Thanksgiving Carmelized Onion & Sausage Stuffing

Originally from http://paleomg.com/thanksgiving-caramelized-onion-sausage-stuffing/

Ingredients

• 1lb ground pork sausage
• 2 yellow onions, sliced
• 1 sweet potato or yam
• 1 container of mushrooms, roughly chopped
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 1 cup pecans, chopped
• 2 eggs, beaten
• ⅓ cup chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
• 2 tablespoons fat of choice
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cover a baking sheet with foil, throw diced sweet potatoes/yams on it, sprinkle with olive oil and salt and pepper. Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until sweet potatoes are tender, then set aside.
2. While those cook, pull out a large skillet, place it under medium-high heat and place a tablespoon of fat along your minced garlic clove and your mushrooms in it to begin to cook down. Add a bit of salt and pepper and cook until soft. Once they are done cooking, add to a large bowl.
3. While your mushrooms are cooking down, add a tablespoon of fat to another large skillet over medium heat and add your sliced onions. Continuously move onions around to help coat and caramelize. The caramelization will take about 10-15 minutes. Add a bit of salt and pepper, to taste.
4. When your mushrooms are done cooking, add your pork sausage to the hot mushroom pan (the mushrooms have been removed at this point). Use a wooden spoon to break up sausage and cook until almost cooked through.
5. Once the sausage is all done, add mixture to your mushroom bowl to cool. Now beat your eggs, add to your sausage mixture, and add your chicken broth and vinegar, along with your sweet potatoes, pecans, and chopped herbs. Mix well.
6. You can now either use a 9×13 baking dish to place your stuffing in OR place on a foil-lined baking sheet. Either way will work.
7. Bake at 375 degrees for about 10 minutes, then add your caramelized onions and cooked for 5 more minutes.
8. Eat it up!!!! OMG OMG, its so good.

Super Simple Butternut Squash Soup

Originally from http://paleodietlifestyle.com/butternut-squash-soup/

Ingredients

• 1 or 2 butternut squashes (1 is good for about 3 good portions);
• 1 or 2 cans of coconut milk, depending on the number of squashes you prepare. (you’ll find it in most grocery stores and at your health food store, look for organic without any other ingredient except maybe guar gum);
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste;
• Any fresh out dried herb you’ve got laying around;

Preparation

1. Preheat your oven to 350 F.
2. Cut your squash lengthwise and remove the seeds. You can get rid of the seeds or keep them and roast them for a snack latter.
3. Place the halves, cut side down, on a baking sheet and place in the oven for about 45 minutes. It might take longer, but I suggest you check on them after 45 minutes. Verify that the flesh is fork tender and it’s ready.
4. Now either wait for the squash to cool down a bit so it’s easier to handle or put on some gloves. Scoop out the cooked flesh in a sauce pan and add about 3/4 of a can of coconut milk per squash.
5. Start mashing the squash with a potato masher on a low heat. Note that you can also place the flesh and coconut milk in a blender and blend the mixture. I prefer the version in the pan, less work than washing a blender.
6. Once everything is mashed up, adjust the consistency by adding some coconut milk if needed. Season with salt and pepper to taste. If you want to go fancy, grate a bit of fresh nutmeg . You can also add some grated fresh ginger or garlic for a nice spin on the taste.
7. Serve and enjoy! Garnish with fresh herbs on top if you have any. For added style, you can drizzle additional coconut milk in a spiral on the served bowls to create a white swirl.

Maple. Bacon. Pumpkin. Pie. Yes.

Maple Bacon Pumpkin Pie

(recipe originally from http://themeathouseblog.com/2012/10/26/maple-bacon-pumpkin-pie/)

Ingredients
2 large eggs
1 (15 oz) can pure pumpkin puree
1 cup heavy cream
½ cup pure maple syrup
2 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp ginger
½ tsp kosher salt
1/8 tsp cloves
1 Tbsp sugar
1 unbaked 9-inch pie shell
Whipped cream
10 slices bacon

Directions

Mix together 1 tsp cinnamon and 1 Tbsp sugar. Toss bacon slices in the cinnamon sugar mixture and cook until slightly crispy. Do not overcook the bacon, as it will cook more in the pie. Pat bacon with paper towels to remove as much excess grease as you can and crumble bacon into small pieces.

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, pumpkin, cream, maple syrup, cinnamon, ginger, salt and cloves. Mix in ½ of the crumbled bacon and pour pumpkin mixture into pie shell.

Bake in preheated 425°F oven for 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350°F and bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. When pie comes out of oven, sprinkle the rest of the crumbled bacon on top. Cool on wire rack for 2 hours. Serve immediately or refrigerate. Top with whipped cream before serving (not optional).