration was "Did anyone get her recipe?" Someone recreated it, so I guess it will continue to be a must-have for the foreseeable future.

Elizabeth, can you please share your pumpkin chiffon pie recipe??

Let me say that we usually steam veggies. Use olive oil. Try and eat nutritiously......when I do holiday cooking, all that goes out the window We still cook from scratch and buy organic if possible but we use butter ( and lots of it!)

I always have to refer back to written recipes. I’m not at home but this one’s fairly easy to remember.

It’s basically a mix of three ingredients. A breakfast type (mild) pork sausage. Take the meat out of the case. Shallots. Chestnuts.

The meat is cooked in a pan and the oil drained. Shallots sautéed in butter. Chestnuts covered with broth and brought to a boil and simmered. It’s all put together in a big pot. Bay leaf, herbs ( I forget which) Salt, pepper. Let it cook for a good while on low, stirring often. As it nears the end put in a bunch of chopped fresh parsley.

I will check when I get home if I remembered everything. This tastes even better reheated so you can make it in advance. Another reason I love it. When it comes out of fridge it needs to be reheated very slowly. Stirred often. (It will have congealed because of all the fat).

We get the meat at a local butcher shop Muncans. They’re the real thing.

Michele, thank you for the recipe. I will try it at home soon ( Thanksgiving is away this year.) I looked up Muncans. Are you in Queens? DH & I spent our early childhoods in Forest Hills Gardens.

I live in Astoria. We don’t shop at muncans much but if we’re looking for something special we go there.

No must-haves here. The menu can change from year to year, both for Thanksgiving and Christmas. If we have turkey, it is expected there will also be a dressing, mashed potatoes and gravy and fresh cranberry sauce. Everything else is up for grabs. If we have prime rib for Christmas, Yorkshire pudding is expected and horseradish. And usually trifle for dessert. But nothing is fixed in stone.

There are some things that show up at the holidays that have become a family holiday tradition - mushroom tarts and baked martinis, Tahoe brunch, mincemeat tarts and melting moments. The years when we spend Christmas together in Mexico they are missed but will typically show up by New Years!

Our must-have used to be steamed carrot pudding for Christmas made by my mom.Sadly, she is no longer able to remember what carrot pudding is and certainly can't make it. She did give me her recipe but I've made it twice and I just can't duplicate it.

She used to teach cooking and I suspect that she probably had a couple of special tweaks that she added to the dish. Either that or it was her special love that she added when making it.

Staples we always have.

Thanksgiving - Sausage Stuffing (My Mom's recipe) and Pecan Rolls. I am very sad this year will be the first year ever that we will not be having Pecan Rolls as my grandson has a severe nut allergy. :-)

Christmas Eve - Prime Rib & Tourtiere

Christmas Day - Creme Brulee French Toast with my homemade bacon

Easter - Leg of Lamb or Rack of Lamb with Blackberry Sauce

Memorial Day - Steamed Maine Lobsters

4th of July - It's a toss up between burgers and Essem hot dogs or Herb Lemon grilled chicken and marinated steak tips.

The weekend after Labor Day - Lime Chicken Wings, Smoked Pig, 3 kinds of baked beans, (Boston Baked Pea Beans and Kidney Beans as well as our version of Cowboy Beans) and my SIL's pasta salad. Although this year we added Honey Old Bay Chicken Wings and they were a huge hit.

Patriots' Football Day - Taco Chicken Fingers, veggie platter and ranch dip.

Don't forget New Year's Eve! We always have a cook out with anything you want to fix and bring. Always make the Spinach Dip too.

Sue

Curious gardengal. What are baked martinis?

My grandmother's sausage stuffing. I've had it every T-Day in my life, even if I had to bring a tray to someone's house. It is always a hit wherever we go.

Yes, baked martinis, please!

Our New Years Eve is the best. (We live in NYC. I’ve never been to and never will go to Times Square unless somebody’s life depends on it).

When we were younger we would go out but once the kids were around we just hang out at home. After dinner is done I’ll have coffee because I’ll fall asleep otherwise. My husband plays records! Yes records. We will have something to munch on and sip a little champagne to ring in the New Year.

Our tradition is to cook a big meal for New Years Day. That menu varies year to year.

We go to our DD and SIL's home for Thanksgiving. I always bring my cranberry sauce and pies (pecan, pumpkin and apple). A favorite appetizer are Blue Cheese Shortbread Leaves with Cream Cheese Roulade.

gardengal mentioned Tahoe Brunch which I've made many times for Christmas morning.

Always prime rib for Christmas dinner and gotta have horseradish. Ina G's Spinach Gratin has become a must-have side with it. Desserts vary but always includes my shortbread cookies. Cranberry upside down cake is often requested.

Baked martinis are just a family name for olive stuffed cheese balls :-)

Baked Martinis:

Make a soft dough of 1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese, 2 Tbsp softened butter, 1/2 cup AP flour and a dash of cayenne pepper.

Wrap around well drained and dry pimento stuffed green olive (large size) to form a 'meatball', sealing in the olive completely.

Bake at 400F for about 15 minutes (exact time depends on size). Cool slightly before serving. Makes 16-24 martinis (again, depends on size of olives used).

Note: very hard to eat just one!! I always make at least a double or triple batch.

No gin?

For a period of several years my otherwise sane, but food-obsessed family insisted upon green bean casserole being added to the menu. Understand that we live in Northern CA and therefore, it had to be organic local green beans with diced fresh portobellos with Straus dairy cream ;). No Campbell's cream of mushroom soup would ever be allowed to touch one of our kitchens, LOL.

I love green beans. But I don't like them undercooked, and I despise them in aforementioned casserole.

Thankfully, after three years of having to politely decline to take any as they were passed around, the mania seems to have passed. It's been at least four or five years since they made an appearance.

But I live in dread that every year when we start our round-robin of emails to determine the menu, somebody will say, "Hey....we haven't made that green bean casserole thingy in years!"

UGH.

Our only must-haves are a roast turkey, gravy, and mashed potatoes, with two kinds of cranberry sauce.

The rest is up for grabs. We've done everything from Tachin Joojeh (layered Persian chicken and rice) to an authentic Spanish paella to an "Axis of Evil" traditional dishes (Iraq/Iran/N.Korea - and let me tell you, there were not a lot of recipes even on the Net for Iraqi and N. Korean cooking back in 2002! But we like challenges.).

I brought one of my boneless stuffed ducks once, but unfortunately most of my family isn't big on duck. My brother's turducken was a big hit one year, though.

And now that there are kids under 10 in the mix, we too added the mac'n'cheese. As far as I can tell, for at least six years it was the only thing I ever saw my oldest grandnephew eat!

My Mom always made Broccoli/Cheese/Rice casserole. My son is crazy about it even to this day. After my Mom passed away I kept the tradition going but after he gott married, I gave my DIL the recipe and she makes it a few times during the year. One less thing for me to have to remember!

Please post the Chocolate Bread Pudding!

I second the request for the Chocolate Bread Pudding.

There's not really any "must have"s here but I miss a few things:

My godmother always made lefse and dinner rolls. They were both excellent. That poor sweet lady made them every year up until maybe a year or two before she died, and she was mid-90s when she died. And making homemade yeast rolls was plenty of work for people who have ever done it the old-fashioned way, and no, she didn't use a "Kitchen-Aid"! She got weaker in her old age and less able to stand for the long time. But she knew how popular they were and she always wanted to do it. And most of the time until her latter years, she'd walk to the grocery store (I'd guess maybe 1/2 mile away!) What a trooper! RIP my dear, you're missed in SO many ways!

Making lefse is not easy either, especially by yourself! In the later years she couldn't roll it as thin as she used to but still gave it her best shot and it still was a treat. I've made lefse a few times. Should give it a try again but my limitations probably would affect it. And I can buy decent stuff from a couple places so I can still have a memory and a treat.

Also my cousin used to (probably still does) make excellent iced sugar cookies. But the local "produce" store makes some that are pretty much identical so that fix is taken care of and even Lofthouse cookies are an adequate substitute.

As far as other dishes, I can be pretty flexible but I have, in the past few years, been making a BBQ bacon ranch corn that I really enjoy and I'm getting back to really enjoying turkey again so I usually get a smoked turkey breast.

Probably 20-30 years ago I started my own semi-tradition of having a "themed" holiday. Guess I got a little tired of the always-turkey or always-ham meals. One year it could be "comfort" foods, another "Italian", another was "diner" food, etc. And I always tried to add a new dish that I wanted to try that I hadn't made before. Keep some staples in there in case it didn't turn out. But it became quite popular with guests. And when the GFs didn't have to cook they always appreciated it no matter what I made! Could be 99¢ TV dinners and they probably wouldn't complain... too much. Uh, strike that. Yeah, they could complain. :)

As far as Thanksgiving and Christmas go, give me a plate full of mashed potatoes and a good giblet gravy, sage stuffing and a slice of pumpkin pie and I will be happy and content for the whole day. The other stuff is nice, but not required.