Fifteen fantastic kosher recipes for Thanksgiving / Friendsgiving

It may not be a Jewish holiday. It may not even be English but I’m always happy to get behind any opportunity to get together with friends or family to share gorgeous autumnal ingredients. 
 

Here are some of my favourite JC recipes that fit the fest:

Turkey's normally the star of the show and and Denise Phillips’s tasty rolled turkey breast makes a delicious centrepiece. 

Fabienne Viner-Luzzato’s pastry-covered turkey Wellington takes an English spin with a Middle Eastern twist. It’s is filled with sweet figs, mushrooms and sticky sweet pomegranate molasses.

Pecans are a a must for Thanksgiving celebration and delicious on Sally-Ann Thwaite’s pecan-crusted salmon. It’s quick and easy and easy to make for a crowd. 

Pumpkins and squash are also a favourite and make brilliant main courses for vegetarians and vegans. Gennaro Contaldo’s sunny-coloured pumpkin parmigiana is hearty, warming and full of flavour. Mozzarella and parmesan will have cheese-lovers in raptures.

Vegetarian guests are also going to love Katie Pix's stuffed butternut squash which is packed with pecans as well as another Thanksgiving perennial favourite — cranberries. (Swap out the feta and it’s vegan-friendly.)

Getting to the sides, turkey’s always going to need a serving of stuffing and Amit Batito’s delectable lamb and apricot challah stuffing, packed with herbs and chestnuts is a winner. It’s so tasty you could serve it on its own and it’s a fantastic way of using up leftover challah – if there is such a thing. 

If you fancy a salad Rukmini Iyer’s fresh-flavoured broccoli, date, pecan and chilli salad is a winner. Plenty of crunch from the veggies and those all-important pecan nuts. 

Another lighter accompaniment is Denise Phillips’s sweet potato, pomegranate and pumpkin seed recipe is ideal. Ditch the goat’s cheese if you’re making it meaty or need a vegan option. 

Anne Shooter’s squash, spelt and basil salad also includes cranberries – another Thanksgiving favourite. The spelt makes it a hearty dish that’s a meal in itself or can be used as part of a festive buffet.

Sweet potato is definitely on point for Thanksgiving and what could be more festive than Sarah Mann-Yeager’s sweet potato latkes? And these are latkes done as dessert with a sweet cinnamon cream. If you like the look of them, make sure to bookmark the recipe for Chanukah celebrations.

No Thanksgiving celebration is complete without a pecan pie and we have more than one delicious recipe. Shiri Kraus’s maple pecan pie is a spin on her grandmother’s recipe. She and Shiri’s grandpa had pecan trees at their home in Israel and this pie was a speciality.

And Becky Excell’s gorgeously gluten free pecan pie means everyone can tuck in. (Use her gluten free pastry recipe or buy readymade to save time.)

If you’re not a fan of pecans then you may prefer this smooth as silk, pumpkin pie from Heather Thomas. You can make it with pumpkins or make life easier with a can of ready-made puree. 

For a heimish spin on the pumpkin pie theme, try Shiri Kraus’s challah spiced pumpkin bread and butter pudding which is far less faff than pastry but equally packed with the gorgeous, warming spices that have made their way into pretty much every coffee chain in the western world. 

And if you’re a cranberry fan, you’ll want to try Stacey Hart’s cranberry Bakewell loaf. All the nutty, fruity flavours of the tart but in a simple-to-prepare loaf.