We hosted Thanksgiving Dinner on Sunday - Husband and I, our two daughters and their guys, our two grandchildren (7) and (2), two sisters, one brother-in-law, one niece, one great-nephew, one cousin about to join his wife and baby son in Moscow, and one neighbour friend. We switched the living and dining room furniture to accommodate everyone around the table. We had sun and shirtsleeve weather. So we visited outside and in the porch before and after dinner.
I had snacks/light lunch waiting at 2:00 pm: a bowl of seasonal fruit and a platter of dried fruit and nuts, a cheese and cracker board plus a variety of nachos and flatbread with antipasto, a plate of raw veggies, plus a stunning loaf-shaped pie with a chestnut mushroom onion sage and cranberry filling. Beer, wine, tonic, pellegrino, juice, limes etc for drinks.
Then for the dinner feast:
A 23.5 lb beautiful turkey, savory stuffing, gravy (proclaimed 'epic' this year)
Individual baked savory stuffings for vegetarian sister and daughter plus a large casserole of the delicious sweet stuffing for everyone (butternut squash, maple syrup, onion, sage, toasted pecans, dried cranberries, dried bread cubes, vegetable broth: yummy!)
Mashed potatoes
Sister's roasted veggies and tahini sauce, and her green beans and almonds
Daughter's new wonderful beet salad plus her kale recipe to which we added to my garden chard
Cousin's fab salad and dressing
Neighbour's little biscuits and butter
Other sister's pumpkin pies and whipped cream
Niece's lemon squares and incredible vegan hazelnut cookies
On Tuesday, I made broth from the carcass so the freezer is stocked and ready for soups and stews. Meanwhile, I don't have to cook for the rest of the week because there are so many leftovers. Well, Wednesday I did make my mom's easy leftover turkey casserole which we will finish tonight: layer turkey, leftover veggies, potato and/or stuffing; pour on the leftover gravy/broth and put in hot oven; when bubbling, unroll Pilsbury crescent roll dough and cover casserole; bake as per crescent roll directions. Husband and I just got over bad colds so I am all for an easy week. Otherwise everyone is fine, including our son's family out in Victoria. Mom is having a few health issues. But she is getting some physiotherapy this week and we hope she will be fine soon. Of course, she is 98. We also heard from our Thanksgiving friend who moved to live with her family in St. Lucia a few years back. She is 95, and still remembers to get in touch with us every year. We all have fond memories of sharing Thaksgiving with her. That is what Thanksgiving is for, isn't it? Sharing the bounty.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Monday, October 10, 2011
Thanksgiving prep
The first week of October was almost completely wiped out by a virulent cold that came on after I had an upper respiratory reaction to having the house sprayed for carpenter ants on October 1. All attempts other than pest control failed to get rid of them and they eat your house so we had to do something. At 9:00 a.m. we drove down to our old home town to see some dear friends. Twelve hours later, three times the necessary absence, we arrived home and by midnight my head was stuffed and my throat scratchy. Nonetheless, we went down to NOTL on Sunday to meet niece, grand nephews, and great grand nephew and niece for a tasting at Hillebrand and lunch at Corks. It was cold and rainy. I tried not to breathe on anyone. Otherwise a grand time was had by all. Monday was a complete write-off...down for the count.
On Tuesday night I took the postponed trial tango class at Blueheel dance studio. My teacher, CIro, was very good. I don't think he gets that I want to study tango not to be able to dance at parties, but to get moving and to study the form. Anyway, I signed up for four more private lessons and two practice sessions over the next two months. I hope he didn't get the cold.
For the rest of the week, I was too fuzzy-brained to do anything. I could not go near Mom, of course, and my granddaughter was sick too. No dance class for her on Thursday. I tried to shop late on Friday afternoon. However, I just spent hours in grid-locked traffic in this little burg. What the heck was going on? Holiday weekend traffic, I guess. That made it imperative for me to do a major shopping on Saturday. Well, this is how that day of Thanksgiving prep unfolded:
Started laundry
Showered and dressed.
Harvested the garden for butternut squash, tomatoes, sweet & hot peppers.
Drove to the market - argh! No cash. Off to the bank - Back to the market for tomatoes, Bosc & Bartlett pears, northern spies & gala apples.
Next stop, Bulk Barn for salted & plain roasted almonds, walnut pieces, a few licorice cigars & candy pumpkins, dried apricots & rolled oats.
Canadian Tire for sealer jar lids & cleaning products.
On to ECS Coffee for a variety of Tassimo cups & Koo loose teas.
QEW to Costco for the great deals on old cheddar, goat cheese & Brie plus a few other necessaries.
Last stop Longo's to pick up the turkey. Ordered 18-20 lbs but it came in at 23.5 lbs. Filled the cart with fruit and veg, crackers, ice cream, whipping cream, coffee cream and various other items indulged in only for holidays.
Came home to finish landry, put the groceries away, and had a cup of tea, feet up.
Took a break for an hour at Carrigan Arms, to say Happy Thanksgiving to buddies there (" No hugs! I may be contagious").
What did we have for dinner? Hmmmm. A freezer pizza and a bit of leftover chicken, I think.
Saturday night, I had a little burst of energy and actually cooked something - a pie baked in a loaf pan, filled with a mix of finely chopped onion, mushrooms, chestnuts, sage & cranberries. It turned out beautifully. I set it to cool in the sunporch and went to bed.
More to come...
On Tuesday night I took the postponed trial tango class at Blueheel dance studio. My teacher, CIro, was very good. I don't think he gets that I want to study tango not to be able to dance at parties, but to get moving and to study the form. Anyway, I signed up for four more private lessons and two practice sessions over the next two months. I hope he didn't get the cold.
For the rest of the week, I was too fuzzy-brained to do anything. I could not go near Mom, of course, and my granddaughter was sick too. No dance class for her on Thursday. I tried to shop late on Friday afternoon. However, I just spent hours in grid-locked traffic in this little burg. What the heck was going on? Holiday weekend traffic, I guess. That made it imperative for me to do a major shopping on Saturday. Well, this is how that day of Thanksgiving prep unfolded:
Started laundry
Showered and dressed.
Harvested the garden for butternut squash, tomatoes, sweet & hot peppers.
Drove to the market - argh! No cash. Off to the bank - Back to the market for tomatoes, Bosc & Bartlett pears, northern spies & gala apples.
Next stop, Bulk Barn for salted & plain roasted almonds, walnut pieces, a few licorice cigars & candy pumpkins, dried apricots & rolled oats.
Canadian Tire for sealer jar lids & cleaning products.
On to ECS Coffee for a variety of Tassimo cups & Koo loose teas.
QEW to Costco for the great deals on old cheddar, goat cheese & Brie plus a few other necessaries.
Last stop Longo's to pick up the turkey. Ordered 18-20 lbs but it came in at 23.5 lbs. Filled the cart with fruit and veg, crackers, ice cream, whipping cream, coffee cream and various other items indulged in only for holidays.
Came home to finish landry, put the groceries away, and had a cup of tea, feet up.
Took a break for an hour at Carrigan Arms, to say Happy Thanksgiving to buddies there (" No hugs! I may be contagious").
What did we have for dinner? Hmmmm. A freezer pizza and a bit of leftover chicken, I think.
Saturday night, I had a little burst of energy and actually cooked something - a pie baked in a loaf pan, filled with a mix of finely chopped onion, mushrooms, chestnuts, sage & cranberries. It turned out beautifully. I set it to cool in the sunporch and went to bed.
More to come...
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