Tag: Thanksgiving

Pho Gobble

One of the biggest quandaries of Thanksgiving is what to do with the turkey carcass. You could keep picking away at the scraps of meat until the bones are clean. My preferred way of dealing with the carcass is to make turkey carcass soup. In past years, the soup has been standard turkey noodle; however, …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2022/11/29/pho-gobble/

Spatchcock that Turkey

It’s been a while since I’ve made turkey on Thanksgiving. Last year we made duck, then for several years before that we went to friends’ houses for the holiday. This year we hosted two other couples and made the turkey. I’m not wedded to the Norman Rockwell idea of an intact turkey, perfectly browned, coming …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2021/12/03/spatchcock-that-turkey/

Thanksgiving, Warts and All

The Thanksgiving story we were told in elementary school was a myth. As a descendent of the Pilgrims on my father’s side of the family, the myth is coded deep in my DNA. A hardy group of settlers land in the New England wilderness and manage to survive their first year with assistance from the …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2021/11/26/thanksgiving-warts-and-all/

Duck for Thanksgiving

I wrote a short story with this title when I was in 8th grade. The main character’s mother was highly adventurous in the kitchen. This was in contrast to my mother, who had to feed three finicky kids and didn’t dare cook outside the lines. I don’t remember the full story, but the last sentence …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2020/11/27/duck-for-thanksgiving/

The Least Favorite Tradition

Thanksgiving is associated with a variety of traditions in our home. The bread- and pie-baking. The cranberry-orange relish getting ground up in the food processor at the crack of dawn. The cooking SOS phone calls from friends. My least favorite Thanksgiving tradition? The last-minute mad dash to the grocery store to pick up some essential …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2020/11/25/the-least-favorite-tradition/

Today’s Feast

Thanksgiving is time for tradition with a twist. I made the usual cranberry-orange relish. I also made applesauce. Most of the apples were Braeburns, but I tossed in a Pink Lady and a Fuji that were languishing in the fruit drawer. This year’s twist: Later on I’ll roast some delicata squash, using a method I …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2018/11/22/todays-feast/

Giving Thanks

Thanksgiving is still my favorite holiday. While it’s difficult for some to conjure up reasons for gratitude in these times, I’m an optimist. Here is my list for this year: I’m thankful to live in this country. I believe our democracy has the resilience to withstand the current chaos. It’s survived a full-scale Civil War, …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2018/11/22/giving-thanks/

This Year’s Thanksgiving Contributions

As usual, we’re spending Thanksgiving with some of our Friday Night crew. Our host is doing the turkey and some of the trimmings. I offered to make the traditional cranberry-orange relish, plus some bread for the festivities. After some research in the collection, I settled on a challah recipe that had onion rolls as a …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2017/11/23/this-years-thanksgiving-contributions/

Happy Thanksgiving 2016

While I’m waiting for stuff to happen in the kitchen (bread to rise, apples to cook down), I grab a cookbook and browse. Today I picked Marcus Samuelsson’s The Soul of a New Cuisine. Samuelsson is an Only in America story: Orphan in Ethiopia gets adopted by a Swedish family and becomes a successful restaurateur in …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2016/11/24/happy-thanksgiving-2016/

Thanksgiving Rituals

After many years at this, we’ve got this Thanksgiving thing figured out. Since we usually go to friends’ houses for the holiday, we don’t need to worry about the turkey. Julian makes the key lime pie in the wee hours of Thanksgiving morning. When I get up, I make the cranberry relish(es) and any other …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2015/11/26/thanksgiving-rituals/

Load more