Thanksgiving

Sweet and spicy, these carrots are the perfect accompaniment to simple roast chicken, turkey, or pork loin.

In New England, native corn made its way into many dishes that had formerly been made with English "corns" like oats, wheat, and rice. Adaptations of English porridge and rice pudding recipes were particularly well suited to maize. This particular corn dish is sweetened with sugar and enriched with milk. The variation given at the end is a more deluxe version based on 17th-century rice pudding recipes.

Chef-owner Shawn McClain of Custom House restaurant in Chicago created this recipe for Epicurious's Wine.Dine.Donate program. He recommends using a creamy, mild blue cheese like Fourme d'Ambert.

Cranberries mixed with sugar and citrus are perfectly fine for turkey, but pork needs something a little different. Here, the tart quality of the cranberries is underlined by the horseradish, and together they enhance the sweet, sturdy nature of roast pork.

Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are excerpted from The Dooky Chase Cookbook by Leah Chase and are part of our story on Mardi Gras.

Begin the morning with the beautiful, festive (and easy) drinks.

This treat is so sweet (even though we've eliminated half the sugar), you won't need to serve it à la mode.

A healthy holiday mini-meal (in minutes!) If your Thanksgiving is going to be a couple of people and not a crowd this year, don't bother looking for the littlest bird to roast — try this quick and delicious turkey dish instead. Food writer Sally Schneider has created hundreds of simple yet tasty recipes for A New Way to Cook (Artisan). Her turkey scallopini is lower in cholesterol than the classic veal version and stars vitamin A-packed greens.

A thoroughly modern take on the classic baked potato with sour cream.

We are happy to announce that Bev Jones has won our November "Cook the Cover" contest with her delicious variation on our Miso-Rubbed Turkey with Turkey Gravy. Bev Jones explains her variation:
This will be the juiciest and most flavorful turkey ever! I wanted to give my larger 19-lb turkey a little extra zip by adding rosemary and other herbs to the miso butter. I used all of the butter under the skin, since my turkey was bigger and no basting is required. After rubbing the butter under the skin, I placed red bell pepper rings with a lemon slice in the center of each under the skin for extra flavor and a nice presentation. I also cook all of my turkeys in those clear oven roasting bags you find in the grocery store. I have never been disappointed — no basting, juicy, flavorful, nicely browned, and it cuts the cooking time way down! You don't need as much turkey stock because there is so much juice from the turkey. I like cornstarch for thickening because I like a more clear-looking gravy. This turkey turned out to be spectacular and a real hit with all the family.

Jewel-like gelées are the darlings of pastry chefs at the moment. They also happen to be easy to make at home.

Make this luscious dessert a day ahead.

Remarkably easy, but pretty and elegant enough for a dinner party.