Thanksgiving may be all about the turkey, but this week Brian Johnson from Texas Roadhouse joined us with some mouth-watering recipes for side dishes.

Green Beans
2 Cans Green Beans (drained)
2 cups Water
1 Tbsp Sugar
½ tsp Pepper
4 oz Bacon (raw diced) or Ham (cooked, diced)
4 oz Onions, diced
Using the colander, thoroughly drain green beans. Mix water, sugar and pepper until well incorporated.
Preheat your cooking pan to Medium High heat.
Using a cutting board and a knife, dice the raw bacon into equal size pieces. Place diced bacon into preheated cooking pan. Continually stir bacon with large spoon to keep the bacon from burning. Once bacon is cooked add the onions and cook until they are tender and light brown.
Now that the onions are tender add the liquid mixture and the beans. Using the rubber spatula stir the mixture until incorporated. Bring mixture to a boil and turn heat to simmer. Serve beans as soon as you are ready.

Baked Beans
You'll need an oven, knife, roasting pan, measuring cup, spatula, cutting board, colander
3 oz Bacon
3 oz. diced raw Onions
4 cans Baked Beans (drained)
4 oz Barbeque Sauce (your favorite)
1/2 tsp Black Pepper ½ tsp. Granulated Garlic
Step 1 Using a knife and a cutting board dice the bacon in to small same sized pieces and set aside. Using a different knife and cutting board dice your onions to the same small size pieces as the bacon. Heat a sauté pan on medium high heat until hot. Once hot, add the bacon and cook until done. Add the onions and cook until tender. Continuously stir to ensure no burning occurs.
Step 2 Once bacon and onions are done place them in the roasting pan. Add the drained baked beans, barbeque sauce, black pepper and garlic.Stir well to incorporate all ingredients. Cook in an oven at 350 degrees until the beans begin to bubble in the center. Remove from the oven and serve.

Mashed Potatoes
4 oz. Butter or margarine (butter preferred) 6½ oz. Milk
½ tsp. Salt
¼ tsp. Pepper
2 lbs. Idaho Potatoes
Thoroughly wash your potatoes in the sink. Peel your potatoes leaving the desired amount of skin on the potato. Remove all the skin if you would like. Using a knife and cutting board, cut the potatoes into smaller pieces. (This will allow the potatoes to cook more evenly and quickly).
Once all potatoes are cut place them in the large pot and cover with cold water. (Bring level of water to just above the top of the potatoes.) Bring water to a boil and turn down to medium heat. Cook potatoes until fork tender.
Once potatoes are cooked dump them into a colander to drain the water. After water has drained well place the potatoes back into the large pot. Add butter or margarine along with milk to the cooked potatoes. Mix well with wire whisk or electric whisk until the desired consistency is reached. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the salt and pepper and stir well to incorporate.
Options:
Cheesy Potatoes: At the end of step two add ½ to 1 cup of your favorite shredded cheese when folding in the salt and pepper.
Garlic Potatoes: At the end of step two add 1 to 1 ½ tablespoons of fresh chopped garlic when folding in the salt and pepper.

Beef Gravy
16 oz. of water
Beef base or bullion cubes (use amount recommended by the brand)
2 oz. of oil
2 oz. of flour
1/2 tsp. of black pepper
1/2 tsp. of garlic, granulated
Dissolve beef bullion or beef base into the water, set aside.
Place oil into sauce pan and heat on medium. Once oil is hot, add flour and keep stirring with wire whisk until the mix is a blonde color. Add the beef/water mix, until desired thickness is reached and remove from heat. Then add pepper and garlic and mix with wire whisk before serving.

Cream Gravy
16 oz. of Milk
1 oz. of Oil
½ tsp of Pepper
You’ll need 1 qt sauce pan, measuring cups, measuring spoons, rubber spatula, wire whisk, mixing bowl
Measure milk and set aside for later use.
Place oil in the sauce pan and heat on medium heat.
Once hot, add flour and continuously stir with the wire whisk until the oil and flour mix turns a blonde color.
When the flour and oil is a blonde color add the milk you set aside
Milk will thicken as you whisk it together with the roux.
When the desired thickness is reached, remove the sauce pan from the heat.
Add pepper to the gravy and incorporate with the wire whisk.
Options
Sausage Gravy: Using 4 oz. of sausage, cook the sausage in the sauce pan until done. Add the flour to the sausage and sausage grease and cook the mixture until it is blonde in color. Add milk and finish according to the recipe.
Hot Pepper Gravy: If you like your gravy with a little more kick add equal amounts of white (1/2 tsp) and black pepper (1/2 tsp)
Mild Pepper Gravy: Using the above recipe add 1 tablespoon of sugar to the milk reserved in step one. Stir well with the wire whisk to ensure the sugar incorporates with the milk.

Loaded Sweet Potato
2 lbs. Idaho Potatoes -
4 oz. Butter or margarine (butter preferred)
6½ oz. Milk
½ tsp. Salt
¼ tsp Pepper
Thoroughly wash your potatoes in the sink.
Peel your potatoes leaving the desired amount of skin on the potato. Remove all the skin if you would like.
Using a knife and cutting board, cut the potatoes into smaller pieces. (This will allow the potatoes to cook more evenly and quickly)
Once all potatoes are cut place them in the large pot and cover with cold water. (Bring level of water to just above the top of the potatoes.)
Bring water to a boil and turn down to medium heat.
Cook potatoes until fork tender.
Once potatoes are cooked dump them into a colander to drain the water.
After water has drained well place the potatoes back into the large pot.
Add butter or margarine along with milk to the cooked potatoes.
Mix well with wire whisk or electric whisk until the desired onsistency is reached.
Using a rubber spatula, fold in the salt and pepper and stir well to incorporate.
Options
Cheesy Potatoes: At the end of step two add ½ to 1 cup of your favorite shredded cheese when folding in the salt and pepper.
Garlic Potatoes: At the end of step two add 1 to 1 ½ tablespoons of fresh chopped garlic when folding in the salt and pepper.