With Thanksgiving right around the corner, tomorrow, I’ve been busy cleaning and cooking like mad as two of my sons and their families are coming for dinner tomorrow. I baked a big Hopi Pale Grey squash (our favorite), planning on having half of it as a side dish tomorrow and the other half, I made into two pumpkin pies. Those are Will’s very favorite. Skip the pumpkin and use Hopi Pale Grey instead! I also got a big pan of rolls baked and a pot of potatoes boiled to make garlic mashed potatoes. I make them ahead, only having to warm up the pan on Thanksgiving, lessening the cooking on the day.

Our Hopi Pale Grey squash, baking in the oven.
These two “pumpkin” pies are actually Hopi Pale Grey squash pies.

I also put together two of our favorite cheesecakes with cherry topping. The cherries are from our trees this year so we’re especially thankful. I made a big bowl of cranberry orange relish, using some cranberries our friend, Heather, picked. It’s so much fun to use ingredients from our garden and gifts from friends. I’ve got a 22-pound turkey thawing out, ready to stuff tomorrow morning. Lots of miscellaneous goodies to also go on the table. Mostly, we’re very thankful for each and everything we have — home, great gardens, lots of firewood, and especially friends and family. Happy Thanksgiving!

These cheesecakes are super fine with our cherries on top!

— Jackie

51 COMMENTS

  1. Hello, Jackie and family: We had 14 here, it was so wonderful. They are our children and their children, who were glad to be out of their usual cold temperatures where they live up north. We had 40s at night and 60s daytime. Husband got the quads going for fun, and the men play Thanksgiving golf, while we women cook at home and watch over the children. My girls helped more than ever before (I’m 67) and I finally enjoyed myself; not so stressed out with all the baking! I praise God for Thanksgiving, to have our loved-ones altogether!

    • That’s so true. Although it was cold outside, it wasn’t snowing. Nobody had a bad drive here or home afterward. We only had 10 of us, but it was sure enjoyable!!

  2. Hope any T-Day guests had safe travel home. One to three of the white stuff in the forecast for us Sunday morning. This white stuff came in from the lower west so I suspect your area was in “the clear”. Of course deer are also a must-watch-out for this time of the year.
    Can’t speak for you but come Friday, I was exhausted. Dishwasher is nice but you still have to load/unload it. Couple of table clothes and dish towels equaled an extra load (on top of regular two) of laundry on Friday.
    Upside the house is pretty dang clean. Worked on multi-year de-cluttering as well as general cleaning prior to T-Day – make good progress. A normal W-2 work week will be like a vacation LOL.

    • Yep, I was tired, but it was a very nice tired. Sort of like after canning up a big batch of harvest vegetables. I’ve never had a dishwasher and really don’t mind doing dishes. I did clean house, but after Thanksgiving, we started back in harvesting seeds from corn and squash, so it won’t be too long before it loses some of the “clean” glow.

  4. A late Happy Thanksgiving!! I hope it was wonderful! I fixed a big meal and the leftovers are still being eaten. It snowed about inch and a half here. Beautiful fluffy snow that floated down all day.

    • Hey, the leftovers are the second best part of Thanksgiving!! We’re still munching on the tail end pies etc. We’re getting snow all day today. I wish we weren’t but, hey, it IS Northern Minnesota, after all.

    • I hope you had a great Thanksgiving as well. You won’t be sorry you tried the Hopi Pale Grey squash. It now has a wide fan base. Pretty cool after nearly going extinct!!

    • Ah, those tasty leftovers!! This year I made cranberry orange relish and boy am I enjoying that. Even on my tacos!! I hope your thanksgiving was also great!

  7. I made a hopi grey pie also for the first time and it is my favorite. I also did 2 breads all from your recipes in the pantry cookbook. It is such a blessing to have your dinner from all food that you grew and raised. Happy Thanksgiving and God Bless

    • Thank you, Robin. He has blessed us, indeed! We so love a holiday meal that makes us remember growing nearly all the food on the table. I’m glad you tried the Hopi Pale Grey “pumpkin” pie. It is definitely many folks’ favorite.

  9. Sounds like a wonderful Thanksgiving Day that you planned for. I’m sure everything tasted as good as it looks. Had a wonderful day with family here, too, and wayyyy too much great food!
    Hard working people like you and your family, need great memories of family meals and good times. Your tips and advice are so much help to all of us, whether we’ve been at it for decades or the ones just starting out. What a legacy you’re creating.
    Sherrie in Ohio

    • Aww, thanks Sherrie. We had 10 of our kids and grandkids here on Thanksgiving and we enjoyed not only the bountiful food but the visiting, talking about past memories and plans for the future. We feel so blessed!

    • I hope your Thanksgiving was joyous! We sure enjoyed visiting with everyone and sharing our food from the homestead.

    • Your wish for us came true. We did have a wonderful day with our kids and grandkids. I just wish they didn’t have to go home so soon. I hope your Day was as happy as ours was.

  12. Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours also. We ate well today, leftovers are put away, and we are thankful our blessings.
    katherine jordahl

    • We’re pretty darned thankful too! For so many things I can’t count them when I try. I fall asleep at about 758…. : ) I hope you had a happy Thanksgiving, just like we did.

  15. Happy Thanksgiving to your family! Your pies look amazing 😊 I made our pumpkin pies using Splenda instead of sugar and I couldn’t tell the difference! Hubby is pre diabetic. Thanks for your wonderful blog.

    • You’re welcome, Pam. Thanks for the tip on using Splenda in your pumpkin pies. I’m sure lots of readers will appreciate that. I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

  18. Happy thanksgiving to both of you and your extended family. I know the grandkids will be excited for the the holiday.

    • Yes, they were. I try to make sure I have all of their favorite goodies available. And ours too! I hope you had a great Thanksgiving!

  20. I remain so thankful for all your encouragement, instructions, and mainly your example of being a good, very good, person all these years through all these times! God bless you and yours a ton & a bunch!!

    • We are always excited when a holiday comes around and we can share it with our family. At least part of them, anyway. I hope yours was as wonderful!

    • Thank you, Shonda. They were good. My grandson, Mason, ate 3 pieces of pumpkin pie plus some cheesecake too. And he’s as thin as can be. Growing boys…. I hope your Thanksgiving brought you lots of joy.

  25. Looks very delicious! We had Thanksgiving November 5th as we have 5 sons. They then go to their in-laws on actual Thanksgiving
    . It’s quite a crowd with 15 grandchildren. We love to eat what we have produced and are thankful. It’s a time of reflection on the many blessings. Enjoy your day with family. Time passes quickly.

    • Boy, doesn’t it though??? I hear you about trading off holiday feast days. We usually do that too. It was nice, for a change, to have Thanksgiving on Thanksgiving Day, though. You can be we’re very thankful, not only on Thanksgiving but every single day.

  26. HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO YOU AND YOUR FAMILY.
    Makes me hungry and tired looking at what you have prepared or are preparing.

    Mine is 3 people and we like turkey and homemade noodles. Not so much a roasted turkey. Some dressing (my favorite) rolls and homemade cinnamon sticks. I make my own pie crusts. Part for the cinnamon sticks and part for the buttermilk pie which will be all mine.

    kathy in MS

    • Sounds good to me! I simply love to cook and bake. So, although I do get tired afterward, it’s a nice tired. I hope your Thanksgiving was as wonderful as ours was.

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