• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • about
  • Pug Partners
  • contact/pr
  • Nav Social Menu

    • Bloglovin
    • Facebook
    • Goodreads
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • Pinterest
    • Threads
    • TikTok

Runs With Pugs

ok, the pugs don't run, but we do

  • race reports
  • Travel
  • Recipes
  • Link Ups
  • instagram Landing Page

The Latest

We’re Streaking: Halfway Through The Streaking With The Cool Kids Challenge

It’s Summer Vacation: Let’s Stay Active

Time To Take A Breath

You are here: Home / Uncategorized / 5 Thanksgiving Menu Favorites

5 Thanksgiving Menu Favorites

November 14, 2024      5 Comments

While Thanksgiving isn’t my most favorite of the holidays, it IS a great time to indulge in some culinary favorites! For some reason, there are some foods we exclusively serve on that last Thursday of November (probably to keep them feeling special), and I confess that I look forward to them all year round. Spoiler alert: you can keep your turkey. I’m in it for the sides.

Stuffing

As a carb girl, I am DOWN for a good stuffing. For me, it’s stuffing, not dressing, and it belongs in a casserole dish, not the cavity of the turkey. Simple is better: small chunks of bread with butter, chicken broth, onions, and celery, with seasonings, baked until the top is a little crispy. I don’t mind apples in it, but no protein, please. My toxic trait is that I make plenty extra, and live on it through the weekend, with leftover gravy and cranberry sauce.

Homemade Cranberry Sauce

While I do not mind the canned jellied cranberries with the ridges, there is really nothing like the homemade cranberry sauce we make for Thanksgiving dinner. It’s super easy: just boiling fresh cranberries with sugar and water, but so delicious. I will absolutely drown my one piece of turkey with this condiment, without apology.

Apple Pie

Pumpkin may be traditional, but apple pie is the superior crust dessert, in my opinion. Once again, I love a simple, homemade version, with an oil pastry crust, and a mix of tart and sweet apples, butter, sugar, and cinnamon. We serve with fresh whipped cream and it’s perfect for breakfast the next morning or two.

Stuffed Mushrooms

Appetizers are always so dangerous on Thanksgiving. I love them more than the meal. We make our stuffed mushrooms with a blend of chopped mushrooms, breadcrumbs, minced onion, garlic, butter and a splash of white wine. When I was younger, I would just eat the filling out, but now I am in for the whole things. They are delicious and too much of a pain to make on the regular.

Spinach Patties

Hear me out. This is a dish that was served at every holiday gathering for as far back as I can remember. It’s a mixture of chopped spinach, onions, garlic, egg, cheese and breadcrumbs, pressed into patties and lightly fried over olive oil. It’s simply the most perfect thing. They are good warm, and cold, three meals a day.

Traditional Things We Don’t Usually Serve

  • Mashed potatoes: I love mashed potatoes with the fire of a thousand suns, but we never make them for Thanksgiving. It’s the one beige thing I can let go – we have so many other carby things to eat, so that’s the one that gets cut.
  • Sweet potatoes: Honestly, no one eats them. I have one delicious recipe but it makes a metric ton, and the leftovers don’t go quickly. My mom will bring a small portion of mashed turnips for herself but that’s as orange as we get.
  • Green bean casserole: I’m not a casserole kind of girl, so this one doesn’t make it to our table. I do love those crispy onions on top, but that’s about it. But don’t fear: we make sautéed green beans with almonds, or roasted brussels sprouts, or a fresh green salad to get our veggie fix!

Welcome to Fit Five Friday, our new linkup!

We’ve got FIVE incredible co-hosts, and we are ready to link up every Friday to share YOUR weekly fitness favorites! Join My First 5K and More, Running With Attitude, Run Laugh Eat Pie, Runs with Pugs, and Zenaida every Friday for Fit Five Friday! Who’s ready for some fun? 

fit five friday

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Erica @ erica finds says

    November 15, 2024 at 5:08 pm

    Your meal looks delish – also not a fan of some of the traditional dishes you mention!

    Reply
  2. Darlene Cardillo says

    November 15, 2024 at 10:30 pm

    The first 3 are on my list. But the others look very good too.

    I do like sweet potatoes and that green bean casserole.

    Reply
  3. Michelle says

    November 18, 2024 at 1:29 am

    I’m all about the sides too – but I garlic mashed potatoes are a must for me. On the other hand I’ll never understand that appeal of green bean casserole.

    Reply
    • runswithpugs says

      November 19, 2024 at 12:27 am

      I do have a friend who makes the casserole from scratch with fresh green beans, homemade cream of mushroom soup, and all that sort of thing, but it’s still not my favorite.

      Reply
  4. Zenaida Arroyo says

    December 24, 2024 at 12:15 am

    Yum! There are so many delicious meals. I like your version of stuffing. Those spinach patties look yummy.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

CommentLuv badgeShow more posts

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Well, Hello There

bio
Welcome to Runs With Pugs. My name is Jenn and this is the story of my love affair with running and finding myself through fitness. From C25K to marathon, from triathlon to SUP, from broken leg to the recovery journey... I'm sharing it all. I'm a wife and mother of one, living in NE Florida, in love with travel, adventure, and food. Oh. We have a grumble of pugs, too. Thank you for joining us! We're glad to have you along for the ride!

Let’s Connect!

Follow on Bloglovin


Partners

Click here for FREE SHIPPING
Save With Code RUNSWITHPUGS

Pugs Run 50 States

Search Posts

Recent Posts

  • We’re Streaking: Halfway Through The Streaking With The Cool Kids Challenge
  • It’s Summer Vacation: Let’s Stay Active
  • Time To Take A Breath
  • Friday The 13th: Unlucky Running Edition
  • Our Top Tips For Summer Racing + Running

Currently Reading

Jennifer's books

The Other Mrs.
The Skylark's Secret
Holly
Queen of Shadows
Archer's Voice
Heir of Fire
The Assassin's Blade
Lore Olympus: Volume One
By Any Other Name
Out There Screaming
Crown of Midnight
Throne of Glass
How to Kill Men and Get Away with It
Verity
Wrong Place Wrong Time
A Fever in the Heartland: The Ku Klux Klan's Plot to Take Over America, and the Woman Who Stopped Them
Sisters in Law: How Sandra Day O'Connor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg Went to the Supreme Court and Changed the World
The Girl in the Leaves
The Pale-Faced Lie
Yellowface


Jennifer PugRunner's favorite books »

Archives

Footer

disclaimer

I am not a doctor or medical professional, nor do I play one on the internet. This blog reflects my personal experiences on my own fitness and running journey, and the processes that work for me. Before you begin any exercise regiment, please consult your physician.
Team Bears Bocce Battlestar Galactica made it to t Team Bears Bocce Battlestar Galactica made it to the third round of the 2nd Annual Bocce Fest, benefitting @stronglikesteve!

This is always such a great community event, centered around an incredibly inclusive event and with proceeds going to provide awareness, community outreach, education, advocacy and funding for organizations and individuals caring for adults with intellectual and developmental differences.

Founder @steph_sanalila does such a wonderful job with this event, making a fun environment for players, creating volunteer opportunities for local students and honoring the memory of her brother.

Visit https://www.stronglikestevefoundation.org/about for more info on how you can help!

#boccefest #bearsboccebattlestargalactica #worldgolfvillage #worldgolfliving #bocce #stronglikesteve #bethechange #makeadifference
The pug side eye side eye. @lunanleonidas #pug The pug side eye side eye.

@lunanleonidas

 #pug #sweetlunapug

 #pugpuppy #puglife #pugsandkisses #pugbaby #pugsofinstagram #pugstagram #grumbleinc #grumble #pugstagram #pugworld #carlino #thetomcoteshow #dogstagram #petstagram #pugoftheday #pugsdaily #pugstyle #904dogs #keelysafternoontea #pugfeaturedaily #pugclub #dailybarker #woofpackbros #woofpackbros4life #woofpackhotties #woofpackkitties #woofpackfamily #dogsconnectingtheworld
Drinking in that sunshine for sure! It was a bea Drinking in that sunshine for sure! 

It was a beautiful morning that turned quickly into a beautiful day. Sundays are hard because they are immediately  followed by Mondays, and Mondays are hard.

Lots to catch up on this week! April is chock full of holidays, birthdays, days off, and events, so let’s get to it!

#Running #streakingwiththecoolkids
About this morning… I was up and out early to d About this morning…

I was up and out early to drive to Flagler Beach for the #Missionpossible5k.

It was a small, well organized event, with an easy-to-follow course (the last mile was almost exclusively an ocean view), with great shirts and swag.

I was really pleased with my performance, and even more pleased with this beach sunrise. I’ll share more on the #RunnersRundown on Wednesday, so stay tuned!

Where did you run or race this weekend?

#Running #streakingwiththecoolkids
Oh, hello long sleeves. I’m here for it. So goo Oh, hello long sleeves. I’m here for it.

So good to stretch the legs today. I was super sore after a @runsmartofficial cross training session last night, and needed to just get out there and let the fresh air work its magic.

What are you up to today? I really need to take a moment with my calendar and get some plans locked into place. 

#running #streakingwiththecoolkids
He’s gonna get it, one of these days. 🍌 @lu He’s gonna get it, one of these days. 🍌 

@lunanleonidas 

 #pug #sweetlunapug

 #pugpuppy #puglife #pugsandkisses #pugbaby #pugsofinstagram #pugstagram #grumbleinc #grumble #pugstagram #pugworld #carlino #thetomcoteshow #dogstagram #petstagram #pugoftheday #pugsdaily #pugstyle #904dogs #keelysafternoontea #pugfeaturedaily #pugclub #dailybarker #woofpackbros #woofpackbros4life #woofpackhotties #woofpackkitties #woofpackfamily #dogsconnectingtheworld #cheesetax
Check out those blue skies! I got to sleep in AND Check out those blue skies!

I got to sleep in AND take advantage of some cooler temps. It really didn’t warm up until my last mile and that was just fine.

I feel like this month and next are really just flying by. So much is going on, and I want so badly to enjoy it all, including the crisp, sunny days where we find them!

#Running #streakingwiththecoolkids
Kind of a meh day. I got in some walking miles and Kind of a meh day. I got in some walking miles and some balance and strength work through @runsmartofficial.

Tomorrow will be cooler and more productive for sure!

#running #streakingwiththecoolkids
Happy Monday! I don’t know about you all, but y Happy Monday!

I don’t know about you all, but your girl is TIRED. It is so hard to roll out of bed some mornings. Ugh. 

I managed (finally) and banked six miles in some gross humidity. And now it’s time for some self care and then back to work.

Also. We have somehow acquired a pecan tree? Any tips on the growth and care of this would be greatly appreciated!

#Running #streakingwiththecoolkids
Sunday fun day! Just a short walk to start the da Sunday fun day!

Just a short walk to start the day and work out some stiffness. Some days, my ankle just doesn’t want to cooperate 🫤

I have been making graphics and content all day for a client, and now I’m about to do hair and makeup for a little event. Wheee! 

This week is going to be BUSY! There’s a lot of changes to the regular routines (nails, a digital learning day, after school and weekend programming) and I have a race on Saturday and bocce ball on Sunday! 

Who else is ready to dive in?!

#Running #streakingwiththecoolkids

Copyright © 2025 · Wordpress Theme by Hello Yay!