Good Day Atlanta's Thanksgiving side dish challenge recipes

Image 1 of 9

In honor of Thanksgiving, the Good Day Atlanta family competed in a side dish challenge Wednesday morning... and the competition was fierce! 

Celebrity Chef Kevin Gillespie joined us to judge each dish, and dubbed Ron Gant's sweet potato casserole the winner.

Here's a complete list of the recipes featured on the show:

Alyse Eady's Corn Casserole

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 (8 ounce) box Jiffy Corn Muffin mix
  • 1 (15 ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
  • 1 (15 ounce) can creamed corn (not drained)
  • 1 cup sour cream
  • 1/4 cup (Half a stick) melted butter

DIRECTIONS:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  2. In a bowl, mix all of the ingredients together and pour into a greased baking pan.
  3. Cook uncovered for 45 minutes or until lightly browned.

Buck Lanford's Cheeseburger and Fries Casserole (8 to 10 servings)

INGREDIENTS:

  • 2 lbs lean ground beef
  • 1 10 3/4 ounce can condensed golden mushroom soup 
  • 1 10 3/4 ounce can condensed cheddar cheese soup 
  • 1 20 ounce package frozen, fried crinkle-cut potatoes

DIRECTIONS:

  1. In a large skillet, cook the ground beef, half at a time, until brown. Drain off fat. Place the cooked meat in the bottom of a 13x9x2-inch baking dish.
  2. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the condensed golden mushroom soup and the condensed cheddar cheese soup. Spread over the meat in the casserole.
  3. Sprinkle the frozen crinkle-cut potatoes over the top of the casserole.
  4. Bake in a 350 degree F oven for 45 to 55 minutes or until the fries are golden. Garnish with suggested hamburger toppings, if you like. 
  5. Optional: when dish is done, you can sprinkle chopped tomatoes or green onions over top for color. 

Recipe courtesy of FOX 5 viewer Danny Musgrove

Constance Jones' Cornbread Stuffing

INGREDIENTS:

  • Onion
  • Celery
  • Pepper
  • Salt
  • Sage
  • Chicken Thighs (with bone)
  • Loaf of bread
  • 4 boxes of Jiffy Cornbread

DIRECTIONS: 

  1. Bake Jiffy cornbread and toast 3 slices of bread per 1 box of cornbread. (3 boxes of cornbread usually serves family of 4)
  2. Boil chicken thighs, 3 celery stalks and half of a yellow onion in water. Season the broth with salt, pepper and sage to desired taste. Add water as needed.
  3. After chicken is fully cooked, remove and discard the bones and skin. Leaving the cooked chicken, broth, celery, and onion.
  4. In a separate large mixing bowl, Crumble and mix the toast / cornbread combination.
  5. Add the broth combination to the cornbread combination. Hand mix until you get the consistency of dry cake mix. Taste test the mixture for desired taste. Add water if there's too much seasoning or add more seasoning if necessary.
  6. Pour the mixture in a baking pan and bake on 350 for 45-60 min. 
  7. Remove and let it sit for 15 minutes then serve.
  8. Voila!!

Joanne Feldman's Super Easy Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Crumble (credit: pinchofyum.com) (Serves 8 as a side)

For the sweet potatoes:

  • 3 cups (1 29-ounce can) sweet potatoes, drained ½ cup melted butter ⅓ cup milk ¾ cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2 beaten eggs
  • salt to taste

For the topping:

  • 5 tablespoons melted butter
  • ⅔ cup brown sugar
  • ⅔ cup flour
  • 1 cup pecan pieces

DIRECTIONS: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mash the sweet potatoes and add the melted butter, milk, sugar, vanilla, beaten eggs, and a pinch of salt. Stir until incorporated. Pour into a shallow baking dish or a cast iron skillet.

Combine the butter, brown sugar, flour, and pecan pieces in a small bowl, using your fingers to create moist crumbs. Sprinkle generously over the casserole. Bake for 25-35 minutes, until the edges pull away from the sides of the pan and the top is golden brown. Let stand for the mixture to cool and solidify a little bit before serving.

Katie Beasley's One Pot Mac & Cheese

INGREDIENTS:

  • 16 ounces elbow macaroni noodles
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 1 quart heavy whipping cream
  • 16 ounces* of various cheeses shredded: gouda, sharp yellow cheddar, 6-cheese Italian (could also use mozzarella, white cheddar, American) *Calls for 16oz, but you can never have enough cheese!*
  • Half a box of Cheez-It Crackers

DIRECTIONS: Cook noodles in a large saucepan, with salt; drain in a colander. Stir butter into hot noodles. In the same saucepan, heat the whipping cream over medium heat. Just before it gets to a boil, whisk in the cheese one handful at a time. Continue adding cheese, whisking constantly, until the mixture is melted and thick. Remove from heat and stir in the cooked macaroni. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and a pinch of garlic salt. Top with crushed Cheez-it crackers.

Best served right away. If reheating before serving, add a splash of cream, mix well, then top with crackers.

Paul Milliken's Crockpot Cheesy Corn

  • 3 bags (16 oz each) frozen corn
  • 11 oz softened cream cheese
  • ¼ cup butter
  • ¼ cup water
  • ¼ cup milk
  • At least 6 slices of cheese

DIRECTIONS:

  1. Throw everything in the crockpot. 
  2. Make sure to mix it all together, especially the slices of cheese and the butter, both of which you can cut up into smaller pieces. 
  3. Cook on LOW for 3-4 hours.  

APP USERS: Watch "Cooking with Paul" on Facebook

Ron Gant's Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan and Brown Sugar Topper (16 servings)

  • 2 lbs sweet potato (Equivalent to 4 large sweet potatoes) 
  • 4 large eggs
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • 4 tablespoon unsalted butter
  • 4 teaspoon lemon juice
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

TOPPING: (Adjust upwards or downwards depending on how much topping you like – the amounts below will prepare enough to drizzle on to pudding but not completely cover ) 

  • 1 cup packed brown sugar
  • 2/3 cup flour
  • 6 tablespoon butter softened
  • 1 cup chopped pecans

DIRECTIONS

  1. Cut sweet potatoes cross wise in to 1-inch chunks and boil covered approximately 20-25 minutes, until very tender.
  2. While potatoes are boiling, whisk together in a bowl: Eggs, white sugar, milk, heavy whipping cream, unsalted butter, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.  
  3. Drain sweet potatoes. (Peel if desire is to have without skin…like Ron!). Puree in a food processor OR mix with an electric mixer until very smooth. (NO LUMPS if you are anything like Ron!)
  4. ADD the whisked egg mixture and continue to blend with mixer until completely smooth and blended. Pour into a butter rubbed baking dish (9 inch is typical, but not required ) 
  5. TOPPING: Mix together the brown sugar, flour and pecans. Add the softened butter and mix together.  Spread across the sweet potato mixture in the baking dish.  
  6. Bake at 350 for 20-25 mins. (OPTIONAL: Turn oven on full broil for last 2-3 minutes for a crispier topping. Keep an eye on it so that it does not char too much!) 
  7. ENJOY! LIKE RON!