Thanksgiving is not all about the turkey. Everyone knows that the side dishes are the real star of the show. That being said, there are still some of those old side dishes that seem to show up year after year. We all have that relative that brings the odd dish to dinner. It is a part of our thanksgiving but it is one that we would like to see disappear. Here are some of those recipes that need to be on that list.

1. Cranberry-Mayo-Jell-O Candle Salad

We all know that cranberry is part of thanksgiving but perhaps gelatin should not be part of the mix. In this recipe, you mold it into cylinders, “garnish with real mayonnaise,” and then top it off with a candle. You are supposed to eat around the wax but yeah, it needs to go.

2. Pork Cake

Pork cake seems to have been born out of a kitchen that didn’t have any butter or eggs. It first showed up in the November 1922 issue of Citrus Leaves, a magazine published by Mutual Orange Distributors of Redlands, California. You will find one cup each of brown sugar, molasses, ground lean salt pork, buttermilk, and raisins, plus flour, baking soda, and a bouquet of spices in the mix. The one thing that doesn’t make the recipe is how to make the cake.

3. Creamed Onions

It seems as if this recipe has disappeared to a certain extent. It sometimes was poured over the turkey to keep it moist, but that is the job for gravy. The recipe, which included cream, cheddar cheese, and butter in addition to tiny onions, so it is not the healthiest choice.

4. Turkey Salad in a Festive Ring of Jell-O

This comes from an old Jell-O ad that said you should use the leftover turkey in a sea of cranberry gelatin. It didn’t do as well as they hoped.

5. Suet Pudding

England doesn’t celebrate Thanksgiving but they have done their part to add to the tradition. Suet pudding, which is essentially solid beef fat was a popular part of English dinner tables. The Delineator magazine gave this recipe that included flour, spices, milk, and finely chopped suet blended into a buttered mold.

6. Giblet Gravy

Yes, there are some families who actually make use of the giblets but, for the most part, they are discarded. In fact, there is evidence that eating them is not the best option. If you don’t want to mix the giblets into the gravy, then don’t forget to take them out of the bird before the roasting starts.

7. Hot Dr. Pepper

It seems as if Dr. Pepper was trying their best to come out of a slump in sales during the 60s. Their solution? Hot soda. It was served with lemon but it is anything but ‘deliciously different‘.

8. Jellied Turkey-Vegetable Salad

If your idea of salad is a concoction of turkey, gelatin, frozen mixed vegetables and condenses soup, this this recipe might be for you. It’s outta here for the rest of us.

9. Deviled Ham Stuffing

Underwood Deviled Ham gave us this unique recipe in a 1912 ad. It had us mixing their canned meat with celery, apples, bread crumbs and walnuts before stuffing it in the turkey.
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