I tend to be the kind of person who loves to try to make things from scratch.

When I was planning my turducken menu a few weeks ago, I knew I wanted to serve a autumn-ish dessert.

Urbana resident Patty Smith sent me this recipe for Chocolate Cream Pie, an updated version of her Grandma Jo's.

"I remember it as always being a special treat at Thanksgiving," Smith wrote in her email. "How (did) she ever had time to do everything, plus make this pie?"

Farmer City resident Karen Wisegarver sent me this delicious-looking recipe, which she originally got from Mr. Food. She said it's a great alternative to a standard green-bean casserole.

JoAnne Geigner is an Urbana resident - she's also the spokeswoman of the Urbana school district, which I cover.

My mother-in-law, Mary Dickinson of Loda, has been making this appetizer for about as long as I've been coming around for holidays.

Recently, I was looking for pumpkin-flavored desserts to serve with my

This month, I am hoping to run a Thanksgiving-related recipe post every day until Thanksgiving.