Thanksgiving dinner: the highlight of my year. It's a day we celebrate and do nothing but eat. How awesome is that? Making all the food necessary to feed an army--aka, my family--takes a lot of work and can be quite stressful. One thing I've learned in college is that the best way to cook stress-free is with a wonderful thing called, the Crock-Pot. So, here are my top suggestions for Thanksgiving dinner, via Crock-Pot.

Pumpkin Dump Cake:

Pumpkin pie is a staple for Thanksgiving dinner, but what about putting a little twist on it? Dump cakes are one of the easiest desserts I’ve learned to make in a Crock-Pot. The name says it all: just dump your ingredients in, and turn it on! Here’s a recipe for a pumpkin dump cake:

Ingredients:

1 cup white sugar

2 (15 oz) cans pumpkin puree

1 Tbsp pumpkin pie spice

1/2 tsp salt

1 (18.25 oz) white or yellow cake mix

1/2 cup butter

Cinnamon

Instructions:

1. In the bottom of a slow cooker, combine the sugar, pumpkin puree, pumpkin pie spice, and salt. Stir.

2. In a separate bowl, combine the cake mix and the butter. Use a fork or a pastry blender to cut the butter into the cake mix until butter is pea sized and cake mix is crumbly. Sprinkle the cake mix on top of the pumpkin puree.

3. Sprinkle cinnamon on top of the cake mix.

4. Place a double layer of paper towels on top of your slow cooker. Place the lid over the paper towels and make sure the lid and towels are secure. Cover and cook on LOW for 3-4 hours or on HIGH for 90 minutes-2 hours. After this initial time, remove the lid and turn to WARM. Let sit on WARM for 20-30 minutes and then serve with vanilla ice cream!

Mashed Potatoes:

Mashed Potatoes are easy to make as a beginner, but did you know they’re even easier to make in a Crock Pot? Boom! Here’s how:

Ingredients:

5 pounds Russet or Yukon Gold Potatoes

3/4 cup butter, divided and cut into small pieces

3 cups water

salt and pepper, to taste

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened

3-4 Tablespoons milk

Instructions:

1. Peel and cut potatoes into 1-inch pieces. Rinse cut potato pieces in cold water.

2. Grease a large (6-8 quart) Crock-Pot with non-stick cooking spray. Place the cut potatoes into the Crock-Pot. Season with salt and pepper. Pour in the 3 cups water, then dollop tops of potatoes with 1/4 cup of the butter.

3. Turn Crock-Pot on HIGH. Cover with lid and cook potatoes for 4-5 hours at minimum. Potatoes are ready when they are fork tender.

4. Carefully drain hot water from Crock-Pot, keeping the cooked potatoes inside. (Or, dump everything into a colander and put potatoes back in the Crock-Pot). Add remaining butter, cream cheese, and milk. (Add milk depending on how thin or thick you like your mashed potatoes)

5. Mash potatoes with a potato masher or fork until there are no lumps left, and all the butter and cream cheese is combined. Season potatoes with more salt and pepper, if desired. Serve and enjoy!

Sweet Potatoes:

I don’t know about you, but one of the dishes I look forward to most at family holidays is my grandmother’s sweet potato casserole; it’s so good, it should be considered a dessert! While this is a little easier to make than her recipe, it’s just as good! Well, almost – no one cooks like grandma!

Ingredients:

2 (29 ounces each) canned sweet potatoes

1/4 cup butter, softened

2 tablespoons white sugar

Pinch of salt

2 and 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 tablespoon orange juice

2 large eggs

1-2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 cup milk, I used whole

Topping

3/4 cup pecan chips

2/3 cup brown sugar, lightly packed

1/4 cup white flour

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

¼ c. butter, melted

Instructions:

1. Either line your slow cooker with a disposable liner or spray inside generously with nonstick spray. (I use a 6 quart slow cooker for this recipe.)

2. Drain canned sweet potatoes. Add sweet potatoes, butter, white sugar, pinch of salt, brown sugar, and orange juice in the slow cooker.

3. In a small bowl, lightly beat eggs with a fork. Pour the lightly beaten eggs, vanilla extract, and milk into the slow cooker.

4. Beat (inside Crock-Pot) until mixture is completely smooth. (Alternatively, you can beat all of these ingredients in a different bowl before transferring to Crock-Pot.)

5. Smooth mixture inside Crock-Pot) with a rubber spatula.

6. In a small bowl, stir together all of the "topping" ingredients. Spread topping mixture evenly on top of smoothed sweet potatoes.

7. Cover the Crock Pot and cook on high for 2 and 1/2 to 4 hours, depending on how hot your slow cooker cooks.

Turkey:

Last, but not least: the turkey. They don’t call it "Turkey Day" for nothing! To avoid a horror story of burning the house down via trying to fry a turkey, here’s a sure fire way to have a delicious meal without all the hassle!

Ingredients:

3 Tablespoons butter

1 small onion, chopped

1 large carrot, chopped

1 celery stalk, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

2 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth

1/2 cup water

2 sprigs fresh thyme or 1/2 Tablespoon dried

2 bay leaves

6-7 pound bone-in, skin-on turkey breast

salt and pepper

Instructions:

1. In a large, nonstick skillet, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add chopped onion, carrot, celery, and garlic. Cook mixture until vegetables are tender and slightly browned, about 10 minutes.

2. Stir in flour and cook 2 minutes, or until flour is golden and has coated the veggies. Slowly whisk in the broth and water. Add thyme and bay leaves.

3. Pour this mixture into large (7 to 8 quart) Crock-Pot.

4. Season the turkey breast with salt and pepper. (Being careful not to over-salt--use more pepper than salt.) Place turkey in the Crock-Pot, breast side down.

5. Cover and cook on low heat for 5 to 7 hours, or on high heat 5 to 6 hours. (The internal temperature of the turkey breast should be 165 degrees.)

6. Carefully transfer the turkey breast to a 9x13 inch baking pan. Tent with foil and let rest while you prepare the gravy.

7. Strain leftover liquid in Crock-Pot into a medium saucepan. Let it sit for 5 minutes, then skim any fat from the top surface. Bring gravy to a simmer and cook 15 minutes, stirring often, until it is slightly thickened. It won't get extremely thick (this is a thin gravy). You can add a bit of cornstarch and water (1 Tablespoon cornstarch mixed with 1 1/2 Tablespoons water) to thicken it more if you'd like. Season gravy with salt and pepper, if needed.

8. Carve the turkey and serve with gravy. Enjoy!

There you have it, ladies and gentlemen. Thanksgiving dinner can be as easy as that!