Get cooking with some of Lexi’s favorite Thanksgiving recipes…

Brussels Sprouts with Apples & Bacon

Fresh LOCAL apples bring the sweet while the brussels handle the savory in a perfectly blended fall dish- plus bacon!

Recipe: serves 8-10

Ingredients: 1 lb bacon (diced), 1/2 cup water, 4 T butter, 5 lbs brussels sprouts (trimmed & halved), 1/2 cup olive oil, 3 apples (diced), 1/4 cup sugar, 3/4 T salt, 1/2 T black pepper

Process:

1. In a skillet, bring the bacon and water to a boil, then lower to a simmer. Cook the bacon while stirring, until brown and crispy. Remove from the heat, add the butter to the pan, and set aside.
2. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Toss the brussels sprouts and apples in olive oil, sugar, salt, and pepper and arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake for about 3o minutes, rotating the pan as needed, until brussels sprouts are cooked.
3. Transfer the cooked brussels sprouts to the skillet and mix well with bacon and butter.

Butternut Squash with Wild Rice and Pecans

Hearty grain dish loaded with full fall flavors of mushrooms, toasted pecans, sage, and rosemary. (photo on top of page)

Recipe: serves 4-6

Ingredients: 4 cups water, 1/3 cup orange juice, 1/3 T dried sage, 1/3 T dried rosemary, 1 1/2 T No Chicken Base, 2 cups wild rice blend, 1 lb butternut squash (peeled & diced), 3 T olive oil, 1 cup sliced mushrooms, 1 cup diced red bell pepper, 1 cup pecans, 1 T tamari, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp black pepper

Process:

1. In a pot, bring the water, orange juice, sage, rosemary, and No Chicken Stock to a boil and stir in the rice. Cover, lower heat and simmer. for about 45 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
2. While the rice is cooking, preheat oven to 325 degrees. Toss the butternut squash, peppers, and mushrooms in olive oil and arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet. Roast vegetables for about 30 minutes, rotating the pan as needed, until thoroughly cooked and slightly browned.
3. Toss the pecans and tamari, place on a small baking sheet and lightly toast in the oven for 15-20 minutes. Mix all of the ingredients together in a large bowl, season with salt and pepper.

Cranberry Citrus Relish vegan

Lexi’s famous fresh, raw cranberry relish with a bit of zip from citrus.

Recipe: serves 6-8

Ingredients: 1lb fresh or frozen whole cranberries, 1 cup orange slices, 1 cup sugar

Process: Place all ingredients into a food processor and pulse to desired consistency

Cranberry Pecan Cornbread Stuffing

Sweet pepper, carrots and celery flavor this cornbread. A favorite here at Lexi’s!

Recipe: serves 8-12

Ingredients: 2 Lexi’s cornbread loaves, 3 cups onions (diced small), 1.5 cups carrots (diced small), 1.5 cups celery (diced small), 1.5 cups red bell peppers (diced small), 6 tsp butter, 1.5 cups vegetable stock, 1/4 cup parsley (minced), 1.25 cups pecans (crushed), 3/4 cups dried cranberries, 1/2 tsp each of ground bay leaf, sage, salt, and pepper.

Process:

1. Crumble the cornbread in a large bowl, set aside
2. Melt butter in a large skillet. Add onions and cook on medium heat until caramelized, then add carrots, celery, and bell peppers
3. Cook until tender, then add dried herbs, salt and pepper to pan
4. Add cooked vegetables, stock, crushed pecans, and cranberries into the bowl and mix well.
5. Transfer to a baking dish and bake at 350 until crispy on top (approx. 15 minutes)

Creamy Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Classic dish full of butter and cream, organic Yukon potatoes and roasted garlic.

Recipe: serves 4-6

Ingredients: 4 lbs organic Yukon gold potatoes, 1/2 cup butter, 6 T minced garlic, 1 cup whole milk, 1/2 cup heavy cream, 1/2 cup minced parsley, 1 tsp black pepper, 2 1/2 tsp salt

Process:

1. Steam potatoes in large pot or steamer until very tender, about 30-40 minutes.
2. In a sauce pan, melt butter over medium low heat, add garlic and cook until the garlic gets soft and starts to brown, about 15-20 minutes. Set aside.
3. Place all ingredients into large bowl and mix until well mashed. Be careful not to over mix.
4. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

Green Bean Casserole

Classic made with green beans, creamy mushrooms and crunchy onions.

Recipe: serves 8-10

Ingredients: 2 lbs snipped green beans, 1/2 lb sliced mushrooms, 2 T garlic (minced), 2.5 T butter, 1/3 cup flour, 4 cups whole milk, 3/4 cup heavy cream, 1.3 cups shredded cheddar, 1 tsp garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste, 1 can crunchy onions

Process:

1. Cut green beans into thirds, steam until just tender. Transfer to an ice bath, drain, set aside
2. In a pot over medium-high heat, combine the butter, four, milk, heavy cream, and cheese. Add the heavy cream and cheddar slowly, stirring often. Once cheese is fully melted, decrease the heat. Use salt and pepper to taste.
3. In a sauce pan, cook mushrooms and garlic in a little butter. Stir occasionally until the mushrooms begin to give

Herbed Gravy vegan

A delicious vegan version that surprises all palates!

Recipe: serves 6-8

Ingredients: 2/3 cup earth balance, 2/3 cup flour, 2 quarts no chicken stock, 1/4 tsp poultry seasoning

Process:

1. Melt the earth balance in a heavy-bottom pan and add the flour
2. Cook on medium heat, whisking often for about 10 minutes, or until a golden color is achieved. Continuously whisk as you add the turkey stock.
3. Season with poultry seasoning, salt and black pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. Strain through a china cap to remove any lumps that may have formed.

Maple Glazed Yams vegan

Garnet yams slow roasted with maple syrup.

Recipe: serves 4-6

Ingredients: 2 lbs yams (cut into 1 inch chunks), 2 T maple syrup, 2 T brown sugar, 1.5 T apple cider vinegar, 2 T vegetable stock or water, pinch of cayenne pepper

Process:

1. In a medium pot or steamer, steam yams for 15 minutes or just until for tender. Spread on tray and chill to stop cooking.
2. Once cooled, toss yams with all other ingredients in a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper for taste.
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place yams on a baking sheet and bake until well caramelized, about 20 minutes.

Natural Turkey Gravy

Made from all natural turkeys – perfect to have on hand!

Recipe: serves 6-8

Ingredients: 2/3 cup butter, 2/3 cup flour, 2 quarts turkey stock, 1/4 tsp poultry seasoning

Process:

1. Melt butter in a heavy bottom pan and then add the flour
2. Cook on medium heat, whisking often for about 10 minutes, or until a golden color is achieved. Continuously whisk as you add the turkey stock.
3. Season with poultry seasoning, salt and black pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. Strain through a china cap to remove any lumps that may have formed.

Roasted Autumn Vegetables vegan

Balsamic roasted brussels sprouts, squash and mushrooms. Fall at its best!

Recipe: serves 4-6

Ingredients: 4 cups brussels sprouts (halved), 4 cups button mushrooms (halved), 1 cup butternut squash (diced small), 1 tsp balsamic vinegar, 4 tsp olive oil, salt and pepper to taste

Process:

1. In a skillet, heat mushrooms dry on medium heat. Cook until all liquid evaporates and mushrooms take on a deep brown color. Remove from heat and set aside
2. Steam brussels sprouts and squash for 7 minutes, or until just tender
3. Preheat oven to 350. Once brussels sprouts and squash cool, combine vegetables, vinegar, and olive oil in large bowl. Toss, and season with salt and pepper
4. Roast on a sheet tray for about 15 minutes or slightly browned on the edges

Savory Holiday Stuffing vegan

Crusty ciabatta bread with carrots, celery, carrots, onions and herbs.

Recipe: serves 8-10

Ingredients: 1 loaf ciabatta bread, 1.3 cup yellow/white onions (diced small), 2/3 cup celery (diced small), 2/3 cup carrots (diced small), 2 tsp canola oil, 1 cup no chicken stock, 1/2 tsp poultry seasoning, 1/3 cup chives (minced), 1/4 cup parsley (minced), salt and pepper to taste

Process:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a baking dish. Cut or rip bread to roughly one inch cubes into a large bowl.
2. In a large pan, saute the onions, celery, and carrots in canola oil, until tender. Add poultry seasoning and no chicken stock, season with salt and pepper.
3. Mix vegetables and stock into the bread and toss with parsley and chives.
4. Transfer stuffing into prepared baking dish and bake until hot throughout and crispy on top (about 15-20 minutes)

Sweet Potato Casserole vegan

Crusty ciabatta bread with carrots, celery, carrots, onions and herbs.

Recipe: serves 4-6

Ingredients: 5lbs sweet potato, 1/4 cup non-dairy butter, 1/4 cup almond milk, 1/4 cup orange juice, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup maple syrup, 2 tsp salt, 2 tsp black pepper, 2 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp nutmeg. Crumble: 1/2 cup non-dairy butter, 1/3 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup flour, 1 cup rolled oats, 1/2 cup pecans (chopped), 1/4 cup maple syrup

Process:

1. Peel, dice, and steam sweet potatoes for 15-20 minutes, or until very soft.
2. While potatoes are steaming, in a bowl, mix and rub together crumble ingredients until they form a coarse crumb, set aside.
3. As soon as the potatoes are done steaming, combine them with remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Mash them using a potato masher or hand mixer. Sweeten to taste.
4. In a greased 9×13” pan, spread the sweet potato filling evenly and sprinkle the crumb topping across. Bake at 325 for about 20-30 minutes, or until lightly browned and heated through.