A Special Casserole of Oysters on Thanksgiving

Fish Among Fowl, The Oyster Casserole

I buy them in the jars, and so far have never had them fresh...someday!

One of the finer traditions on Thanksgiving for my family is not the turkey or the potatoes, although they are amazing, it is the casserole of oysters, passed down from my grandparents to us. My side of the family are not Montana stock, but from the East coast. From them we have the tradition of an oyster casserole that slides along side of a green bean casserole on special holidays.

Here is my grand father's recipe:

Ingredients:

1 pint of oysters, in their juice 

1/2 cup salted butter + 1 tbl butter for greasing dish

3/4 cup whole milk

1/4 cup oyster liquor (the liquid from the pint should be enough)

1 teaspoon Worcester sauce

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup diced celery, with leaves

2 tablespoon fresh parsley leaves 

Pepper to taste

2 cups crushed saltine crackers

Grease a medium casserole dish with butter.

Drain your oysters but reserve the liquid into another container. Add the milk and Worcester sauce to the oyster liquor.

 

Melt the rest of your butter and pour over crushed crackers and add the salt, mixing until evenly distributed. 

Chop your celery and parsley and set aside.

Spread 1/3 of your crackers on the bottom of the casserole dish and sprinkle with black pepper. Cover with 1/2 the oysters, 1/2 the celery, and 1/2 the parsley leaves. Make another layer of 1/3 of your crackers, the other half the oysters, 1/2 the celery and 1/2 the parsley leaves and sprinkle with black pepper. Finish by evenly pouring the rest of the crackers. 

Pour your liquid over the top of the casserole, drizzling evenly over each area of the casserole. 

Bake at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes. To check for doneness tip the dish and see if liquid seeps to the top. If there is a bit seeping, let it go for a few more minutes. 

Yummmmmm.

Forget Costco! Birthday Cupcakes from the HOME Kitchen

Honestly Easy Birthday Cupcakes: 

Pistachio Pudding Cakes and Strawberry Cupcakes

Sweet strawberry cupcakes that put Costco to shame-and yes, this picture is of the cupcakes I baked :)

I PASSIONATELY DISLIKE COSTCO CUPCAKES. There are those that enjoy the refined sugar high and following crash, but I do not, and neither do the lower intestines of my children. 

Today is an early birthday party for our almost 5 year old's, and while I conceded the location (I would rather be at a museum, but alas we are headed to a bounce house collection) I would not concede the treats. 

Thanks to one of my favorite websites, Eat, Live, Run, I found two sweet recipes for the crown of adult friends, family, and preschoolers that we'll be seeing very soon.

These cupcakes were very inexpensive too, if you keep standard baking supplies in your pantry its pretty simple.

Mmmmmmm, PISTACHIOS!

The first recipe is for our first grader, and the adults that will be in tow. Its a little more grownup, but for those that like pistachios, its delectable. This recipe is not mine, but now that I have the basics, I'll be expanding into several different versions!

Pistachio Pudding Cupcakes from Eat, Live, Run

The cupcakes in this recipe (follow the link) are only three ingredients!

For strawberry lovers, only!

This second recipe is our preschoolers request. He ADORES strawberries and wanted some cupcakes desperately that reflected his love. So yes, I made my 5 year old BOY pink cupcakes, but its exactly what he wanted, and they are fabulous, so who can complain!? 

Make sure to use organic strawberries. Although they are not in season in Montana (its November) its a pretty good assumption that non organic berries are covered in pesticides, even after being rinsed, and I think organic just tastes better!

Sweet Strawberry Cupcakes from Eat, Live, Run