For us, the highlight of the holidays is smoked turkey. So easy to make and so much better than oven baked. DW already stocked the freezer with 4 turkeys.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip cake! A yearly Thanksgiving tradition since i got the recipe during a grammar school class baking project! I can actually remember seeing that recipe up on the bIackboard. Geesh, can't believe how many years ago that was...... Still as yummy today.

My family craves all things cranberry; cranberry bars, cranberry bread, cranberry filled pancakes, delicious! Pumpkin and the winter squashes are up there too; pumpkin leek tart, pumpkin pasta sauce, butternut squash lasagna, butternut squash, coconut milk shrimp, mmm mmm good

I bring homemade pecan pie to our gathering. I make two, but bring one. There's always a full table of desserts, so I keep the second pie in my freezer or give it away.

Mmmmm. Sounds so good! This is the time of year to really put those kitchens to work!

I saw some colorful kiddie Thanksgiving treats that could be made at home, on a site called ParentMap. They also had a list of Allergy-free Holiday Desserts, which am thinking of trying for when we visit some friends in December. :)

phillyfeet - any chance you might share that Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cake recipe? Sounds yummy!

localeater - that pumpkin leek tart also sounds great (as do most of the other things you mentioned!) - possibly able to share that recipe as well?

Things are going to be pretty simple here for Thanksgiving. We are scheduled to start demo on Dec. 2nd, so I'm busy in emptying out the cabinets and getting ready for demo...trying to make a few soups to freeze (a nice pumpkin soup, a butternut squash soup, a potato & corn chowder soup, and a turkey noodle soup planned) and a few more easily microwavable meals.

Andreak100- Here's the recipe. it's sooo easy and i have been making it without the nuts this year so my daughters can have it. Just as delicious! These make great muffins to bring to friends too.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cake

Preheat oven 350. Grease and flour 10 inch tube or loaf pan

3 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
4 eggs
1 cup oil
1 15-oz can Pumpkin puree (NOT pie filling)
6 oz chocolate chips
1 cups chopped walnuts

Mix all dry ingredients together. Add eggs, oil and pumpkin. Add nuts and chocolate chips.
Bake for 1 hour

Oh, that cake looks good. Thanks for sharing the recipe!

For me, it's all things apple. My mom makes wonderful apple pie, with slightly tart apples and lots of brown sugar and cinnamon...so good! I'll be making two kinds of cranberry sauce, one with raspberries (cold) and one with orange and spices (warm). So yummy with the turkey...and lots of homemade gravy, by mom of course! :)

One thing I make for Thanksgiving but at no other time is Chicken Liver Bourbon Pate, with a layer of clarified butter on top. Since it's so bad for us, we only have it once a year. But what a treat.

Another Thanksgiving tradition is Whiskey Pie, which is a pumpkin pie flavored with 1/2 c of bourbon instead of spices. I'm noticing a pattern...

Ginny20 I like your pattern lol.

Localeater, I'd like to hear more about the cranberry bars! They sound great, I love cranberry.

This weekend I made a couple of loaves of cranberry nut bread. On the agenda for Wednesday is Maple Pumpkin Pecan Pie with Whiskey sauce -- it always tastes better the next day. Tonight I'm making cranberry sauce and pie crust dough. I love this time of year!

Booze Pie!
It is my SIL GM recipe for enhanced pumpkin pie with Cognac - yum!
Phillyfeet - that looks awesome!

I am very traditional with my pies -- pumpkin (with double most of the spices in the original recipe), pecan, or apple.
Oh, sometimes a cranberry-nut pie, that is so good too!

For me, the OTAP (one true apple pie) is made with tart apples (like Lodi or Transparent), white sugar and nutmeg - no cinnamon!