I remember when I was a little kid that my Dad, along with all the other fathers in the neighborhood, would buy live fowl and would do the slaughtering themselves. Chicken, turkeys, ducks.

There was this one Thanksgiving approaching when one of my Uncle Alex’s sons was bitten by what we would call today, the intrapreneurial spirit. He bought and brought home from a farmer about a hundred live turkeys. He put them in his father’s backyard, and the yard didn’t need to be fence up; it already had a wire mesh fence all around. It really became a big backyard turkey coop. My cousin must have spent his calculated and imagined fortune from the coming sale of those turkeys many times over and over in his head.

Also, my cousin rigged up outdoor lighting for the night. The second night Uncle Alex thought it was a waste of money to burn all those lights all night long, so he switched them off. In the morning, all the turkeys were gone; they didn’t fly the coop; they had been stolen in the darkness of the night. My cousin gave his father (poor Uncle Alex) the silence treatment until Christmas that year.

–end of childhood Thanksgiving memory

Blog4Brains.com has a holiday surprise for you. What follows are four pie recipes from George Dorcheff’s famous TOPS cook book (long out of print) for your Thanksgiving dessert: Enjoy.

RECIPE #1 — CRANBERRY PIE DELUXE

4 cups fresh cranberries
1 unpeeled orange, seeded and quartered
1 apple, peeled, cored and quartered
1/2 cup seedless raisins
3 tablespoons cornstarch
2 cups sugar
1 cup water
1 baked pie shell, 12-inch or 2 baked 8-inch shells
3 egg whites
4 to 6 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup almonds, blanched, silvered and toasted

Put cranberries, apple, orange and raisins through food chopper. Combine chopped fruit, cranberries, mixed sugar and cornstarch and water. Cook over medium heat until thickened — about 15 to 20 minutes. Sir constantly to prevent sticking. Cool filling and pour into baked shell. Beat egg whites stiff, gradually adding sugar while beating. Pile meringue in ring around edge of pie and stick all over the almond silvers. Bake in slow oven 325 degrees F. until meringue is golden brown — about 15 minutes. Serves 12.

Recipe #2 — Pumpkin-Pineapple pie

1 1/2 cups cooked or canned pumpkin
2/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup cream or canned milk
1 cup crushed pineapple
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt

Combine ingredients and mix thoroughly. Pour into one deep pastry-lined pie pan or two shallow ones. Bake in hot oven about 25 minutes until filling is firm.

RECIPE #3 — Pumpkin Custard Pie

1 unbaked 9-inch pie shell
3 eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cups pumpkin, cooked or canned
1 1/2 cups scalded milk

Mix sugar, flour and spices. Add to eggs and mix well. Blend in pumpkin. Add milk gradually. Turn into unbaked 9 inch pie shell. Bake in hot oven 425 degrees F., for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 degrees F., for 50 minutes. For a special treat serve with whipped cream and a dribble of honey over the top. Or use Ginger Cream Topping.

Variation. Use 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice in place of nutmeg, allspice and cinnamon.

RECIPE #4 — Pumpkin Pie
(for real pumpkin flavor)

1 1/2 cups cooked or canned pumpkin
1 cup brown sugar
3 eggs
1 tablespoon flour
1 cup milk
2 teaspoons molasses
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt

To the strained pumpkin add the sugar and well beaten egg yolks (whites may be saved for other recipes or beaten with yolks). Mix well, add other ingredients. Pour into unbaked pie shell, bake in moderate oven until filling is solid.

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