Cranberry Pumpkin Bread Recipe

Ingredients:

2 1/4 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs (beaten)
1 cups brown sugar
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup fresh or dried cranberries

Directions:

In a large bowl combine flour, baking powder, sugar, pumpkin pie spice and salt. Mix well. In a separate bowl, combine pumpkin, eggs and oil. Mix well. Add pumpkin mixture to flour mixture and stir well. Fold in the cranberries.

Transfer mixture to two lightly greased loaf pans. Bake in a preheated oven at 350F for approximately 45 to 55 minutes or until golden and baked through. Cool for 5 minutes in pan before removing to wire rack to cool completely.

5 Tips to Keep the Stress Out of Thanksgiving Dinner

Why do people always get stressed at the holidays? Is it the rush to get everything done? Is it wanting everything to be "perfect"? Is it having to deal with family members that know how to push our buttons? Most likely it is a little of each.

So how do we have a stress free Thanksgiving dinner? Here are five simple tips to have a more enjoyable Thanksgiving dinner.

1. Plan ahead - While planning the Thanksgiving meal, do you plan who is going to help? Instead of doing it all yourself, recruit your family to help. Not only will the work go faster, it's more fun working together. Make a list of what needs done before everyone arrives. Give everyone something to do and assign things that are age appropriate to the children. Before you know it, the leftovers will be wrapped in foil and everyone will have had a great time.

2. Covered dish meal - If you are having a large group get together for Thanksgiving, divide the menu amongst all those attending. The host family can provide the main dish (turkey or ham) and the drinks. Each family brings a favorite side dish and dessert. If you want to make sure there is a variety, provide a menu and mark things off as people chose what they want to fix.

3. Simplify - Instead of having a huge feast, prepare a smaller meal. We all tend to overeat at Thanksgiving, so make an effort to make fewer dishes. Not only will the preparation be smaller, so will our waistlines. Another option is to prepare as much ahead of time as you can. Slow cookers can be used to make all kinds of foods, even desserts. Many things can also be made as "freezer meals" and stored for weeks before re-heating them. The less actual cooking you need to do on Thanksgiving, the lower your stress levels will be.

4. Family harmony - While you can't make everyone happy, there are ways to promote a peaceful, relaxing dinner. Use place cards to put the people who tend to bicker further away from each other during dinner. This will help alleviate some of the tensions.

5. Be thankful - Simply taking the time to be thankful for all your blessings can reduce your stress level. Before everyone arrives, take the time to list all that you're thankful for over the last year. Have everyone share their blessings before dinner. Having a better attitude will help everyone enjoy the day more.

Stress doesn't have to ruin the holidays. If you stop to smell the turkey, and plan ahead, you can have a wonderful Thanksgiving. Planning and organization, while not great fun, can help you enjoy things later once all the guests arrive.

Creamy Thanksgiving Mashed Potatoes Recipe

This mashed potato recipe certainly isn’t low fat, but definitely delicious. In our house it’s reserved for holidays only :)

Serves 6, double or triple quantities as necessary.

Ingredients:

6 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks.
¼ cup cream
¼ cup real butter
¼ cup sour cream
¼ cup milk
3 peeled cloves of garlic (optional)
Chopped fresh chives of parsley (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Place potatoes in large saucepan and cover with water, add a little salt and peeled whole garlic cloves if using. Bring to a boil and cook over medium or high heat for approximately 15 to 20 minutes or until tender. Drain, discard garlic and return to pan.

Add the milk and beat potatoes with electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add a little of each of the ingredients and keep mixing. Depending on your preference you may want to add a little extra or less sour cream. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Finally add the chopped chives or parsley if using and stir well. Serve immediately.

Note: For roasted garlic potatoes use the same recipe as above but do not add garlic cloves to potatoes while boiling. Instead crush the garlic cloves and sauté for about 1 minute over very low heat in a little olive oil. Add mixture to potatoes once cooked and mix with all other ingredients.