13 Cooking Hacks To Make Your Thanksgiving Dinner Delicious And Easy

[Karen]

This is my own - never peel butternut squash* raw again! Yes, it is annoying, and time consuming, especially with the curves. Never boil it, as you lose some of the taste in the water! Baking in takes a while, and

One year I decided to try this and it worked perfectly. Cut the narrower part of the squab into slices, about and inch and half or so thick - just keep them all about the same thickness. Then halve the bottom "bulb" part, scoop out all the seeds and stringy stuff, then cut those in half again.

Place 4 of the slices in a microwave safe dish - I use a pyrex baking pan. just plunk them in there, cover the pan with plastic wrap and microwave - I usually start at about 6 minutes on high, then see where we are, and keep going until they are "fork tender," it really depends on the year and the water content how long this will take. When the "slices" are done, dump them onto a plate or anything, and let them cool a little, while you do the same thing with the bottom quarters - they usually take a bit less time.

Once they have cooled a bit, the peel tears right off, easier than a banana peel! Then I usually add a bit of brown sugar, butter, and several generous shakes of cinnamon, beat with a mixer, and viola! Done! (Quantities of these ingredients depend on the size and quantity of squash, sorry!)

*works for other winter squashes, too, but this is the Thanksgiving thread. Always have butternut on Thanksgiving!

[Catty1]

I won't have that many potatoes - but if I did, I might run the dishwasher with a good whack of vinegar first before I washed the potatoes. And I'd keep them in the upper rack!

[Lady's Human]

I won't have that many potatoes - but if I did, I might run the dishwasher with a good whack of vinegar first before I washed the potatoes. And I'd keep them in the upper rack!

It wouldn't matter, the area between the agitator and the lower arm and pump intake is a harbor for all sorts of stuff, which gets flung around as it contacts the spinning spray arms. The smaller stuff gets sucked in and sent up to the spray arms, which is why you occasionally get clogs in the arms. The pump intake finally grinds the stuff up small enough to get through the screen.