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These Thanksgiving Appetizers will be having everybody thankful you’ve all been able to come together to enjoy some great food and time together. They’re easy to make and suitable for any Thanksgiving Day feast.
Cranberry Dip
Cranberries are a must have for many when it comes to Thanksgiving, and this colorful dip looks and tastes great.
You Will Need These Ingredients:
1 cup of raw Cranberries (Frozen works well – just make sure you defrost them)
1 cup of sugar or sugar substitute (possibly more to taste)
1 apple
1 orange
1/2 cup pecans or walnuts
Pinch of cinnamon
1 eight ounce package of cream cheese, softened
Food Processor/Chopper
Directions: The first thing to do is to take your orange and peel it. You are going to want to take the peel and chop it in your food chopper as finely as you can get it. If you don’t happen to have a food processor, you can always grate the peel off the orange before you peel it using the fine edge of a regular cheese grater. Next, you will want to cut your apple into smaller pieces – some like to do this by hand, others want to use the processor. It is really up to you – you don’t want your apples to turn into applesauce (though that does work as a substitute if you’re in a pinch!) – but you don’t want them too big either. Whichever you are the most comfortable with is fine!
Next, you’re going to want to chop up your cranberries. Now, cranberries are horribly bitter – don’t even try to eat one by itself, it will likely make you choke and gag – so you’re going to want to add a lot of sugar. I usually like to start with 1 cup and then add more if need be. I’ll typically add the sugar in while I’m using the food processor to chop it up and then after I mix all the remaining fruits and nuts I’ll determine whether or not I want to add any more.
So, we have our oranges, our apples, and our cranberries. Go ahead and mix those all together and add in your chopped nuts. (I like pecans, but walnuts are just as yummy!) At this point, if you think it needs a little more sugar (you shouldn’t have that “ooh that’s sour!” look on your face!) then by all means go ahead and add some teaspoon by teaspoon until the right flavor is there. (It’s going to depend too on the fruits you use – some apples are sweeter than others) – you can also add in a pinch of cinnamon. I like just a tiny hint of it, or you can add more if you think it would be appropriate and you’ve got a cinnamon loving crowd.
Now you’re ready to serve it. I usually will take a platter that I plan on serving it on and place the cream cheese on it. Now, I think a regular old block of cream cheese just looks bad straight out of the package, it’s got those little dimples on it from the foil and the corners are not really perfectly square – so shape it a little and smooth it over with a knife. You can make it football shaped if you’ve got a lot of football fans watching the game while they eat or you can make it a nicer looking rectangle or if you’re really crafty shape it into something creative. Then I will spoon the cranberry mixture over it so that it looks nice. I like to serve it with thin wheat crackers, but it goes good with just about anything, even saltines. By the way, the topping for the dip is actually my cranberry relish recipe, too – so if you’d like save a little bit of it for dinner or make a double batch if you think you’ll need it!
Oven Roasted Pecans
Pecans are another traditional Thanksgiving favorite for everyone. Since we like to make pecan pies, it’s no trouble to make these the same time the night before our big feast.
1 egg white
1 tablespoon of butter, melted
1 teaspoon of vanilla
2 cups pecans (or more, if you happen to have lots, you just may need to make a little bit more of the mix)
1/3 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon brown sugar firmly packed
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
Directions: Combine sugar, brown sugar, salt, and cinnamon in a plastic zipper bag and set aside.
Melt the butter and then add in the vanilla and egg white and beat until all ingredients are blended together. Stir in the pecans, making sure each one is well coated with the liquid mixture. Then, transfer the pecans into the plastic bag with the dry ingredients and shake, shake, shake until they are all nicely coated with it.
Place on a lined baking pan (I use foil or parchment paper, both work just as well and help make it easier to clean up) and bake in a 350 degree oven for 4-5 minutes, then turn over and bake another 4-5 minutes until nice and roasted.
Other Thanksgiving Favorites:
Sausage Cheese Balls: A holiday favorite, made with sausage, cheese, and biscuit mix.
Stuffed Mushrooms: What’s Thanksgiving without the stuffing? You’ll love these stuffed mushrooms!
Simple Corn Fritters: Celebrate the first plant grown by the pilgrims with these easy corn fritters!
Appetizer Meatballs: These easy appetizer meatballs will be sure to disappear fast!
Do you have a favorite Thanksgiving appetizer recipe to share? Tell us about it in the comments below. Happy Thanksgiving everybody!