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amylou321

Festive Food Floof! Do you dare?!?!?

amylou321
last year

Are you the type to try a brand new recipe or version of something for the first time on a holiday? Or even for a regular dinner party or celebration meal? I have heard people like Ina Garten and others say they would NEVER. But I do. I feel confident enough to be able to know what the people I am cooking for will like, and being able to improvise a recipe of my own, or if I can execute a new recipe of someone elses by reading it. Well, I feel that way NOW, after a few........food flops. However, the food flops were failed when I was a lot younger and none of them were the main focus of the meal. I had a horrid experience with a spinach ball recipe. But now I would be okay with a new recipe or cooking method for the Thanksgiving turkey, without a test run. Some of my in-demand must have recipes were either made up last minute in this weird little head of mine or were from me finding a recipe for something, saying "that sounds good imma bring it" and just doing it.


Speaking just of holiday experience, back in 2020 when everyone was staying at home for the holidays, I endeavored to cook SOs family favorites for him, without the help of his family, who I would rather not deal with on any level. Everything (except my mac and cheese which has always been a tried and true favorite) was an adventure to come up with. I had to do Turkey for two, so I went shopping and saw Turkey tenderloins. Inspiration hit. I can season those, wrap em in bacon and roast them. They turned out GREAT. The rest, I admit was more of a learning experience. I spent literal HOURS on youtube, watching video after video after video of lovely ladies making their versions of SOs favorite sides, chicken dressing and collard greens. They were all essentially the same, with very subtle differences. So, I took the info I had learned, plus the knowledge of what SO liked, and what his mothers dressing and collards tasted like, and made my own version of them on Thanksgiving, no trial run, just went for it. Now he requests both all year long and my own family does too. (its annoying yet satisfying at the same time.)


I also made pumpkin pie with homemade crust for the very first time. It was a success, though I would prefer my mom or sister make one for me.


This year, it will be another dessert that I will try for the first time. It looks easy enough. Cinnamon roll Apple pie. Its basically just an apple pie using cinnamon rolls as the crust. There are many different recipes for it so I will have to decide which one I can manage without screeching in frustration (baking frustrates me a bit), and the one that looks the tastiest. Wish me luck!


I asked SO if he would object to having our Thanksgiving a day early, because I go back to work the night before Thanksgiving, and that is when I am putting up my Christmas display at work, and it would just be so much easier to do all that cooking on Wednesday, rather than work Wednesday night, come home, cook and clean up, then back to work Thanksgiving night. I would be exhausted. This way, I will have Tuesday to prep ahead. Tuesday is when I am cooking the sides my sister requested for HER dinner, so I can start on ours as well. I will attempt my pie Tuesday night.


What about you? Do you try brand new dishes on such occasions?

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