For me, Thanksgiving recipes are a walk down memory lane with tastes and smells that bring back stories and memories of holidays past.  They are a sweet reminder of all the holidays we have spent in homes all over the US from Alaska to Texas, Florida, Virginia, and everywhere in between.  From the gravy recipe that we never got to taste on our first Thanksgiving (we poured it down the drain by accident) to the Cafe con Leche our neighbors taught us to make in a “sock”, there are memories and stories with all of our favorite Thanksgiving dishes.  There is usually a pumpkin roll at the dessert table, something that my mother-in-law taught me to make.

Pumpkin Roll:

• 3 Eggs
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2/3 cup pumpkin
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans
• 3/4 cup flour
• 1 tsp salt

Filling:

• 1 TBL softened margarine
• 8 oz cream cheese
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup confectioners sugar

Combine ingredients for the pumpkin roll and beat.  Grease a 10×15 pan and line with wax paper.  Bake at 375 for 15 min.  When done invert immediately on a dish towel sprinkled with confection sugar.  Peel off the wax paper and roll cake in the towel.  Cool in the refrigerator for an hour.  Mix the ingredients for the filling.  Unroll the cake and spread with filling.  Re-roll the cake and store in the fridge until ready to serve.

One of our new favorites is the Blueberry Pie with a twist (goat cheese and basil).  It isn’t as traditional as Pumpkin or Pecan but man is it good.  Jason and I saw it featured at a restaurant and loved the idea of it so much that we worked together over several tries and finally got a recipe that is pure heaven.  While I could talk all day about desserts . . . I will save that and this recipe for another post and leave you with the perfect dinner roll recipe.  Make this in triplicate because the first two pans are for Thanksgiving day and the third pan is for leftovers the next day.  They make great mini turkey sliders.

Perfectly Easy Dinner Rolls:

• 1 cup warm water (105 – 115 F)
• 2 packages active dry yeast
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1tsp salt
• 4-5 cups flour
• additional melted butter

Combine the warm water and yeast in a large bowl.  Let stand until yeast is foamy, about 5 minutes.  Stir in butter, sugar, eggs, and salt.  Beat in flour, 1 cup at a time, until dough is too stiff to mix (some flour may not be needed).  Cover and refrigerate 2 hours or up to 4 days.  To bake, grease a 9×13 pyrex dish.  Turn the chilled dough onto a lightly floured board.  Divide dough into 24 equal-size pieces.  Roll each into a smooth round ball and place them in even rows in the prepared pan.  Cover and let rise until doubled in size, about an hour.  Preheat the oven to 375.  Bake 15-20 minutes or until the rolls are golden brown.  Brush the rolls with melted butter.  Break apart and serve.

May your Thanksgiving be filled with laughter, love, and the making of many new memories.