Appetizers: Quick Marinated Olives AND Olive Oil Dip

Okay, these were a huge hit for Thanksgiving.

Marinated olives a la Mark Bittman.

My lemons all froze last winter and I'm just now waiting for the most pale yellow ones to fully ripen, so rather than the pulp he calls for I just added a few teaspoons of bottled lemon juice. To make up for that, the rosemary was picked from my rosemary bush just before adding to the olives. This was one of two appetizers that got the most compliments.

The other was from Real Simple. It doesn't seem to be online yet so I'll post it here.

Olive Oil Dip with Vegetables

1/2 cup green olives, chopped
1/2 cup olive oil
3 cloves garlic
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
6 sprigs fresh thyme
1/4 tsp salt

Combine all ingredients and cook over low heat a few minutes. The recipe called for "smashed" garlic cloves but next time I'm chopping them, so you can eat them easier.

Serve them with dipping vegetables of your choice. I used sliced red peppers, jicama, carrots, green onions, and endive.

I had hummus right next to this and frankly the combination of a bit of each was to die for!

Candied Walnuts for Salads

Looking for a little something special to top that green salad? Try these candied walnuts. I'll be fixing up a spinach and pear salad and these sound like the perfect finishing touch.

Blue Cheese Burgers

The kids are finally old enough to enjoy experimenting a bit with hamburgers. I usually just mix in a bit of horseradish, mustard, ketchup and Worcestershire sauce. The other night I mixed in only salt, pepper, and Worcestershire, but most important I added a pocket of blue cheese in the middle of each patty. I got this idea from a Rachel Ray cookbook, but you really don't need a recipe for it. She also had you put a bit of red wine in a shallow and put the burgers in that for a bit while you were heating up the skillet or barbecue.

These came out really good!

The Two of Us...and Friends: Book Review

One of the neatest things about having a cooking blog is when publishers send you cookbooks. I never promise to post reviews but I do try to post about those I most enjoy. I will say that I have not yet tried any of the recipes from The Two of Us . . . and Friends but I'm pretty good at "reading recipes" these days and I can say that I will be trying a few of these once the Thanksgiving holiday is past. I also have a nephew whose wife loves to cook and I'm going to pass this on to them after I gather a few gems, as it's aimed at young people learning to entertain and cook.

The book is nicely organized, with recipes and menus grouped into sections of cooking for "The Two of You," "Party of Four," "The Joy of Six," and "Eight and Up." She's got tips scattered throughout and her stories are warm and personable.

A sample menu from the "Party of Four" section:

• Garlic Soup with Croutons
• Red and Orange Beef Short Ribs
• Potatoes Roasted with Olives
• Braised Red Peppers
• Frisee and Baby Greens with Fig Dressing
• Cheese
• Brown Sugar Pudding with Raspberries

Accompanying this are a few side notes about different ingredients, hints on doubling the recipes, and a short bit on making place mats from postcards. That's pretty typical of a section.

If you're looking for a gift idea for a young couple check this out. It's well organized, well-written, and entertaining.

Recipes of a Different Kind: MakeYourOwnCleaners.com

I've just launched a new web site, MakeYourOwnCleaners.com. I've been experimenting with making my own cleaners, including laundry soap, general purpose spray cleaner (one recipe with tea tree oil), and stuff like that and thought I'd collect all the recipes I've found in one place. You get to save money AND "go green" with more environmentally friendly cleaners. Hope you enjoy.

Turkey Recipes Galore

I've been having some publishing issues on the blog lately, so I've been updating the main CheapCooking.com site in the meantime. Here's an update for you blog readers.

First, I did a practice run on a small (12 pound) turkey last weekend, using a new (to me) recipe that called for soaking cheesecloth in a wine and butter concoction, draping it on the turkey, and roasting the turkey with the cheesecloth on until the final hour, with frequent basting. This turkey recipe is a winner! Everything about it was good, although the frequent basting is a pain. But if you're going to be puttering in the kitchen anyway, this turned out a fantastic bird.

Then I pulled up last year's experimental turkey recipe, easier with smaller birds for sure. Start the bird out breast side down, then turn on its side, then on the other side, and finish off breast side up.

My sister's favorite recipe calls for tenting the bird in foil, being careful not to let the foil touch the bird. It also came out delicious two years in a row. I'll have to go dig up the details on that one but don't have them handy.

In addition to your turkey, you'll be looking to make gravy as well of course.

Remember you can make mashed potatoes ahead of time and keep them warm in a buttered crockpot.

A great side dish is roasted root vegetables. Also, a sweet potato streusel was a big hit here 2 years ago, although I'm going to be halving the recipe this year to make room for something new.

And when you're looking for ideas on how to use up that leftover turkey, here a few turkey recipes to get you started:

• Turkey soup
• Turkey sandwich spread
• Turkey casserole
• Shepherd's pie with turkey
• Turkey skillet dinner
• Turkey hash

Cheap Milkshakes with No Ice Cream

Got some kids hungry for a milk shake but you have no ice cream?

Try these milkshakes from Hillbilly Housewife. I halved the recipe so I could make one vanilla and one chocolate. Both were a hit. They don't taste like milk shakes made with ice cream of course, but they do taste pretty darned good.