Open thread: All things Thanksgiving

30th November 2009

Open thread: All things Thanksgiving

posted in Food Culture, Rachel, Recipes |

I think there exists some kind of cosmic law of nature wherein the weekend passes at an exponentially faster rate than do the weekdays. I took a much-needed few days off this weekend from both the Internet and work and I’m still wondering where the time went. I hope everyone survived Thanksgiving and indulged in the bounteous feast without a heaping side of guilt. I have some great news to share soon, but for now consider this an open thread to discuss your Thanksgiving experiences. Did you hear the endless ruminations of “Ugghh, I ate way too much!”? Does your family have any particular traditions or time-honored family holiday recipes you prepare? Have any suggestions for what to do with Thanksgiving leftovers? Gobble, gobble away…

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1 On November 30th, 2009, Sandy said:

My family has pretty much scattered to the winds when my grandmother passed away so I am always swept up with my ILs traditions. Their main tradition is playing a card game called Dalmuti. I never play so I can’t explain it. lol

I have taken it upon myself to make a 3D turkey cake on Thanksgiving as a new tradition. I also try to make some kind of pie…this year I learned my grandmother’s recipe and made a Pecan pie. His family didn’t really try it, kinda hurt my feelings…but it is all good as I get the whole yummy thing to myself.

posted on November 30th, 2009 at 12:59 pm

2 On November 30th, 2009, JennyRose said:

I would have tried your pie Sandy.

I had a great time with the part of my family I enjoy most. The food, which I did not cook, was wonderful and yes, I did eat a bit more than usual. We all did. So what!

I also met my friend for coffee in the morning and that helped ground me.

You are so right about the way the time passes on the weekend. Is it Monday already?

posted on November 30th, 2009 at 2:52 pm

3 On November 30th, 2009, SteveD said:

Freeze Em! Learn to buy smaller turkey next time.
Go out to Eat. Have somone else do the cooking (what I did).

I remember last year. Ate so much Turkey I wanted to Gobble. For years we have been buying Smoked Turkey from Local Meat Market. Slice and dice it for Sandwiches and everyone takes some home (it’s great tasting too).

Only downside is Cost (45 for 10-12 lb). But no mess and great turkey. Smoked Ham is great too.

This year I am thinking about Cooking one for Christmas. Hopefully I will sober up on that one.

SteveD

posted on November 30th, 2009 at 2:53 pm

4 On November 30th, 2009, D said:

My friends and I had a “Very Vegetarian Thanksgiving.” Our meal consisted of baked macaroni and cheese, garlic mashed potatoes (with almond milk), edamame, salad, and dark chocolates. Yum, haha! Also, my boyfriend of 3.5 years and I just broke up 4 months ago, and on Thanksgiving we got back together. So, I am very thankful for love and mac and cheese!!!

posted on November 30th, 2009 at 3:17 pm

5 On November 30th, 2009, Bree said:

I ate like usual on Thanksgiving. The food was good and there was only four of us, plus my brother and his new wife joined for us for a little bit before heading up to another family dinner. The one good thing about not being married is you’re under no obligation to attend everyone’s feasts! I never have to cook Thanksgiving dinner, as I always go to my mom’s, which I did this year, or my aunt’s, which we passed on because she had over 30 people at her house.

posted on November 30th, 2009 at 3:23 pm

6 On November 30th, 2009, Twistie said:

Sandy, I would absolutely have tried you pie! Pecan pie is delish in the extreme, particularly when homemade.

My Thanksgiving tradition consists mostly of waking up on Thanksgiving morning and making pumpkin pies. I always make two: one for the dinner and one to eat for breakfast and dessert over the next couple days. Everything else is more or less negotiable, but I must bake pies.

This year I also resurrected a traditional dish my mother made (well, it was traditional in my family when I was growing up). I found the recipe hiding in between the pages of a cookbook I hadn’t opened up in a great many years, and it felt like a gift. The dish? Patrician Potatoes. No, I don’t know the history of the name, but damn! these spuds are yummy!

Basically, you boil and mash potatoes; stir them up with sour cream, cottage cheese, salt and pepper; put them in a baking dish; drizzle with melted butter; sprinkle with toasted almonds, and back for about half an hour.

Mr. Twistie got the happiest look on his face eating those potatoes. He said they tasted just like my mom’s did. That was a moment to be thankful for.

posted on November 30th, 2009 at 4:10 pm

7 On November 30th, 2009, Laura said:

I discovered pecan pie this Thanksgiving- absolutely delicious. My mother’s veggie lasagna (for my brother, I love meat) and potatoes were delicious, as were the 50 million desserts we bought.

Trying to get back into eating healthy. It’s hard. It was a great Thanksgiving though. I have a lot more to be thankful for this year than I did last year… or at least I can recognize more that I’m thankful for.

posted on November 30th, 2009 at 11:06 pm

8 On December 1st, 2009, Charlotte said:

I got together with some friends and had a lovely Thanksgiving. We ate awesome food, played Apples to Apples, and watched a Christmas movie. And there was lots of laughter. It was a good day.

posted on December 1st, 2009 at 1:07 am

9 On December 1st, 2009, Alyssa (The 40 year-old) said:

It was a mellow day, just me, Hubby and the kids. But there were lots of tantrums thrown and messes made, so it was a little rough, lol!

posted on December 1st, 2009 at 1:42 pm

10 On December 2nd, 2009, *e* said:

This year my parents decided to throw Thanksgiving at their house. Though the rest of the family was invited, they decided to stick to the normal tradition of going to my aunt’s house. So, instead of the usual 25+ people get together it was just five of us, and it was so much more intimate and so much better. I say we make this the new tradition!

posted on December 2nd, 2009 at 10:25 am

11 On December 3rd, 2009, Heather said:

Well, since I have reverted to Islam, I no longer celebrate Thanksgiving because these kinds of holidays aren’t really anything to celebrate about (the massacre of hundreds of millions of native Americans since the first settlers came is one of my personal reasons). But we used to sit together at my grandmother’s house and eat turkey and sweet potato smashed and something fatty added to it (it tastes awful) and mashed (white) potatos and stuffing.
I was surprised to find out that November 27th was Eid ul-Adha, a type of celebration we Muslims do (I believe there are only two Eids, one after Ramadan and this one – I’m still new so I am unsure). On this Eid (and only on the 10-12 days of Dhu al-Hijja), there is something called Qurban, it is when an animal (goat, sheep, cow, or camel) is sacrificed as a symbolic repetition of Abraham’s sacrifice of a Ram instead of his son (and the tradition is to let the animal live with you for some time before you slaughter so you have the same emotion of losing something, like losing a son). Well, we didn’t do that but it sounds very interesting. Some people just pay money for a random goat to be sacrificed and given to the poor (which is supposed to be done either way), but there is no emotion. God doesn’t need blood or flesh, it was the intention that Abraham would give up the one thing he loves most in the world in faithfulness to God and the pain of losing it.

Anyway, I think it is nice that we Muslims remember this moment between Abraham and his son and God…

Anyway, on Eid we actually did eat turkey But not an entire roasted one though, one that was cooked in pieces mixed with a spicy greenish curry. And they served chicken too so I was the only one there putting turkey and chicken on the same plate saying “it’s all good!”

It was nice and it was a feast but much much lighter (even the mashed potatoes was light) so I don’t have to worry about gaining anything from that feast… Except the banana pudding I made.. that probably added something lol..

I swear I love this banana pudding recipe so much I wanna make everything-pudding. It’s so easy when you make a custard with flour, milk and condensed milk..

On my husband’s birthday, I am dying to bake him a home made chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting and chocolaty glaze.. Found the recipe online and it looks delicious and fatty.. lol. Mmmmmmmmmmmm.

I would like to know if you know any good vegetarian curry recipes or pasta or stir fry recipes that don’t include tofu or meat substitute (I just want pure veggie goodness)… I have been watching your blog for over a year now and it’s so nice.. I know I didn’t say before, but I am sorry for the loss of your kitty and I am glad you found someone who would help fill the void but not replace. I love cats very much, so much that anything that is mean to cats I “hate” – very very very much dislike (dogs, raccoons, mean people, etc).

I hope everything is going well and I read your new post, I totally think you should try watching the workout videos again because even if she is a sell out now, she is still an inspiration in those DVDs – right? Those DVDs are from a time she was an inspiration and it should stay. Good luck with everything.