Thanksgiving Recipes

This post is packed with all of our favorite Thanksgiving recipes. For us, it is all about traditional recipes and the fond memories that surface with every scrumptious bite. Included are roasts, side dishes and delectable desserts! We hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

Meat Options:

Sirloin Tip & Top Round Roast (Serves 8 -12 )
I stumbled upon this technique and adjusted for grass-fed/finished buffalo. After years of experimenting with various marinades and cooking temperatures, I finally found the perfect method. Trust this recipe – you will love the results!

Ingredients:

1 – 3 lb. Top Round or Wild Idea Sirloin Tip Roast
2 – tablespoon olive oil
2 – teaspoon salt
1 – tablespoon black pepper

Optional seasonings:

2 – teaspoon dried or fresh thyme & rosemary, chopped
1 – teaspoon garlic powder
1 – teaspoon onion powder

2 - cups buffalo broth
1/4 - cup sherry

Preparation:

• Pre-heat oven to 500°.
• Rinse roast and pat dry.
• In a heavy roasting pan or cast iron pot, rub the roast with olive oil.
• Mix the seasonings together and rub into roast.
• Place the roast uncovered into the hot oven and drop the temperature to 475°.
• Roast for 13.5 minutes, then turn the oven off. DO NOT OPEN OVEN DOOR!
• Leave the roast in CLOSED oven for 2.5 hours. DO NOT OPEN OVEN DOOR!
• Remove roast and place on a cutting board. Place the pot on the stove top over medium high heat. Add the buffalo broth to the pot and bring to boil, scraping bottom to remove roasted bits. Reduce the hit to simmer. Finish the au jus with the sherry and season to taste. 
• Slice roast into thin slices or in thicker slabs. (*Optional re-warming: Keep your slices closely together and wrap in foil. Place wrapped roast in 400° oven for 10 minutes.)

Pass with hot Au Jus and horseradish sauce or Wojapi.

*This roasting time produces a tender, medium rare roast. If you like your meat  less rare, increase your hot cooking time. Also, pouring hot Au Jus over meat will rewarm and cook the meat a bit more.

Leftovers make great Roast Buffalo Sandwiches, French Dips or Philly Steak Sandwiches.
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Buffalo Pot Roast (Serves 6 to 8)
Nothing represents “comfort food” better than a traditional pot roast. Wild Idea’s 100% grass-fed, rich and slightly sweet Bison Roast, braised until tender and juicy, nestled in a bed of potatoes and carrots, and covered with pan gravy, says it all!

Always a favorite, but this savory, one-pot meal is a wonderful way to welcome the fall!

Ingredients:

1 – 3 pound Wild Idea Buffalo Chuck Roast
2 – tablespoons olive oil
2 – teaspoons sea salt
2 – teaspoons black pepper
2 – teaspoons garlic powder
2 – teaspoons thyme, or two to three sprigs fresh thyme *I use half fresh & half dried.
1 – teaspoon rosemary, or one to two small fresh sprigs *I use half fresh & half dried.
1 – teaspoon oregano, or one sprig oregano *I use half fresh & half dried.
2 – onions, 1 diced and 1 quartered
1 to 2 tomatoes, coarse chopped
5 – cups buffalo broth, or vegetable or organic beef stock
6 – potatoes, quartered
3 – celery stalks, quartered
4 to 6 – carrots, peeled and quartered
½ - cup red wine
1 – tablespoon corn starch, or more if needed

Preparation: 

• Preheat oven to 225°. Rinse bison roast, pat dry and remove the netting. *Removing the netting is optional. I usually remove for this preparation, so I don’t lose the seasoning if removing after cooking.
• Mix all the dried seasonings together. Rub the roast with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and the dried seasonings.
• In a heavy pot over high heat, heat the remaining tablespoon of the olive oil. Place the seasoned roast into the hot oil and brown for 5 minutes. Turn the roast three times, searing for 5 minutes each turn. *Positioning roast up against the pan sidewalls will help in browning the whole roast.
• Move the roast to the side and add the chopped onions, lifting the roast so onions cover the bottom and stir occasionally. Allow the onions to cook for about 5 minutes. Place the roast in the center, on top of the onions. 
• Add the chopped tomatoes around the roast and pour in the stock. Let the stock come to a full boil, then cover and turn off the heat.
• Transfer covered roast into the preheated oven on the middle rack. Braise the buffalo pot roast for 6 hours.
• During the last half hour of cooking, turn the roast over. Add the potatoes, pushing them down into the juices. Cover and increase heat to 375°. Cook the potatoes for 15 minutes.
• Add the celery, onion, and carrots. Cover and cook for an additional 15 minutes. Check the vegetables to ensure they are cooked through, but still slightly firm. Continue to cook for a few more minutes if needed.
• Remove the pot roast from the oven, and transfer the roast and the vegetables to a cutting board or platter. Cover with foil.
• Place the pot with the juices on the stove top over medium high heat. Bring to a boil. Mix the cornstarch into the wine, and whisk into the bubbling pan juices. If the gravy is not to your desired thickness add more wine/cornstarch mix, until desired consistency is achieved. Season to taste.
• Carve roast and pass with gravy and crusty bread.

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Optional Fruit Sauces for Meat:

Wojapi (A fruit sauce that the Native people served with meat or bread)

Ingredients:

2 - lbs. chokecherries, buffalo berries or plums
¾ - cup water
1 ½ - cups sugar, or honey or maple syrup to taste
*optional, 1- teaspoon salt & pepper

Preparation:

• Boil all ingredients together and simmer until desired thickness. Thicken with a little cornstarch if desired.

Wild Turkey Fruit Sauce  

Ingredients:

1 - tablespoon butter
¼ - cup green onion, finely chopped
½ - teaspoon salt
1 - teaspoon black pepper
¼ - cup chokecherry or plum jam
¼ - cup Wild Turkey Bourbon or other whiskey

 Preparation: 

• In saucepan over medium heat, melt butter.
• Add green onion and cook for 3 minutes.
• Add salt, pepper and jam, stir to incorporate liquidizing jam.
• Increase heat to medium high and add whiskey. Bring to a boil.

Serve hot over bison, poultry or wild fowl.

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Sides:

Jill’s Favorite Mashed Potatoes (Serves 10)

The trick of pulling some of the moisture out of the potatoes at the end, is key to the fabulous end results.

Ingredients:

2.5 lbs. organic Golden Potatoes, washed
8 - tablespoons butter
2+ - cloves garlic chopped
2 - teaspoon sea salt
1 - tablespoon black pepper

Preparation:

• Boil potatoes in water until tender.
• When potatoes are tender, drain water from the pan and return potatoes to burner over medium heat for 5 to 10 minutes, rotating potatoes occasionally so the bottom ones will not burn. This pulls the excess moisture out and will give you fluffy potatoes!
• Melt butter with garlic and seasonings in microwave. Place potatoes in bowl and mash with a hand masher. Add the seasoned melted butter. Mash together using electric mixer. Season to taste and serve.

Savory Buffalo Sausage Stuffing:

Ingredients:

8 – tablespoons butter
2 – tablespoons olive oil
1 – 1 lb. Wild Idea Buffalo Chorizo, Italian or Breakfast Sausage
1 – onion, diced
3 – stalks celery, sliced
2 – teaspoons dried sage
2 – teaspoons dried thyme
1 – teaspoon ground fennel
1 – teaspoon salt
1 – tablespoon pepper
1 – 16 oz. bag herb seasoned stuffing
2 - cups organic chicken stock

 Preparation:

• In heavy skillet over medium high heat, heat butter and olive oil.
• Crumble in sausage. Then add the onion, celery and all of the dried seasonings. Sauté for 8 minutes.
• Add herb stuffing and stir to incorporate.
• Slowly add your stock. Mixture should be moist and hold together.
• Transfer stuffing to a buttered casserole dish and bake in pre-heated oven for 45 minutes.

Delicious with turkey, buffalo or by itself.

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Dessert Options: Pumpkin or Pecan???

Jill's Pumpkin Pie
For custard style pies, I have learned that pre-baking the crust partially will aid in keeping the crust flaky. You may also need to cover the top of the crust half way through baking the pie, to keep it from over browning. It's a little extra effort, but so worth it!

Pie Crust (Makes 2 – 10” deep-dish pie crusts)

Ingredients:

3 – cups flour, plus a bit more for rolling
½ – teaspoon salt
1 – tablespoon sugar
¾ – lb. salted butter, chilled and cut into pieces, plus a little more softened for buttering the pie pan 
1 – egg, beaten
1 – teaspoon cider vinegar or lemon juice *I use half of each.
2 – tablespoons cream
1 – ice cube

dried bean, rice or pie weights

Preparation:

• Pre-heat oven to 450°.
•  In mixer using pastry blender, mix flour, salt & sugar.
•  In small dish, beat eggs. Add vinegar and cream and mix well. Add ice cube to mixture to keep cold, and allow ice to melt almost all the way. 
• Add chilled butter to flour mixture until incorporated.
• Slowly drizzle in egg mixture.
• Remove dough from mixer with floured hands, shape into ball and cut in half.
• Press dough into disk shape with your hands and place dough onto floured parchment. Top dough with additional floured parchment and roll out.
• Transfer dough to buttered pie pan carefully. Press lightly into pan, crimp edges and pierce the dough randomly with a fine pronged fork, about 8 times.
• Chill the piecrust for 30 minutes in the refrigerator.
• Lightly butter foil or parchment and place buttered side down on top of piecrust, shaping foil in piecrust shape without disturbing the edges. Fill the lined crust with dried beans, rice or pie weights.
• Place in 450° pre-heated oven and bake for 25 minutes.
• Remove piecrust from oven and gently remove liner. Return the piecrust to the oven to allow the bottom to brown, about another 10 minutes.
• Remove from oven and allow crust to cool slightly before filling.

Pumpkin Pie Filling
A few extra ingredients for a richer, creamer filling. Enjoy.

Ingredients:

3 – eggs
1¼ – cup dark, pure cane brown sugar, packed
½ – cup sour cream
½ – cup heavy cream
¼ – cup pure maple syrup
1 – teaspoon vanilla
1 – tablespoon cinnamon
1 – teaspoon ginger
1 – teaspoon allspice
4 – cups pureed pumpkin or canned pumpkin 
*Yams or butternut squash can be used too. 

Preparation:

• In a mixing bowl, beat the eggs. Add the remaining ingredients in the order that they are listed, with mixer running. Stop occasionally to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl. Mix until well incorporated.
• Pour pumpkin mixture into prepared piecrust.
• Bake at 350° for 75 minutes. Increase heat to 450° and bake for an additional 15 to 20 minutes.
• Remove pie from oven and allow to cool for 2 hours before serving.

Grandma Hittle’s Pecan Pie
Our good friend and ranch assistant Gervase Hittle is a Pecan Pie master!

Ingredients:

4 – eggs
¼ – pound butter, softened
2 – cups dark, pure cane brown sugar, packed
2 – teaspoons pure vanilla
1 – lb. pecans, halves or whole *I used 8 oz. of each.

Preparation:

• In mixer, beat eggs. Add remaining ingredients in order and mix well to incorporate.
• Pour into prepared piecrust. 
• Optional step: Place pie in a 1” water bath.
• Bake pie in a 350° oven, for 55 to 60 minutes. *I had to cook it for about 15 minutes longer.
• Remove from oven and allow the pie to cool for 2 hours before serving.