Growing up, Thanksgiving was a small affair with a big menu and huge traditions. Since most of our extended family lived in Macon, Georgia, and West Palm Beach, Florida, we didn’t see them at Thanksgiving. So when we gathered around the table for Thanksgiving, there were only seven of us––my mom and dad, the three of us girls, and my Dad’s parents.
That may seem a lot, but more recent Thanksgivings included two large blended families and any strays any of us knew who had no place to go. The table, actually four or five tables stretched end to end, served 30 or 40 people. Since everyone brought one or several dishes, the amount of food was overwhelming. The dinners were good but it lacked the traditional menu we had grown up with.
Growing up, my Mom spent several days preparing the food. Cornbread was made at least a day in advance, as were desserts and the mashed potatoes needed for the rolls. There were never store-bought desserts or rolls at our house. Everything was made from scratch and the aromas filled the house for days.
On Thanksgiving Day, while we kids were gather around the only television in the house to watch the Macy’s Day Parade and then the Rose Bowl Parade, Mom cooked. For many years, Dad’s parents lived with us, so Grandmother helped as well, but that didn’t really create a festive mood there.
Mom would start by mixing up the dough for the rolls and then put it aside to rise. She did that several times before she made up the rolls. Then, she’d start on the Cornbread Dressing, which to this day I’ve never eaten any better.
Finally, she worked on sides, creating sweet potato casserole that were baked in oranges Mom had sliced in half and hollowed out. She topped them marshmallows that would be browned in the oven. I really don’t like sweet potatoes, but the smell of those cooking in oranges was amazing.
Mom would also cook butter beans that she had bought at the Farmer’s Market south of Atlanta and frozen, and macaroni and cheese for me. And, she always made the perfect gravy (with NO giblets) to put on the dressing. Cranberry sauce was the only thing I remember that came from a can. Usually, her spiced pears were on the table as well. There were other dishes that might show up at times, but that was the dinner.
I always thought of those as special days. Until I became an adult, I never realized what it required of my mom physically to make that happen. I am in awe of what she did, year after year, for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter. My Mom is amazing.
From my family’s traditions, I have two recipes for you––my Mom’s Cornbread Dressing and her Ice Box Rolls. Funny story: When Bob and I first moved to Savannah after seminary, we bought our first house and invited all of my family and all of Bob’s family to come down for Thanksgiving. I think I fixed a lot of the food, but I know I asked my Mom to bring her potato rolls to lunch. At the meal, there probably 6 from my family and four from Bob’s. His grandmother Lillian was with them. During the meal, everyone raved over the rolls. Afterwards, Bob’s family headed back to Macon. All of a sudden, Grandmother Lillian piped up from the backseat, “Well, I didn’t think the rolls were that good.” So, not everyone thought they were as amazing as I did.
Gloria’s Cornbread Dressing
Ingredients for Cornbread
1 cup cornmeal
2/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 egg 1-1/2 – 1-3/4 cup buttermilk
1 Tbsp shortening melted
Mix above increments together and place in a baking dish. Bake at 440 degrees for 25-30 minutes until born.
Ingredients for Cornbread Dressing
Baked cornbread crumbled
3 slices of toast or 5 biscuits crumbled
2 eggs
1/3 cup milk
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery
2 Tbsp shortening
Salt and Pepper to taste
Chicken or turkey broth as needed
After cornbread cools, crumble and add 3 slices toast or 5 biscuits that have been crumbled. Add 2 eggs and 1/4 cup milk and mix.
Sautee 1 cup onions and 1 cup celery in 2 Tbsp of shortening. When vegetables are clear, add to cornbread/bread mixture. Add salt and pepper to cornbread mix. Add enough chicken or turkey broth till mixture is moist.
Bake at 350 degrees until well browned.
Gloria’s Ice Box Rolls
1 package yeast
1-1/2 cup lukewarm water
2/3 cup shortening
2/3 cup sugar
1-1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs
7-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup mashed potatoes
Cream shortening, sugar, salt. Add mashed potatoes and mix. Add yeast into one cup of lukewarm water and then add to mixture. Add well-beaten eggs. Add remaining water and flour.
Place bowl in a lightly greased bowl and let it rise once. To make the rolls, lightly flour an area. Knead the dough by folding the edges into the middle, pushing with the heels of your hands. Continue for several minutes until the dough begins to feel elastic. Roll in out on the lightly floured area to a thickness of about 1 inch. Note: It’s easier to divide the dough into sections, working with about 1/4 of it each time. Use a biscuit cutter to create circles of dough and place on an ungreased baking sheet, with the edges just touching. Put a cotton dish towel over the cut rolls, and place in a warm area. Rolls should rise to double their size before putting in the oven.
Baking at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes. For the last five minutes, rub butter on the tops of the rolls.
