How to Host Friendsgiving: Our favorite bloggers dish on tasty recipes

Tasty Friendsgiving Must-Haves with @CookPraySlay and @thefunfoodiemama

November is a time to express our gratitude and thankfulness for all the special people and moments in our lives. It’s also a month full of our favorite fall goodies and eats. Everything from pumpkin pies to roasted turkeys will be front and center all month long.

This year, Ginain Grayes from Cook Pray Slay and Kiva Williams from The Fun Foodie Mama couldn’t resist this opportunity to celebrate the season with a tasty and memorable Friendsgiving!

If you’re thinking of safely gathering your closest friends together for a special treat — we got you covered! Here are some of our tried and true easy recipes that will make this Friendsgiving the best one yet! 

Instant Pot Turkey Breast Roast  (by: @cookprayslay) 

Ingredients: 

• 5 lb boneless turkey breast roast 
• 2 cups chicken broth 
• 3 Tablespoons olive oil 
• 2 -3 celery stalks 
• 4 garlic cloves or minced 
• 1 tsp paprika 
• 1 tsp each of sage, thyme, and rosemary  
• 1 tsp salt 
• 1 tsp ground black pepper 
• 1 medium onion chopped into large slices 

Directions: 

1. Arrange onions, garlic and celery in the Instant Pot. Place trivet over veggies and add chicken broth. 
2. In a small bowl mix olive oil, paprika, sage, rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper. 
3. Remove the netting and gravy packet from the turkey breast. Wash the turkey and pat it dry. Rub in turkey breast with olive oil mixture. Place on the trivet. 
4. Place lid on Instant Pot. Set valve to seal. Select the Pressure Cook function and set timer to 40 minutes on High Pressure. 
5. Let the pressure release naturally. 
6. Carefully remove turkey from the pressure cooker. Set on a baking pan or sheet and place cooked turkey breast in the oven under the broiler. Broil on high until golden brown. Watch the turkey very closely so it doesn’t burn. 
7. To make the gravy, drain the pan drippings through a sieve to catch the onions and garlic. Measure out two cups of the liquid and place back in the Instant Pot. Add a mixture of 2 tablespoons of cornstarch with 1/4 cup of cold water and whisk well. Add salt/pepper to taste. Simmer using the “saute” setting on the Instant Pot until it thickens to a gravy consistency.  

Chunky Mashed Potatoes (by @thefunfoodiemama) 

Ingredients: 

• 5lb bag of red potatoes (use ½ the bag for this recipe, double the below list of 
• ingredients for the entire 5 lb bag) 
• 4 tbsp salted butter 
• 1 cup vegetable broth 
• 1 tbsp salt 
• 1 tbsp minced garlic 
• 1 tsp black pepper 

Directions: 

1. Clean and scrub potatoes (leave the skin on) 
2. In a large pot, bring enough water to cover potatoes to a boil for 30-45 min. 
3. Drain liquid once potatoes have finished boiling and are soft (check softness with a fork) 
4. Combine all ingredients in the pot (mash until desired texture)  

Holiday Cranberry Chutney (by @cookprayslay) 

Ingredients: 

• 1 cup water 
• 3/4 cup white sugar 
• 1 bag fresh cranberries (12 oz) 
• 1 cup apples – peeled, cored and diced 
• 1/2 cup cider vinegar 
• 1/2 cup raisins (I used California Golden Raisins) 
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger 
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice 
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves 
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 

Directions: 

1. In a medium saucepan combine the water and sugar. Bring mixture to a boil over medium heat.
2. Add the cranberries, apples, cider vinegar, raisins and spices. Bring to a boil, then simmer on low heat while gently stirring frequently for 10 minutes.
3. Remove saucepan from heat and pour chutney into a bowl to let it cool to room temp. Serve or cover and refrigerate.

Roasted Vegetables  (by @thefunfoodiemama) 

Ingredients:  

• 1 orange pepper 
• 1 red pepper 
• 1 yellow pepper 
• 1 red onion 
• 1 12oz bag of green beans 
• 2 tablespoon of olive oil 
• Seasonings: roasted garlic, herb, lemon pepper, ground sage, Himalayan pink salt 

Directions: 

1. Clean & slice peppers into thick strips. Slice onion into rings. 
2. Rinse and pat dry green beans. 
3. Line a baking sheet with foil and assemble vegetables in a row. Drizzle olive oil and seasonings over vegetables. 
4. Bake for 25 min at 400 degrees. Broil for 5 min. 
5. Add a few shakes of Himalayan sea salt once veggies are removed from the oven. 

Instant Pot Apple Pecan Crisp (by @cookprayslay) 

Ingredients: 

For the crumb topping: 

• ½ cup  all-purpose flour 
• ½ cup  old-fashioned rolled oats 
• ½ cup  light brown sugar 
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon 
• dash of salt 
• 6 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted 
• ½ cup pecans, chopped 

For the Apple filling: 

• 4 small apples, chopped (Granny Smith or Red Delicious) 
• 2 Tbsp  butter, melted 
• 1  Tbsp  lemon juice 
• ½ tsp  vanilla extract 
• ¼ cup  light brown sugar 
• ½ tsp  ground cinnamon 
• pinch of salt 
• 1 cup water 

Directions:  

1. In a medium bowl combine and mix the crumb topping ingredients and set aside. 
2. Spray Instant Pot (IP) with non-stick cooking spray and add apples. 
3. Add melted butter, vanilla, lemon juice, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt and toss to coat apples. Pour in water. 
4. Sprinkle crumb topping evenly over the apples. 
5. Cook on high pressure for 8 mins. 
6. When complete, turn the valve to quick release the pressure/steam.  
7. Optional: Spoon servings into oven-proof dish and broil for 1-2 minutes, for a crisp topping. 

Holiday Sorrel Punch (by @thefunfoodiemama) 

 Ingredients: 

• 1 cup of dry sorrel leaves 
• 1 orange 
• 1 bag of cinnamon sticks 
• 1/8 cup of cloves 
• 10 cups of water 
• 1 cup of cane sugar 
• 3 tbsp. of fresh ginger juice 

Directions: 

1. Bring 8 cups of water, sorrel leaves, cloves & cinnamon to a boil 
2. Slice half of the orange and add it to the mixture 
3. Boil for 10-15 minutes until the water turns a deep burgundy (drain liquid through a strainer and set aside) 
4. In a separate pot bring 2 cups of water and 1 cup of sugar to a boil (stir while awaiting it to boil) 
5. Peel 2-3 large handfuls of ginger. Once peeled, juice in your at home juicer 
6. In a large punch bowl add strained sorrel, water/sugar mixture, and 3 tablespoon of fresh ginger juice 
7. Stir until all ingredients are fully mixed. Garnish with cinnamon sticks and orange slices 
8. Enjoy warmed or over ice 

Photos by Yokie Empire, LLC

*Originally published in the November 2021 issue of Tampa Bay Parenting Magazine. 

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