My 5 Favorite Turkey Day Treats
PeachDish Box. Thanks to PeachDish, you can host Turkey Day dinner without having to shop or prep (or really cook). Order a Thanksgiving PeachDish box, and you’ll receive all the ingredients you’ll need to roast your turkey (already brined), your sides (like Pecan & Apple Dressing), and even easy-to-make cream biscuits! The shopping and most of the prep work is done. You get to do the fun part: cook, eat and enjoy dinner with your family and friends. Be sure and place your order by Saturday, November 21 to receive your PeachDish box in time for Thanksgiving.
Dekalb Farmers Market. For those of you who love to cook, this market is the place for you. You can pick up everything you need to make Thanksgiving dinner with just one stop! Dekalb Farmers Market offers a vast selection of exotic and ethnic fruit, vegetables, fresh seafood, organic meats and poultry (like naturally raised turkeys), baked goods, an amazing cheese counter, and even fresh flowers for your table’s centerpiece. I always pick up some freshly roasted and ground coffee beans for a special Thanksgiving breakfast treat.
Sweet Auburn Bread Company. There are so many freshly baked treats to choose from — like Lemon Pound Cake, Pecan Pie, and Old Fashioned Tea Cookies — that it’s hard to pick just one. But if I had to, it would be Chef Sonya Jones’ rich and creamy Sweet Potato Cheesecake. Made with fresh, local ingredients and cooked to perfection, this is a dessert worth giving thanks for — and it’s former President Bill Clinton’s favorite dessert.
Red Apple Barn. Enjoy a visit with your family to the Red Apple Barn near Ellijay in the North Georgia Mountains. While you’re there, you can pick your own apples and a bottle of fresh apple cider from their farm store. When you get home, you can turn those apples into pie and that cider into Hot Mulled Cider (recipe below), a warm and fragrant after-Thanksgiving dinner drink.
13th Colony Distillery offers a wide array of handcrafted spirits. My favorite is their Southern Bourbon Whiskey — it has a velvety smooth finish. Located in Americus, Georgia, Thirteenth Colony Distillery prides itself on producing unique, small-batch spirits at a friendly price. I suggest adding a splash to your apple cider for a more festive flavor.
Mulled Cider
Yields 6 servings
Ingredients:
1 quart apple cider
1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled
1 fresh lemon, cut in quarters
1 fresh orange, cut in quarters
2 cinnamon sticks
pinch of allspice
2 whole cloves
1 cup spiced rum
Garnish:
6 whole star anise
Directions:
- Combine apple cider, ginger, lemon, orange, cinnamon sticks, allspice, and cloves in a stainless steel saucepan.
- Place over medium heat and bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat and simmer on low for 15 minutes.
- Strain mixture, add the spiced rum and serve hot in mugs.
- Garnish with star anise.
Enjoy!
From Field Peas to Foie Gras: Southern Recipes with a French Accent by Jennifer Hill Booker, © 2014 Jennifer Hill Booker, used by permission of the publisher, Pelican Publishing Company, Inc.
