Before you say, you don’t like Brussels sprouts, just give this recipe a try.

They get almost caramelized when roasted with the sweet honey and balsamic vinegar.

Then the bacon adds that perfect salty kick to balance out the sweetness. It might just become your new favorite Thanksgiving green.

Ingredients

3 lbs Brussels Sprouts, halved

5 Strips of Bacon

2 Tbls Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2 Shallots, minced

2 tbls Balsamic Vinegar

2 Tbls Honey

¾ Tsp Salt

¾ tsp Pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 375˚.

Cook bacon until crisp, remove and reserve 1 Tbls of drippings in the skillet. Cook the shallots in drippings until soft.

Add in olive oil, vinegar and honey to the skillet whisk until all ingredients are incorporated.

Pour mixture over Brussels sprouts and add in salt and pepper. Make sure Brussels sprouts are coated evenly with oil and place on a sheet tray.

Roast in oven for 15-20 minutes until sprouts are tender and browned. Crumble reserved bacon on top of roasted sprouts.

Smoked Gouda Macaroni and Cheese

Smoked Gouda is a delicious, smoky cheese that can be found in the deli section of most grocery stores.

It gives this mac and cheese a totally grown up flavor, but kids will still love it.

You can even make this dish ahead of time and then bake it off before the big feast.

Obviously you can use any pasta shape you prefer, but the shells really hold lots of the yummy cheese sauce.

Ingredients

14 oz Pasta Shells, not jumbo

1 ½ Cup Smoked Gouda, shredded

½ Cup Mozzarella, shredded

½ Cup Parmesan, grated

3 Tbls Butter

4 Tbls Flour

2 ½ Cups Milk

¾ Tsp Salt

1 Tsp pepper

½ tsp Ground Mustard

¼ Tsp Cayenne Pepper, optional

½ Cup Bread Crumbs

2 Tbls butter, melted

Directions

Preheat oven to 350˚.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt the water liberally, then add in pasta. Cook until al dente, it should still have a bite to it.

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, melt butter over medium heat then add in flour. Whisk the flour into butter until lumps are gone and cook for about 2 minutes.

Next pour in milk slowly while whisking to incorporate the flour and butter mixture into the milk.

Allow the milk mixture to cook about 8-10 minute until thickened. Add in mustard, salt, pepper, and cayenne to season. Turn off heat and add in gouda and provolone, stir until melted.

Toss cheese sauce with cooked pasta shells and place in a baking dish. Top with parmesan, bread crumbs, and melted butter.

Bake for 15 minutes or until golden and bubbly.

Creamy Pumpkin Bars

These are sweet, simple, creamy and the perfect ending to a Thanksgiving meal.

I happen to love anything with pumpkin, so try these bars this year instead of the usual pumpkin pie

Ingredients

Crust

3 Cups Vanilla Wafers

¼ tsp Salt

½ tsp Cinnamon

4 Tbls Butter, melted

Pumpkin Filling

1 ½ Cups Pumpkin Puree

4 oz Light Cream Cheese, room temperature

2 Eggs

¾ Cup Sugar

1 tsp Vanilla

½ tsp Salt

¼ Tsp nutmeg

½ Tsp Ginger

½ tsp Cinnamon

Whipped Cream and Cinnamon for garnish

Directions

Preheat oven to 350˚.

Use a food processor or rolling pin and Ziploc bag to crush vanilla wafers until they are finely crushed, add cinnamon, and melted butter. Evenly mix until mixture is moist from butter.

Press into a 9 inch square baking dish and bake for about 10 minutes, cool on a wire rack.

While crust bakes, use a hand mixer to beat pumpkin and cream cheese together until smooth. Next add the remaining ingredients, except whipped cream.

Pour filling into cooled crust and bake 30-35 minutes until it is no longer giggly in the middle. Cool on a wire rack.

Spread whipped cream over the cooled pumpkin bars and sprinkle with cinnamon if desired. Refrigerate until ready to serve.