Thanksgiving Day Meal

Thanksgiving with my family doesn't officially start until Friday, but I wanted to make a fun meal today to go along with a day of football.  Last year I made a Cornish game hen, so I wanted to do that again.  I figured The Frugal Gourmet must have a game hen recipe, and he did not disappoint.  I tried Game Hens Stuffed with Sweet Potatoes.  I had never heard of sweet potato stuffing, but it was delicious.  With added pecans, ginger and nutmeg, it was very good despite my not adding enough salt.

For an appetizer I made Scalloped Oysters.  With oyster crackers, butter (lots of butter!) and a pinch of mace, I was pleasantly surprised.  It was actually the best part of the meal and will make them again very soon!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Ready to Start Cooking with the Frugal Gourmet

The very first television chef I remember watching is The Frugal Gourmet, a.k.a. Jeff Smith.  I believe it was on Saturday afternoons on PBS.  I loved the look of the food and I liked Jeff Smith's personality.  He taught me how to make country-fried steak w/ milk gravy.  I haven't made the steak more than once or twice, but I have made the milk gravy easily 100 times.

When I was shopping with my mom in an antique store I found a copy of The Frugal Gourmet Cooks American.  I made a few recipes but then sort of forgot about the book.  Now I would like to cook as many recipes as I can and blog about them.  I love cooking and would like to share these recipes with you and hopefully inspire you to cook something new.

I would love to cook all the recipes in this book, but I might have some trouble getting a hold of certain ingredients.  I can't go to the local store and get tripe or catfish.  There are also some recipes I am afraid of--do I really have to make clam pancakes?  And if I do make them, does that mean I don't have to make clam waffles too?

Join me in the kitchen as I cook traditional and favorite American dishes with the help of The Frugal Gourmet!