These Foods Are Always Present At A Chrisley Family Holiday - Exclusive

There are a few foods that we here in America can simply take for granted when putting together a traditional holiday feast. For example, Americans eat about 46 million turkeys on Thanksgiving Day, according to Insider. And 22 million more are eaten on Christmas, via the University of Illinois. (Well, we cook that many, anyway — the leftovers last well after, of course.) And sides like green beans, mashed potatoes, and glazed carrots are so quintessentially a part of these holidays that they might as well supplant American pie in popularity. But then again, every family also has their own foods to which they look forward to, some of which are usually predicable, while others are entirely specific to their clan.

During a recent exclusive Mashed interview with Todd and Julie Chrisley, the heads of the family featured on the long-running reality TV show "Chrisley Knows Best," we learned that, for them, holiday feasts are a mix of the traditional and the family faves.

"We're very traditional," said Julie Chrisley. "So we always have turkey. My homemade cornbread dressing is probably a favorite at our table ... and I do a sweet potato soufflé. Everyone loves my macaroni and cheese. So very Southern, full of carbs."

"I think the one thing for me is probably the dressing, the cornbread dressing and turkey," Todd Chrisley added in. Julie agreed that would be a favorite of Nanny Faye's as well, referring to Todd's mother, who is a regular part of the family and a main character in every season of their show. "And she makes an amazing gravy that just like clogs your arteries when you look at it," Todd said. "So I think that's probably my favorite [too]!"

So, when it comes to holiday foods, Todd Chrisley loves turkey and a gravy so rich it's bad for the cardiovascular system, while Julie Chrisley is taken with all manner of Southern-style dishes, aka the more carbs the better. But what about the next generation of Chrisleys? Asked about the favorite holiday foods of their kids, it turns out there is a lot of crossover.

"I think [for] Chase that would be the cornbread dressing and turkey and gravy. And ... [Julie's] carrot cake. The kids all love that and have for their entire lives. They love the sweet potato soufflé. My mother loves this congealed salad that Julie makes with bananas and pecans and whatever. But you would be hard-pressed if we invited you over for dinner for you to say you didn't love everything that she put on the table," said Todd. 

Julie then went on to explain just why she loves so many of the more traditional holiday foods, and it turns out it's not so much about American tradition, but it's more of a family thing. "I incorporate things that I had growing up from my grandmother, my mother, and Todd's mother, early on, and then the things that my children love. They have their favorites that they always know that mom's going to have at [he holidays]."

Check out "Chrisley Knows Best" streaming on Peacock and on USA.