Thanksgiving Countdown

 The W's are very interesting in all of my Thanksgiving preparations.  They rarely take their eyes off of me as I cook.  Who knows, something could always fall to the floor.

 Ms. Smiles and Mr. Grumpy....what a pair.

 The turkey gravy is made....8 Quarts.  The Blog Tech said I could drown someone in it.  It's a lot of gravy but I like to send some home with each guest.  Leftovers have to have gravy. This will be frozen until the day before Thanksgiving.

 I made the cranberry relish for the table.  I canned the relish for the guests a few weeks ago.

 I'm at that place where I have so much to do but it is still a little early. To burn off some energy, I've been making pomanders.  They are so easy and they smell so good.  All you do is stud an orange with some cloves in any pattern you choose.

 Roll them in a combination of cinnamon, nutmeg, ground cloves, allspice and mace.

 Let them sit on your counter until thanksgiving.  I place them in my centerpiece on the table.

 I made these Maple Brown Sugar cookies to add to the dessert table.

They are topped with gold sanding sugar.  Here's the recipe:

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter melted and cooled
• 1 1/2 cup brown sugar tightly packed
• 1/3 cup maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon maple extract
• 1 large egg
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• White and gold sanding sugar for rolling and sprinkling

Instructions

• Melt butter in large, microwave-safe bowl and allow to cool completely.
• Stir in brown sugar and maple syrup until completely combined.
• Stir in vanilla extract and maple extract.
• Add egg and beat until well-combined.
• In separate, medium-sized bowl, combine flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
• Gradually (about 1/4 of the mixture at a time), add the flour mix to the butter mixture and stir until completely combined.
• Chill in refrigerator for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
• Once dough is about 30 minutes from being ready, preheat oven to 375F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Scoop dough into round 1 1/2" scoops.  Roll in or sprinkle lightly with granulated sugar and bake for 10-12 minutes.
• Allow cookies to cool completely on cookie sheet.

 *  I roll them in white sanding sugar and then top them with the gold sugar.