I made my raw cranberry relish yesterday so flavors can blend. Left out the slivered almonds but will add them tomorrow so they'll stay crisp. Some recipes for this call for blending up a whole orange, peel and all. I think the white part of the peel can be bitter, so I cut out the segments, and made sure there were no seeds. Grated the peel. My mom made it with candied ginger. I've made candied ginger before but decided just to grate some fresh ginger into it. I don't know why you'd need extra sugar since you put 1/2 c. of sugar in it anyway. But a little ginger is good with it. I think I put powdered ginger last year. Fig, I made the brussel sprouts according to your recipe a few weeks ago. I burned them cooking them that long. They looked good at 20 min. . I think 30 min total cooking time would have been better. Today we're making two pies, pecan and pumpkin, and cooked cranberry sauce, and cornbread for the dressing. Plain pecan pie is so good but we might try a bourbon pecan pie recipe from Acadiana Table. I hope everyone will have a wonderful Thanksgiving! There's a lot of wisdom in thankfullness in my opinion. How so? Because it is so easy to overlook the good as bad stuff seems so pressing and insistent and must be solved. The good waits. Ok, enough from me.

Barb, Here's the Flan recipe---I translated it, so scroll down for the English version. It is really easy and delicious. My other favorite is Flan de Queso or Cream Cheese Flan. Flan de Calabaza Sencillo por: Melanie Lugo Ingredientes : 2 1/2 taza calabaza majada 1 lata de leche evaporada 1 lata de leche condensada 5 huevos 1 cdta. canela en polvo 1 cdta. vainilla 1/4 cdta. clavos de olor (opcional) 1 taza de azucar derretida (caramelo Procedimiento Precaliente horno a 350. Mezcle todos los ingredientes y coloque en un molde previamente acaramelado. Ponga el molde en Baño de Maria por 1 hora. Translation: Simple Pumpkin Flan 2 ½ cups mashed pumpkin or squash 1 can evaporated milk 1 can sweetened condensed milk 5 eggs 1 tsp vanilla 1 tsp cinnamon 1/4 tsp ground cloves (optional) 1 c. granulated sugar for the carmel Pre-heat oven to 350. Mix all of the ingredients (I use a blender) and pour into baking dish/pan/mold that you previously put the carmel in. Put in the oven in a hot water bath and bake for 1 hour until knife inserted in middle comes out clean. Note: To carmelize sugar IÂve found IÂm less likely to burn it if I add 1TBS corn syrup and 1/4 c water. Then I let it cook over medium to med-high heat until it start to turn a light amber color. I donÂt have a custard dish, so I just use a round cake pan and put it in a 9" by 13" pan with hot water for the hot water bath. I have also found that the flan sets up better if I add 2 tsp of corn starch, or 1 TBS of flour to the batter. This is a very pumpkiny flan. You can reduce the pumpkin by ½ c. if you want a milder pumpkin flavor.

bulldinkie, If I lived in a cooler climate, I'd be right there with ya'. As it is, I am near kellyeng and have virtually given up on expecting to serve hot dishes on Thanksgiving. My warming drawer doesn't hold enough to be that effective for the quantities I make. Lacanches have those nice warming cupboards, but I am not enamored of the rest of their performance characteristics. I relented and bought another crockpot this month, after one went to DS1, one went to DS2, and one became a small engine parts receptacle for DH's model airplane engine cleaning projects many years ago. DS1's girlfriend is bringing a loaner, too, so I will have two. I do plan to use the "hold" function on my wall oven, and my two Salton warming trays that are now, ahem, 30 years old. We shall see if they hang in for another year. What doesn't manage to stay hot just won't be hot. I had hoped the lowest setting on my induction hob could be pressed into service, but it is not low enough.

Mabel, for the carrots, I reduce 1/2 cup of spiced rum and 1/2 cup of water to about 1/4 cup and add it to taste to 1/2 cup of browned butter and drizzle over previously cooked carrots with a sprinkle of lime zest. They reheat great in the microwave. DURGIN-PARK BAKED HAM 1 (5 to 6 pound) smoked ham 3/4 cup fresh orange juice 1/2 cup dry sherry 1 cup honey Whole cloves 1 cup packed dark brown sugar 2 Tbs. dry mustard Trim the skin from the ham, leaving a thin, even layer of fat. With a skewer, poke the ham all over at 2-inch intervals. Place the ham in a large resealable plastic bag, and place in a large shallow pan. Combine the orange juice, sherry, and honey; pour over the ham and seal the bag securely. Marinate in the refrigerator for three days, turning the ham every 12 hours. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Remove the ham from the bag, reserving the marinade. In a shallow roasting pan, with the ham fat side up, score the fat in a diamond design and stud with cloves. Insert a meat thermometer, making sure it does not touch bone. Pour all but a tablespoon of the marinade over the ham. Bake for 1 1/2 hours or until the meat thermometer registers 130 degrees. In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, mustard and the tablespoon of the reserved marinade and brush the exposed portion of the ham. Cover with a tent of aluminum foil and bake for an additional 15 minutes or until meat thermometer registers 140. Remove from the oven and allow the meat to stand for 10 minutes; then thinly slice and serve. 10 to 12 servings.