Shoe, have I told you lately that you are and always have been one of my favorite people? My birthday was the 20th, Scorpio through and through no matter how close to the edge I am. And yes, I'm still celebrating.

I'll scarf up the veggies and maybe the oyster casserole, but you know what I just made tonight . . . me, the one who rarely ever cooks? Well, I made the very best black bean burgers along with a wonderful lemony garlic hummus spread, so I layered a bun with hummus, fresh little baby spinach greens, provolone cheese, a little sliver of sweet onion, thin slice of tomato and a sprinkle of smoked bleu cheese, topped it off with a black bean burger that was full of green pepper chunks. Yummmmy! With all that, who needs meat?

So you see, I make do. I'll be fine without the tur-duck-en.

Thank you, Shoe.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.

Happy belated birthday! Mine was the 20th as well. The hardest part is that it was also the birthday of a very much loved and lost part of my life, a catahoula named Mojo. He was just the best bad dog ever.
I did not think Thanksgiving would ever be a highly emotional day for me. I'm Canadian by birth so my sentimental memories and milestones of change happen at a different time of the year, but after being down here close to twenty years it has come to have great meaning. One should never forget an opportunity to be thankful I guess.
I am interested in your oyster casserole recipe! That sounds good. Must be the ritz crackers.
Happy Thanksgiving to all.

Happy Birthday, Sherri!!! If I am still celebrating, so can you! So sorry to hear about Mojo, hard to lose a beloved pet anytime, but a birthday petmate is special.

Oyster casserole. OK, here it is, straight out of my memory since I only do this once or twice a year.

Fresh oysters that are packed in water, I usually use two containers of them, and since I haven't purchased them yet I have no idea of the numbers or weight in those little containers. Anyway, by the time you are finished you'll have a regular 8" casserole filled with layers like this:

Oven 350F

*Butter the bottom and sides of the casserole dish.
*Drain the oysters and save the liquid
*Layer the bottom and sides of the dish with Ritz crackers, single layers, but OK to overlap. You want to cover a lot of the dish, sort of like a piecrust.
*Add a thin slice of butter onto each bottom cracker, very thin.
*Add a layer of oysters over the crackers and butter. Sprinkle with pepper.
*Add another layer of crackers over the oysters, repeat the thin slices of butter, then again oysters and pepper.
*Repeat until you've used all the oysters, then cover with another layer of crackers, slices of butter and pepper on top.

Then using your oyster liquid you saved, add 1/2 cup of it with 1/2 cup of milk. Pour carefully into the dish until the liquid appears up almost to the edge of the top layer of crackers. You might have to add more of the liquid mix, but just be sure you can see a glimpse of the liquid when looking at the top.

Another dash of pepper, maybe a sliver of butter or two on the top crackers, then bake for about 45 minutes to an hour.

The liquid soaks into the crackers and forms a soft bottom and side crust, but if you put the butter on top it forms a crispy crust on top and down about an inch on the sides.

Some people add minced onion, but I like oysters enough that I don't think they need any other flavor.

This is an old family recipe, sorry I can't tell you more specifics. It's all sort of guess work, but it's really a good rich dish.

I can't even tell you how long to bake it, but the crackers will begin to brown and the liquid will be bubbly at about 45 minutes. It almost has a pudding consistency so it's best to let it cool a little before serving it. It will be thick and can very nearly be sliced.

Oh boy, I'm the world's worst at writing remembered recipes, but I think this is right. I know there are no other ingredients, so it's just the layering that's important. And it's the combo of Ritz crackers and oysters that give it a unique flavor.

Luck with it, Sherri. I'd like to know how you like it.

Birthday(s) on the 20th! Yay! You both have a week of excitement then! Congrats!

Sharon, your bean burger sounds mighty fine to me! Especially with all the goodies you put on it. I used to make garbanzo burgers, usually with a peanut sauce. Your black bean burger sounds much better. As for one "who rarely cooks" I'd say ya did a meal justice tonight!

I just thumbed up, starred, and saved your oyster recipe to my Recipe File. Definitely have to make that sometime! Yummy! (Says Shoe who loves oysters so much he eats them raw, with a dash of hot sauce of course!)

Shoe

Shoe, I have a good recipe for black bean burgers too. I gave it to Ann a little while ago, I'll just copy it over to this thread too. It's pretty good. It's one I found somewhere online probably a year or so ago, but it's good.

Hang on, I'll be right back.

Black Bean Burgers

1 (16 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed (Somebody makes them seasoned, that's good too, just can't remember the brand that seasons them)
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped (or red or yellow, or even mixed)
1/2 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled and diced
1 egg
1 tablespoon chili powder (or a little less, depends on how much you like chili flavor, I don't use it if I use seasoned beans)
1 tablespoon cumin (I don't always have this handy, so sometimes it's left out)
1 teaspoon Thai chili sauce or hot sauce (up to you here, too)
1/2 cup bread crumbs (or more, but never less)

*If grilling, preheat an outdoor grill for high heat, and lightly oil a sheet of aluminum foil. If baking, preheat oven to 375 degrees, and lightly oil a baking sheet.

*In a medium bowl, mash black beans with a fork until thick and pasty (fork is better than potato masher).
*In a food processor, finely chop bell pepper, onion, and garlic. Then stir into mashed beans.
*In a small bowl, stir together egg, chili powder, cumin, and chili sauce.
*Stir the egg mixture into the mashed beans. Mix in bread crumbs until the mixture is sticky and holds together. Divide mixture into four patties.

*If grilling, place patties on foil, and grill about 8 minutes on each side. If baking, place patties on baking sheet, and bake about 10 minutes on each side.

And sometimes I fry them in hot oil, but they are a little crumbly unless you refrigerate the mix a few hours before frying.

Sometimes I make a bunch of patties and freeze them uncooked, and sometimes I freeze any I have leftover, but they're good no matter how you prepare them. I don't always use a food processor either, but it does make them hold together better, less crumbly.

I found this recipe online last spring, played around with it during the summer, but this is about the best of all I've tried. Sometimes I just throw them together with what I have, minced garlic, a little sea salt, whatever is on hand, they're really easy and very tasty.

Got a pretty good recipe for hummus too, but then most everybody makes hummus, I think. I just love it with black bean burgers.

I am not even American, and haven't even lived in this country all that long, but as soon as I came to the US for the first time (a LONG time ago) I adopted Thanksgiving as my favorite holiday. When we lived in Europe we always had a Thanksgiving feast, and I fondly remember an occasion where there were two Americans at the table, and everyone else was from a different country, to include Germany, Australia, New Zealand, England, The Netherlands and I've lost track of where else ....
I've had oyster stuffing before. Yours sounds yummy.
I'm making a vegan cashew nut loaf for the few vegetarian people coming to the party tomorrow. I've made it every year for some time now since it is a fast favorite. Since we're exchanging recipes.... here it is:

Vegan (Strict Vegetarian) Nut Roast à la PeTA
Ingredients:
The roast:
two tablespoons oil or margarine
2 large onions, chopped fine
5 cloves (or an entire bulb) garlic, minced
3 cups raw cashews
1 1/2 cups bread
1 cup soup stock (or water)
salt and pepper
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
2 tablespoons lemon juice
The "stuffing":
3 cups bread cubes, toasted
two tablespoons margarine, melted but not hot
1/2 to 3/4 cup finely-chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon marjoram
1/2 teaspoon sage
3 tablespoons parsley, chopped
salt to taste
(From the first list:) Cook the onion and garlic in the oil or margarine until tender, and remove from the heat.
Chop the cashews by hand or in a food processor; cut up the bread as well. Add the cashews and bread to the onion, then add the vegetable stock, salt and pepper, nutmeg, and lemon juice. Put half of this mixture into a small, non-stick loaf pan (or line a regular loaf pan with parchment paper if a non-stick pan is unavailable).
Mix together all the ingredients from the second list. Put the mixture on top of the stuff in the loaf pan, and add the rest of the first mixture so that there are three layers of food in the pan.
Place the pan on a baking sheet or in a larger loaf pan (in case it overflows while cooking), and bake at 400 degrees F for half an hour. The top should be browned.
Let the roast cool for a few minutes, then turn the pan over and serve the roast on a plate (or simply serve it out of the pan). Serve with gravy if desired, keeping in mind that it is a very rich dish.

Oh that sounds so good, Hetty. Maybe I'll try it for Christmas. Thank you so much for sharing it.

My oyster casserole isn't stuffing, I've actually never had oyster stuffing, but have often been tempted to try it. Nobody else in my family likes oysters now, though, only me.

Can't wait to try your vegan nut loaf. Sounds absolutely wonderful.

And Hetty, as an American, I adopted you a long time ago. Surely that counts for something!!
Happy Thanksgiving, your favorite holiday.

Thanks, Sharon!!

Cool! Thanks, Hetty, for sharing your recipe, too! I'll copy it down since I'm a former vegetarian, unable to give up veggie meals! :>)

Got the bean burger recipe in my file, too, Sharon. Thanks. Looks easy enough, too. I usually chop things by hand though (cus I'm too lazy to tear apart and clean food processor machines)! :>)

And yep, love hummus, too. Course now, I do need the processor for that so maybe I can use it and get double-duty out of it, washing it only once, eh? *grin

Shoe (off to bring in the firewood, finally turning cold again tonite)

We all need protein, Shoe, particularly the younger and the older we are. I eat eggs, seafood, peanut butter, lots of things to maintain protein levels. I just can't easily eat beef, pork, and those other kinds of red meats. It isn't a conscious choice, it's just me and my strange feelings about textures and flavors, i guess. Plus the memories of hogs and chickens and their demise left me a little rattled in that area as well.

'Course I've been accused of being strange in a lot of other areas.
Something about talking to my trees and arguing with my plants and standing in front of 10 feet tall gun totin' men who threaten to end the life of a 14 ounce stray kitten who got tangled up in his holly bush. But then that's another story for another time.

I swear, it's just the dreariest day out there. Again.

Happy Thanksgiving to all! My two Dutch Apple tarts and the Cashew Nut Loaf are cooling in the kitchen and I am now planning a leisurely bike ride. It's 75 degrees and delightful out!! Can you tell I am thankful for living in sunny Florida?

And Happy Thanksgiving to all of you!