Thanksgiving Preparations, Day 3

Wow! This has been a full day! I couldn't have done all this without the help of my wonderful husband. I've hosted Thanksgiving before, but I've never done everything on my own, and I think I just wanted to see if I could do it. So far so good, but I'm not sure I'll do this again next year! :)

What I did today:

-Pecan Pie (http://www.joyofbaking.com/pecanpie.html)

-Pumpkin Pie(http://www.joyofbaking.com/pumpkinpie.html)

-Dressing

-Iced Tea

-Whipped Cream (by hand for the first time ever! I'm so excited!)

-Au Gratin Potatoes(recipe below)

-Crust for apple tart

-Cream soup base for green bean casserole

So here's one thing I learned today. :) Okay, two. Cream can be whipped by hand and it tastes gooood. :) I added a little sugar and vanilla, and whipped for 20 minutes. I thought my arm was going to die! But I did it, and it's chillin in the fridge right now. So excited...

Second thing. I made the equivalent of seven cans of pumpkin puree today as well. I was getting ready to make the pumpkin pie, and thankfully read on the Joy of Baking website that if you're using fresh pumpkin puree, it's best to strain it through a cheese cloth before using it. Otherwise your crust can get soggy. So, in the cheese cloth it went. I put 3 1/2 cups of my puree in the strainer, and after three hours when it finally stopped dripping, there was just barely two cups left! I couldn't believe how much water came out!!! Anyway, one other little tip I got from that website. To help prevent a soggy crust, they suggested crumbing some gingersnap cookies and pressing them into the crust before pouring the pumpkin filling in. What a great idea! I happened to have some of those McVities Ginger cookies in my pantry, so I crumbed them up and pressed them in the crust. I'll let you know tomorrow how it tasted. It sure does looks beautiful!

Megan's Au Gratin Potatoes

1. 5 kg potatoes, peeled, and thinly sliced

3 T. butter

4 garlic cloves, minced

3 c. milk

1/4 c. flour

1 1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. pepper

pinch of thyme

pinch of paprika

3/4 c. gouda

1/2 c. cheddar

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Place the sliced potatoes in and cook for about five minutes. You just want to start them getting soft, but not cook them all the way through. They should still have a bite to them. Strain the water off and set aside.

2. Melt the butter in a large saucepan. Add the garlic and saute till browned.

3. Dissolve the flour in the milk. (If you want to substitute 1/4 c. of cream for 1/4 c. of the milk, that'd be fine!) Add this to the saucepan and cook, stirring continuously.

4. Add salt, pepper, and thyme. Continue stirring until the sauce becomes thick and bubbly. Then remove from heat, stir in paprika, and 1/4 c. gouda and 1/4 c. cheddar.

5. Combine the potatoes and the cheese sauce. Place half of the potato mixture in a large casserole dish. Layer 1/4 c. gouda and 1/4 c. cheddar on top of that. Place remaining potatoes on top, and top with remaining gouda cheese, a sprinkle of paprika, and some fresh chopped parsley, if you like.

6. Bake at 180 for 15-20 minutes. Cover if the cheese is starting to brown too much.