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I received an e-mail from Senator Al Franken (D. MN) and his wife Franni that inspired me to write a Thanksgiving themed diary. Franken is a very influential figure for me in terms of both comedy and politics. Lies And The Lying Liars Who Tell Them is one of my all time favorite reads and of course I'll be ready to fight for him in 2014. But onto the email.
Franni Franken sent out an e-mail that's filled with delicious family receipts that you can make for tomorrow's Thanksgiving dinner with the family and friends. Here they are:
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AUNT CARLA'S PUMPKIN CORNBREAD
It is impossible to just have one piece. Be sure to make it the night before so you can have some with your Thanksgiving morning coffee.
Ingredients
2 cups cornmeal
2 cups white flour
1 cup sugar
2 tbs. baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs
2 1/4 cups pumpkin puree
1 cup milk
Procedure
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine all the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
3. On the first speed of a hand or standing mixer, beat together the eggs, oil, pumpkin puree, and milk.
4. Fold the wet ingredients into the dry in three batches with a rubber spatula. The batter will be smooth, and is more fluffy than liquidy.
5. Pour the batter into a 9 by 13 baking pan (or two loaf pans), and place in the middle rack of the oven.
6. Bake for 25 minutes, or until a cake tester or toothpick stuck in the middle of the cornbread comes out dry.
7. Let the cornbread cool for ten minutes, and then cut into pieces and serve.
THOMASIN'S ROASTED BUTTERNUT SQUASH
Ingredients
1 large butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1 in. cubed chunks
3 tbs. unsalted butter, cut into small chunks, plus more for greasing the pan
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 tbs. light brown sugar
Preparation
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. Grease a cookie sheet, and scatter the squash chunks on it.
3. Evenly spread out the chunks of butter among the squash, and sprinkle the cinnamon and brown sugar evenly on the squash.
4. Roast in the oven for about 40 minutes, or until the squash is tender. You can poke the squash with a cake tester, a fork, or a small knife to test.
FRANNI'S PUREED BUTTERNUT SQUASH
Ingredients
1 large butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1 in. cubed chunks.
3 tbs. unsalted butter
salt and pepper to taste
Preparation
1. Bring the butternut squash chunks to boil in a saucepan.
2. Turn the heat down to medium, and let cook until the squash is tender, approximately ten to fifteen minutes.
3. Drain the squash, and mash with a masher or a hand mixer.
4. Add the butter and salt and pepper to taste.
AL'S WILD RICE STUFFING
It's great alone, but Thomasin loves mixing it up with peas, mashed potatoes, and gravy.
Ingredients
1 lb. Wild rice (Mahnomen)
one stick butter
ten cloves of garlic
3 medium sized yellow onions
4 stalks of celery
2 lbs. White button mushrooms
salt to taste
Preparation
1. In a colander, rinse the wild rice.
2. Put the rice in a pot, and cover with 3 inches of water. Boil in a pot, uncovered, for about 20 to 25 minutes. If you're using Mahnomen wild rice, it will cook more quickly than the paddy variety.
3. While the rice is boiling, slice (do not mince) the mushrooms, onions, garlic, and celery.
4. Melt the butter in a skillet, and sauté the onions, garlic, and celery until they begin to bleed a little liquid into the butter. Then add the mushrooms. The celery and onions should not be totally soft.
5. Once the rice has cooked, drain it and add to the sautéed vegetables.
6. Add salt to taste, and stuff into the turkey before roasting. The rest can be eaten as a side dish at dinner.
And this last one is to have the morning after Thanksgiving:
FRANKEN FAMILY POST-THANKSGIVING TURKEY SANDWICH
This is my favorite use of left over turkey.
Ingredients
2 slices of rye bread
1 tsp unsalted whipped butter
turkey breast
2 iceberg lettuce leaves
salt to taste
Preparation
1. Spread unsalted whipped butter on the rye bread.
2. Sprinkle on salt.
3. Place turkey and lettuce on top of one piece of bread, and place the other piece ofbread on top.
4. Slice in half and enjoy!
Thank you Mrs. Franken for the recipes!
I will be having more diaries soon. I am currently working on a diary about why Senator Saxby Chambliss (R. GA) is the GOP Senator I loath the most so be on the look out for that one. I will continue to focus on Senate races coming up but I also plan to have some diaries focused on the upcoming Governor's race in Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania is my home state and I always go back home to visit family and friends in both Pittsburgh and Philadelphia plus I have a lot of family members that went to Penn State (I went to Temple University) so this upcoming governor election is a personal one. I will be reaching out to @bfbarbie and @CasaBlancaPA and other anti-Corbett activists on Twitter to help provide source material for my upcoming diaries. @bfbarbie and @CasaBlancaPA are the Twitter activists Corbett tried to subpoena in 2010.
I am hoping that I won't have to write a lot of diaries about the upcoming Minnesota Senate race and this article from The Hill gives me a sense of optimism:
http://thehill.com/...
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Franken could prove to be tough to beat, however. The former Saturday Night Live star has assiduously worked to establish himself as a workhorse rather than a show horse in the Senate since his narrow recount victory over Sen. Norm Coleman (R-Minn.).
Franken has refused most interview requests from national media outlets and publicly tamped down his funny side while focusing on constituent services. Most recent polls show him in a fairly strong position for reelection in the Democratic-leaning state, with an approval rating around 50 percent.
“Sen. Franken loves his job representing Minnesota in the U.S. Senate, and looks forward to making his case to his constituents to serve them for another 6 years,” Franken spokesman Ed Shelleby told The Hill.
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Another factor: Minnesota’s state Republican Party, while in better shape than it was a year ago, remains in disarray. The party still has a large level of debt, though it’s slowly paying it off, and Ron Paul backers hijacked the party’s conventions last spring and nominated one of their own over the establishment’s preferred candidate to challenge Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.). That candidate, state Sen. Kurt Bills (R), won just 31 percent of the vote.
Republicans are considering revisions to their nomination process, changing the tradition of the state party choosing its nominees at a convention to having an open primary. - The Hill, 11/17/12
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I guess if there is one thing I have to give thanks for it's Ron Paul's supporters causing hilarious chaos within the Minnesota GOP. Lets see how that convention idea goes. The Republican candidates mentioned are Reps. Erik Paulsen and John Kline, former Senator Norm Coleman, Hennepin County Sheriff Rich Stanek, former state Rep. Laura Brod and of course... Michele Bachmann. But there's no way in hell the Minnesota GOP is going to allow that to happen, hence why they want to change their nominating process from a primary to a convention.
It's still early and Franken may not have to be one of the seats that we have to spend a lot to defend by why not throw him some fundraising cash as a way of saying Happy Thanksgiving to the Franken Family:
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https://secure.actblue.com/...
I wish all of here in the Kos community a very happy and safe Thanksgiving!