Newsletter: Get ready for Thanksgiving and Stir up Sunday

Thanksgiving is coming – and we’ve got you covered

The American holiday of Thanksgiving falls on the fourth Thursday of November – this year November 24. Its origins lie in various days for thanksgiving across US history, and since the 1800s has become established as a date that brings families across the US together. Cooking for a crowd brings its challenges, even before you factor in everyone’s expectation of the special meal. Fear not, we’ve got everything you need to keep everyone happy.

If you like your Thanksgiving dinner traditional, check out our Thanksgiving 101 for all the turkey advice you could need and more. Josceline Dimbleby will help you with Carving Roast Turkey, and you'll find recipes for the Classic Roast Turkey.

We’ve dedicated a collection to Thanksgiving Side Dishes that Make the Meal. Find Candied Sweet Potatoes, among several sweet potato recipes. For the essential stuffing – try Vangie’s Famous Thanksgiving Stuffing. We recommend Lou Seibert Pappas’ Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes from Thanksgiving; her book devoted to recipes for the holiday meal.

Are you scratching your head over what to cook for the vegetarians in your life? Bettina Campolucci Bordi’s book Celebrate is filled with flavor-packed plant-based ideas for special occasions. Try her Plant Nut Roast with Cavolo Nero and Apple & Cranberry Compote. Find this and nineteen more celebratory ideas in our Vegetarian Thanksgiving collection.

Dessert will of course be pie. But if you are looking for something to add to your groaning table, try one of our Thanksgiving Desserts Every Which Way. Who couldn’t find room for Sour Cream Butter Cake with Pears and Raspberries?

Find more than 80 Thanksgiving side dishes

Pictured above: Bourbon Pecan Pie from Around the World in 80 Dishes by David Loftus

Get ready for Stir up Sunday

This year the last Sunday before advent falls on November 20. A moment in many households across the UK when spirits lift, as the Christmas pudding is prepared and Christmas aromas raise anticipation of the holiday to come.

But whether you get stirring this weekend or not, we want your preparations for the big day to be stress-free and fun.

In our new feature The Twelve Shoulds of Christmas, food historian Annie Gray encourages us to prepare for a truly enjoyable Christmas by taking an irreverent approach to tradition and each doing it our own way.

New to ckbk this week Gray’s latest book At Christmas We Feast is a hugely entertaining and informative exploration into the origins and lore of our favorite – and some less palatable – Christmas dishes.

For a historical take on Christmas cookies, try Another Christmas Cookey, a cardamom-spiced delicacy from Amelia Simmons’ 1796 cookbook American Cookery. Or Gray recommends switching up your traditional plum pudding for Elizabeth Craig’s fruity alternative Banana Plum Pudding. If trifle is more popular in your house, try its precursor, the Tipsy Cake.

For all those planning a more traditional Stir up Sunday try Christmas Pudding from Gray’s How to Cook the Victorian Way.

We also recommend the Traditional Christmas Pudding from Le Cordon Bleu.

Find more than 120 Christmas Pudding recipes

Pictured above: Christmas Pudding from The Official Downton Abbey Christmas Cookbook by Regula Ysewijn

Festive Gifting for the Early Birds

Treat the food-lover on your Christmas present list with the cookbook collection of their dreams. A ckbk Premium Membership gives unlimited access to more than 650 cookbooks. For a limited time, you can use code EARLYBIRDGIFT for 25% off 6- and 12-month gift subscriptions.

The recipient will get full access to the world’s greatest cookbooks, classic and new, cover-to-cover and ultra-searchable, and the subscription will only start when they claim their gift.

Do you have several food-loving friends? You can easily buy a bundle of ckbk gift subscriptions at this special rate — just select the number you want during checkout.

We’ve got notifications!

With so much happening at ckbk, it isn’t always easy to keep track of what you might have missed. Our new notification feature gives you a range of options for staying up to date. From new cookbooks and features, to collections, comments and questions, you can personalize what, when, and how you keep informed.

Read more about ckbk’s New Notifcations Feed.

Join our Christmas cooking demo with
Le Cordon Bleu chef Yannick Anton

We’ve teamed up with Le Cordon Bleu to help you get ready for the party season. Join us on November 28 where Chef Yannick Anton from Le Cordon Bleu in Ottawa will show you how to make two fantastic canapés.

Chef Yannick will prepare Red Mullet and Tapenade on Toast a perfect savoury snack that takes less than 30 minutes. He’ll also make Creamed Roquefort and Walnuts, another easy family party favorite.

Both recipes are from the Le Cordon Bleu Home Collection series; cookbooks making the skills and techniques of the world-famous Le Cordon Bleu chefs accessible to any home cook.

After the demonstrations you will have the wonderful opportunity to put your questions about any aspect of holiday cooking to Chef Yannick. Simply join the livestream or email them to us in advance at hello@ckbk.com with ‘Christmas Cooking’ in the subject line.

Sign up for the free livestream and Q&A on Monday November 28, 2022 (6pm UK / 1pm Eastern / 10am Pacific).

👨‍🍳 Reserve your place our Christmas Cooking Livestream 👨‍🍳

What to cook now: pecans

The pecan nut is native to North America, and although milder in flavor, is related to the walnut. They are similarly extremely versatile. Like all nuts, roasting will bring out the flavor.

They make a delicious snack served on their own, try these Fried Spiced Candied Pecans. Scatter them across savory dishes for a crunchy treat, as in the classic combination of Pear, Pecan and Blue Cheese Salad. And of course, don’t forget them come dessert. We recommend this Butter Pecan Brittle Ice Cream, and all the recipes in our 12 Ways with Pecans collection.

Who could forget the glory that is pecan pie? A sweet classic, we don't think you can have too many. So we have put together twelve in Our Pick of Pecan Pies! This year why not try making yours with a twist; how about Bourbon Pecan Pie, or Maple Pecan Pie, or combine two great seasonal pies with this vegan Pumpkin Pecan Pie.