Thanksgiving food

[pgrmdave]

So, Thanksgiving is coming up soon - I want to know what are your favorite foods? Do you have any spectacular receipes to share? Any unusual dish that is traditional to your family? What would be your perfect thanksgiving feast?

[Monomer]

I'm an Aussie so we don't celebrate Thanksgiving. However, a friend of mine married a guy from the US and he now lives here so we're going to celebrate Thanksgiving this year for his benefit. I'm looking forward to trying the food, especially the yams with marshmallows. But what is the deal with pumpkin? Why are there so many pumpkin dishes and why is it used in Thanksgiving desserts? Pumpkin cheesecake just seems wrong.

[Mercedes Benzene]

We go overboard for thanksgiving. Honestly. We have just about every traditional dish you can think of... plus a bunch of non-traditional meals that incorporate multiple cultures.

Usually we have a whole bunch of family over, but this year, I think it's just going to be myself, my mom, dad, and sister. Simple. Elegant. Yummy.

[pgrmdave]

mmmm - pumpkin cheesecake sounds delicious! Mercedes - what non-traditional food do you guys have? My meal tends to be very basic - mashed potatoes, stuffing, turkey, cranberry sauce, and a dish that seems to be specific to my family - pea salad (which consists of peas, pickles, sharp cheddar cheese, and mayonaise...it's much better than it sounds - really!)

[Mercedes Benzene]

Mercedes - what non-traditional food do you guys have?

 

Well last year, I remember we had black pudding (which would be Irish), and this really delicious lamb dish that was supposedly Moroccan in origin. I have not heard what my mom plans on making this year. :naughty:

[Jay-qu]

What a deliciously beautiful celabration it must be! pitty we dont recognise it. What is the origen of thanksgiving?

[Mercedes Benzene]

Basically, it started to thank God.

You see, the Pilgrims faced such a long hard journey over here to the U.S., that when they got here, and were able to yield a plentiful harvest... they celebrated. YAY!

[Mercedes Benzene]

Here's a little tidbit from Wikipedia that I think a lot of non-US people will find interesting:

 

Since 1947, or possibly earlier, the National Turkey Federation has presented the President of the United States with one live turkey and two dressed turkeys. The live turkey is pardoned and lives out the rest of its days on a peaceful farm. While it is commonly held that this tradition began with Harry Truman in 1947, the Truman Library has been unable to find any evidence for this. Still others claim that that the tradition dates back to Abraham Lincoln pardoning his son's pet turkey.[1] Both stories have been quoted in more recent presidential speeches.

 

In more recent years, two turkeys have been pardoned, in case the original turkey becomes unavailable for presidential pardoning. Since 2003 the public has been invited to vote for the two turkeys' names. In 2005, they were named Marshmallow and Yam (who went on to live at Disneyland); 2004's turkeys were named Biscuit and Gravy; in 2003, Stars and Stripes.

 

This is important in that, (1) it recognizes the ability of the President to grant pardons, and (2) it is reminiscent of the fact that the turkey was going to be the United States National bird. Thank goodness they decided against that and went with the Bald Eagle. :D

[InfiniteNow]

Why are there so many pumpkin dishes and why is it used in Thanksgiving desserts?

The quick answer is tradition.

 

Originally, especially when you consider the regions where the tradition arose, pumpkins (and squash and all manner of other gourds) were plentiful. I am pretty sure they didn't have supermarkets when the Pilgrims arrived in Plymouth, so they made use of what was available. Also, they took on a great deal of information from the natives, who had eaten pumpkin and corn for years. 1620 was an awfully brutal winter and like 40% of arrivals died, but that fall was a bounty crop, and they had a feast, which they shared with the natives.

 

Now it's evolved, and creative chefs, knowing how to live on what nature provides, generated new and delicious dishes (well, some not so delicious also). Those dishes provide the backbone of current family traditional meals, it's just that each have evolved slightly based on individual preference. The first feast likely did not have pumpkin pie, as the pilgrims had long since run out of flour, but they did boil pumpkins and eat them that way.

 

Let me ask you this... would you prefer plain boiled pumpkin, or pumpkin cheesecake? It's a nonchoice. :doh: B)

 

What is the origen of thanksgiving?

 

Per the above, it was first just a harvest festival (1621). It was not, however, repeated the following year. The year after that (1623) there was a really bad drought. The settlers/pilgrims got together and prayed for rain, and the next day (Dear God, are you there? B) ) they got a very long, much needed, steady rain. Since the "prayers were answered," the governor, William Bradford, proclaimed another day of Thanksgiving, and again invited natives to join them in the celebration. There was then a long hiatus before another celebration.

 

In 1676, the governing body in Charleston, Massachusetts voted unanimously to celebrate with thanks for the establishment of their community, but they did not invite the natives to celebrate with them.

 

Again, a bit of a break, as it was not until 1777 that it was officially celebrated since 1676 (circa June of 1777). Now,the celebration spread across all "13 colonies" of the Americas, and the thrust of the celebratation was motivated by recent victories in battles with the natives ("Indians") and also to celebrate a victory over the British at Saratoga.

 

Another year skipped, then in 1789, George Washington proclaimed a National Day of Thanksgiving (think National Holiday). Despite his leadership, some were opposed to celebrating nationally the difficulties a handful of pilgrims experienced 100 years ago. In fact, when Thomas Jefferson was president, he scoffed at the idea.

 

There was a woman, Sarah Hale, a magazine editor and strong proponent of the holiday, who is generally regarded as making the holiday happen so consistently for the last few centuries. She wrote editorials in a magazines and multiple letters to governors and presidents, and eventually, based partly on her advocacy, President Abraham Lincoln procaimed the last Thursday in every November to be a national day of Thanksgiving. There have been some slight changes in date, but every US president since has proclaimed the same, and in 1941 it was even sanctioned as a legal holiday by congress.

 

 

Happy gobble gobble.

 

B)

[InfiniteNow]

I want to know what are your favorite foods?

For me, I need stuffing (preferably with sausage, doesn't matter if it's cornbread or non).

I need mashed potatos (garlic, thyme, and heavy cream please).

I need apple cider (alcohol not even necessary).

 

After that, I really don't care. :doh:

[moo]

Turkey or chicken, cornbread stuffing, giblet gravy, a few green olives and I'm good to go. :doh:

 

But there's also usually a few veggie dishes (broccoli with cheese sauce, sweet potatoes, etc.), deviled eggs, stuffed celery (w/pimento cream cheese), cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie. And I usually manage to get my beak in just about everything by the end of the day. B)

 

moo

[Monomer]

Let me ask you this... would you prefer plain boiled pumpkin, or pumpkin cheesecake? It's a nonchoice. :) :D

 

:)

 

You got me there! In preparation for our Thanksgiving meal down under I made an Apple Upside-Down Gingerbread, for which I found the recipe at a Thanksgiving dessert website, to see if it would be any good, and it was very tasty. Best served warm with ice cream.

[InfiniteNow]

In preparation for our Thanksgiving meal down under I made an Apple Upside-Down Gingerbread, for which I found the recipe at a Thanksgiving dessert website, to see if it would be any good, and it was very tasty. Best served warm with ice cream.

That link rocks! I want to try... I don't know... all of them!?!

 

Glad you enjoyed it. :)

[Monomer]

That link rocks! I want to try... I don't know... all of them!?!

 

Glad you enjoyed it. :)

 

I would like to try them all aswell. And I have to say I'm quite impressed with what can be done with pumpkin. Very resourceful.

[Jay-qu]

I had roast pumkin last night mmmm :)

[Turtle]

I have a 22 pound turkey to cook, dressing to make, and mashed potatoes to prepare. Everything else, other people are either cooking here or bringing already prepared, & I keep the dishes washed and peel/chop/dice/open whatever I'm told (while 'beaking' the...uh...spoils.;) ).

 

We usually have cranberry sauce, baked rolls, salads, and cooked corn. I like scalloped oysters myself, but that aint happenin' here.:(

I used to stuff the bird, but anymore I bake the stuffing/dressing in a casserole dish and the gobbler empty. As it is, a 22 pounder is going to take about 6 hours. :singer: Once I have things going, I may slip away and have a bite with those who eat earlier than we do. :ud: Off to see if that turkey is thawed yet because nothing like a frozen center to screw up the cooking time! :D Happy feasting. :cup:

[Turtle]

The bird went in to bake 40 minutes ago at 325° F. Nothing fancy, just rinsed, damp-dried, salted and into the oven. :ebomb:

 

I prefer to make my own dressing and here's that bit.

In a medium to large pot combine 1 diced onion, 2 or so cups chopped celery, turkey gibblets (heart, liver, gizard, neck), 1 teaspoon Kosher salt to start, and enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, reduce to simmer, and cook 1 to 2 hours or until meat on the neck is tender. Remove from heat, and remove the gibblets. Clean meat from neck bones and return the meat to the pot. Either eat the other parts as you work, or dice them and return to the pot.

 

Two days ago I cut a loaf of french bread into broad slices which I let dry in a warmed oven. While the broth is cooling, break up the dried bread into pieces and place in a large bowl. Using a straining spoon, collect the celery, onion, and meat from the broth and add it to the bread chunks. Add 2 eggs to the mix. With a large spoon, slowly mix the ingredients while pouring in broth. When the mix has a texture of moist firmness, it is ready to bake.

 

Either stuff your bird with the mixture or place it in a covered casserole dish to bake. :) :eek: