I hope you had another great fall weekend. My plate was full with all sorts of “To Do Duties” and after climbing up a 20 foot ladder to change an annoying smoke detector battery then climbing the attic stairs dozens of times to pull down my Christmas decorations, it’s a wonder I can still bend down to pull up my pants. I’m sore from the hairs on my head to the ends of my toenails. Let’s not forget about Thanksgiving being eleven days away! I will be hosting Thanksgiving this year as usual and I’ve gathered  a few side dishes that are a must have for your Thanksgiving table.

Now is a good time to get your grocery shopping done before the stores are crowed and the shelves are empty. Most of the ingredients for these dishes can be purchased way in advance and you can cook and freeze your greens this week. I will post two side dishes over the next few days with more Thanksgiving recipes I’ll be serving for my crowd. Let’s get started. Here are the sides I feel no Southern Thanksgiving table should be without.

Corn Casserole

Serves 6-8
Ingredients:
1-15 1/4 ounce can whole kernel corn drained
1- 14 3/4 ounce can cream style corn
1- 8 ounce pkg. corn muffin mix (I used Jiffy)
1 cup sour cream
1 stick butter melted
1 small onion chopped
1/2 red bell pepper chopped

Directions:
Preheat oven 350 degrees. Sauté onion and pepper in a sauce pan with a tablespoon of butter. Spread veggies into a greased 9×13″ casserole dish. In a large bowl; stir together corn, muffin mix, sour cream, and butter. Pour the mixture on top of the veggies. Bake for 45 minutes or until golden brown.

Macaroni and Cheese

Serves 10-12
Ingredients:
1 lb. package elbow macaroni
1 cup fontina cheese grated
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese grated
1 cups asiago cheese grated
1 cup of Gouda cheese grated
2 eggs slightly beaten
1/4 tsp. ground cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp. Salt
1/2 tsp. white pepper

Cream Sauce
6 tbs. Flour
6 tbs. Butter softened
3 cups milk
Salt and both peppers from ingredients above

Topping:
1/4 cup of each cheese listed above

Preheat oven 350 degrees. Grease large casserole dish with butter. Add macaroni to boiling water seasoned with salt. Cook macaroni until al dente. Drained and add macaroni to casserole dish. Add eggs and mix well. In a large sauce pot, add flour and butter stir to make a paste. Add milk and cook over medium heat until thickened. Add salt and both peppers. Add cheeses one at a time stirring as cheese melts.
Pour cream sauce over macaroni and mix well. Spread topping cheese over macaroni. Bake until topping is golden brown.