Murray State professors and staff members shared some of their favorite Thanksgiving dishes with The News.
Brie Tartlets
1 loaf of white bread
1 wedge of brie cheese
1 jar of raspberry preserves
1 muffin pan or mini-muffin pan
Preheat oven to 350. Take one piece of white bread, cut off the crusts, roll out flat, and cut to line the bottom of each muffin cup, repeat as necessary to fill all muffin cups. Bake for five minutes at 350 degrees until bread is lightly toasted. Meanwhile, cut brie cheese into cubes. Take muffin pan out of the oven. Place a cube (or 2) of brie cheese on half of each muffin cup. Place a spoonful of raspberry preserves on the other half. Bake for additional 5-10 minutes until cheese is melted. Serve warm and enjoy!
Recipe courtesy of Jenilee Williams, administrative assistant in organizational communication.
Easy-to-Fix Turkey
1 whole turkey
1 oven bag
apples (amount based on preference)
onions (amount based on preference)
1 celery stalk
Clean out turkey. Chop apples, onions and celery. Stuff turkey with chopped apples, onions and celery. Place turkey in oven bag. Place turkey in oven. Bake at preferred temperature. Turkey should remain hydrated throughout process due to unique stuffing. The drippings make for a good dressing.
Recipe courtesy of Marion Hale, administrative assistant in journalism and mass communications.
Sweet Potato Casserole
2 eggs beaten
1 stick of butter
1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
3-4 sweet potatoes
Cook sweet potatoes in boiling water until tender. Peel and mash sweet potatoes and mix with other ingredients. Put in a greased casserole dish.
Topping
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup self-rising flour
1 stick melted butter
1 cup chopped pecans
Sprinkle the topping mixture on top of the sweet potato mixture. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.
Recipe courtesy of Leigh Wright, assistant professor of journalism and mass communications.
Southern Cornbread Dressing
Early in the day, make a small skillet of buttermilk cornbread and hard boil two eggs. If you plan to have biscuits for breakfast that morning, make those too, or save 3-4 ahead of time (they can be frozen and then thawed the morning of Thankgsiving).
In a large bowl, crumble the bread and biscuits into bite-size chunks. Cut the shelled, hardboiled eggs into about 1/2″ chunks.
Add one medium-sized chopped onion (my mom adds celery, but I never have!).
Mix in 1 stick of butter and 1 can of chicken broth. Add salt, pepper, and sage to taste. (My job as a girl was to taste!) Pour into buttered casserole dish and bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes or until slightly browned and set.
Serves approximately six.
Recipe courtesy of Gina Claywell, professor of English and humanities.
Orange Jello Salad
1 large box orange Jello
2 cups hot water
1 1/2 cups cold water
Mix Jello and water together, set aside. Add fruit and marshmallows to Jello mixture.
1/2 cup crushed pineapple (drained, but save juice)
1 cup miniature marshmallows
2 bananas diced
Custard topping
1 egg, beaten
1 cup sugar
2 T. flour
1/2 cup pineapple juice
2 T. butter
Cook until thickened and add one package cream cheese and stir until melted. When completely cooled, add one package of Dream Whip (prepared according to package directions). Spoon on top of Jello mixture and chill until serving.
Recipe courtesy of Leigh Wright, assistant professor of journalism and mass communications.
Cranberry Salad
1 can whole berry cranberry sauce
1 3-ounce box of orange gelatin
1 3-ounce box of raspberry gelatin
2 cups boiling water
1 14-ounce can of crushed pineapple
Dissolve gelatin with boiling water in a heat-proof bowl. Add cranberry sauce and pineapple. Mix well and place into a 9×9 dish. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Recipe courtesy of Leigh Wright, assistant professor of journalism and mass communications.
Compiled by Anna Taylor, Features Editor and Savannah Sawyer, Assistant Features Editor.