Happy Heart Home

Jump to Recipe Prep Time: 30 minutes Cook Time: Approximately 3 to 3¾ hours for a 12 to 14 pound turkey Resting Time: 30 to 45 minutes Total Time: Approximately 4 to 5 hours Servings: Approximately 10 to 12 A beautifully roasted turkey is the centerpiece of a classic Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner, and this Classic Roast Turkey with Herb Butter is designed to give you everything you want from the perfect holiday bird: deeply golden, crispy skin, tender and juicy meat, plenty of savory herb flavor, and delicious pan drippings for homemade gravy . Turkey has a reputation for being difficult to cook well. The breast can dry out before the thighs are finished, the skin sometimes refuses to crisp, and recipes can become unnecessarily complicated with brining buckets, constant basting, flipping enormous birds, or dozens of ingredients. This recipe keeps things much simpler while still producing an exceptional roast turkey. The secret is a generous homemade herb butter flavored with g...

Jump to Recipe Prep Time: 25 minutes Sweet Potato Roasting Time: 50 to 70 minutes Bake Time: 50 to 60 minutes Cooling Time: 2 to 3 hours Servings: 8 slices There is something incredibly comforting about a homemade sweet potato pie. With its silky filling, buttery crust, warm spices, and naturally sweet flavor, it is the kind of dessert that feels right at home on a Thanksgiving table but is delicious enough to make throughout the fall and winter. This recipe takes everything wonderful about traditional Southern sweet potato pie and makes it even better. The sweet potatoes are roasted instead of boiled, which concentrates their natural sweetness and prevents the filling from becoming watery. Butter is gently browned for a deeper, almost caramel-like flavor. Brown sugar adds richness, while cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and just a tiny touch of cloves give the pie warmth without overpowering the sweet potatoes. A little heavy cream and evaporated milk create an exceptionally smooth and ...

Jump to Recipe Prep Time: 25 minutes Cook Time: 30 minutes Total Time: 55 minutes Servings: 8 to 10 There are certain dishes that simply belong on a holiday table, and classic green bean casserole is one of them. Creamy, savory, comforting, and covered with a generous layer of crispy fried onions, it is the kind of side dish that people look forward to all year. This version takes everything people love about traditional green bean casserole and makes it just a little better. Fresh green beans give the casserole a beautiful color and tender texture without becoming overly soft. Fresh mushrooms, butter, garlic, cream, and Parmesan create a rich homemade mushroom sauce, while crispy fried onions provide that familiar salty crunch that makes green bean casserole so irresistible. The result is an incredibly creamy green bean casserole that still tastes like the classic holiday dish you remember. It is rich without being overwhelmingly heavy, savory without being too salty, and creamy w...

Jump to Recipe Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 2 1/2 to 3 hours Total Time: Approximately 3 hours 15 minutes Servings: Approximately 8 to 10 cups There is something about a pot of homemade apple cider simmering on the stove that makes the entire house feel like fall. Fresh apples, cinnamon sticks, oranges, cloves, and warm spices slowly simmer together until the fruit becomes incredibly soft and the liquid takes on a deep, concentrated apple flavor. The apples are then mashed right in the pot and strained, creating a naturally cloudy, rich apple cider that tastes completely different from ordinary bottled apple juice. And your kitchen will smell incredible. This homemade apple cider recipe is made completely from scratch using fresh apples rather than bottled apple juice or prepared cider. It is warmly spiced without being overpowering, lightly sweetened to taste, and incredibly easy to make. One of the secrets to truly great apple cider is using several varieties of apples inste...