Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving Friends! Out of all the holidays throughout the year, Thanksgiving is by far our favorite. This holiday is celebrated with family and friends, near and far. It’s an opportunity for everyone to pause life, and express how grateful they are. Thanksgiving embodies our core beliefs, food, family, love. The idea of sitting around the table eating delicious food, enjoy the company of your love ones, is what we call a good time. We have so many favorite family recipes that adorn our table each year, and so as you prepare your Thanksgiving meal, we wanted to share some of our favorite recipes with you. Many of us are choosing to celebrate with only our very close family members this year, so what better time than now to surprise your loved ones with something new and delectable. Thanksgiving meals tend to consist of very hearty options. With turkey, stuffing, casseroles and rolls, the idea of serving a salad gets swept under the rug. However, we think serving a crisp and fresh green option is the perfect way to lighten up your plate.

Farmhouse Salad with Warm Maple Bacon Vinaigrette Ingredients FOR THE DRESSING: • 1/3 cup pure maple syrup • 3 tablespoons whole grain Dijon mustard • 2 tablespoons Balsamic vinegar • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt • 1/8 teaspoon black pepper • 2 tablespoons leftover bacon fat (leftover in the skillet) • 1 small shallot, finely diced

FOR THE SALAD:

• 10 ounce mixed salad greens • 1 small honey crisp apple, sliced • 1 ripe pear, sliced • 1 cup sliced carrots • 4 soft boiled eggs, sliced • 1/3 cup toasted pecans or granola, coarsely chopped • 4 strips thick applewood candied bacon, cooked and roughly chopped • 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese- more to taste Instructions 1. Combine the maple syrup, mustard, vinegar, salt and pepper into a small bowl or jar and set aside. 2. Add the salad greens to a large serving bowl. Top with remaining salad ingredients 3. Reheat the bacon fat over medium heat. 4. Sauté diced shallot until softened. Once soft, stir while gradually pouring in the maple/mustard mixture. Simmer for a few minutes or until slightly thickened. 5. Plate up the salads and serve the warm maple bacon dressing drizzled over the top and more freshly ground black pepper.

Next, we have a classic dish- candied sweet potatoes. This recipe takes your typical yams with marshmallows to the next level.

Southern Candied Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients

• 2 lbs sweet potatoes peeled and sliced about 1/2 inch thick • ½ tsp salt • ½ cup butter • ¾ cup packed brown sugar • ½ cup white sugar • 1 tsp cinnamon • ½ tsp nutmeg • ½ cup of maple syrup • 2 Tbsp vanilla flavoring • 2 Tbsp orange juice Instructions • Preheat your oven to 350 degrees • Lay Sweet Potatoes flat in a 13×9 casserole dish. Sprinkle the sweet potatoes with salt. Set aside. • Melt your butter over medium-low heat in a heavy-duty saucepan.

• In a mixing bowl add sugars, cinnamon, nutmeg, and stir. Add in your melted butter, maple syrup, vanilla flavoring,and orange juice. Stir until blended well. • Pour the mixture over the sweet potatoes, making sure every single sweet potato is covered. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and place in your preheated oven. • Bake for 30 minutes with the foil on. After 30 minutes, remove the dish from the oven, remove foil and stir the sweet potatoes. Place back in the oven and bake uncovered for an additional 30 minutes or until the sweet potatoes are fork- tender. • Remove from the oven and allow the sweet potatoes to cool a bit. Serve and enjoy. We know shortcuts are so convenient, which is why we do not hate on canned cranberry sauce. However, if you have the time to make it from scratch, you will never want to go back to the can. “Once made by hand, you’ll never want canned”. See what we did there?

Made From Scratch Cranberry Sauce Ingredients • ¾ cup sugar • ½ cup orange juice • ½ cup water • 12 oz fresh cranberries rinsed and picked through • pinch of salt

• 1 cinnamon stick

• 1 piece of orange peel (use a potato peel or paring knife)

Instructions

• Combine sugar, orange juice, and water in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir to combine.

• Add cranberries, salt, cinnamon stick and orange peel.

• Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring frequently.

• Continue cooking, for about 10 minutes, or until all or most of the cranberries have popped. I like to leave a handful of berries whole.

• Let cool for at least 30 minutes. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

• Can be made up to 3 days in advance.

Happy Thanksgiving Friends!