Thanksgiving Food: Coconut Banana Cream Pie and Cranberries

Photo Source: Nestle Very Best Baking

I am quite fortunate to be able to celebrate the Holidays with nearby relatives.  It is nice in many ways, one of which is that I am not responsible for making the entire meal on my own.  I am typically given the responsibility of a salad, pie, cranberries, ect.

I thought that I'd share a couple of my favorite recipes for Thanksgiving: Cranberries, and Coconut Banana Cream Pie.

Coconut Banana Cream Pie is another dish that I have grown accustomed of contributing to the Thanksgiving feast.  I found this recipe shortly after my husband and I got married, and have really enjoyed it.  Paired with a gluten free crust, this makes an absolutely delicious pie.  I always bring this to my Celiac Diseased side of the family (there are a lot of us, we are a medical researchers dream) , and it is always a large hit with the other gluten free feasters. The pie is so delicious though that my family members who aren't gluten free often sneak a slice.  I originally found the recipe in my Nestle Toll House cookbook, but it can be accessed online as well.  Find recipe here.

Photo Source: allrecipes.com Diva

I just don't think that there is an excuse to buy prepared cranberries.  Fresh cranberries, in my opinion, taste far superior, and on top of that they are extremely fast and easy to make.  For some reason my husband still likes to have a can of cranberry jelly at the table, mostly to bring back childhood memories, but he definitely enjoys fresh cranberries as well.

Last year I tried this recipe, with a few omissions, and loved the results. The recipe is Cranberry Sauce Extraordinaire and can be found here.  It has a wonderful flavor, and the addition of some additional fruit and spices mixes things up just a little bit.  For the record, the omissions that I made with this recipe were the nuts and the dried fruit.

I hope that these recipes help put you in the holiday spirit.  Even if you aren't celebrating Thanksgiving this week, these dishes can really dress up any meal.


On the note of Holiday food, I am planning on hosting a Holiday Treat week.  I would love to have a holiday recipe link party, and celebrate the foods that remind us of the holidays.  If you are interested in guest posting please let me know.

I am also still open to any additional guest bloggers for Hip for the Holidays (starting next week).