Friday
Nov202009
What's On Your Thanksgiving Table?
Ok CT Bites readers...Talk to us.
We wanna know what you're cooking, buying, or hoping someone else will prepare for your Thanksgiving meal. This is a holiday steeped in food traditions. Let us in on your family secrets by sharing your answers to any of the following questions. Add your two cents by clicking the "Comments" link below.
- What's on your Thanksgiving menu?
- Do you have a favorite recipe you swear by?
- Where do you shop for ingredients, prepared food, or desserts?
- What are your annual Thanksgiving food traditions?
tagged 
CTbites Shout Out
CTbites Shout Out
Reader Comments (11)
The only absolute at my Thanksgiving, besides a crowd, is my mother's stuffing. It's a total throw back recipe and I'm not sure if the appeal is the memory or that it is as delicious as I think it is. But either way, it's not Thanksgiving with out it. And it's cooked in the turkey, no fear of salmonella bacteria for us. Come Friday morning, my siblings and I man our forks and attack it straight from the tupperware. While my menu is pretty rustic and traditional and I do pride myself on fresh, local and gourmet ingredients for the bulk of it, but here's my dirty little secret, the stuffing is made with corn flakes!
Our Thanksgiving tradition is to make and eat the same meal, year after year. My Thanksgiving challenge is to create the same meal year after year. I love to experiment, but my small yet vocal crew 86'd my holiday alchemy a few years ago. So, I'll roast a dry brined turkey, cloaked in a butter-soaked cheesecloth, make sausage- apple- cranberry stuffing, garlic mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes topped with marshmallow (thanks to my mother-in-law, may she rest in peace) and apple pie. I'll have fun creating new vegetable dishes and hors d'oeuvres that no one but me will notice if they ever grace the table again. This compromise works for everyone and for that I am thankful!
I want to know more!
Marcy, are corn flakes a component of the stuffing or the main carb? What else is in it? And what does it taste like? Sounds intriguing.
Deanna, I've been amazed at the results (cooked by a friend) of the butter-soaked cheesecloth. Never had seen such a gorgeous golden bird. How does this work? Your stuffing also sounds delicious.
And to answer Stepanie's question, ten years after my mother's death, I'm still trying to create my own Thanksgiving tradition. My husband and I have Thanksgiving with friends, and then the next day cook up our own Thanksgiving dinner, perhaps just for the left-overs.
And do any of you have any non-traditional ethnic sides on your table? My husband's family, being from Jamaica, always serve peas and rice. Which seems really weird to me, but it's part of their tradition.
Best Thanksgiving I ever had was at Bill's mother. She believed it was too much work for one meal, so she made sure we had TWICE the opportunity to indulge. Turkey went in at 6AM, we ate first at noon, then again at 6 pm. EVERY known carb was on her Ohio table: dumplings with gravy (coming from Brooklyn I had never seen those before and fell instantly in love), mashed potatoes, candied yams, mac & cheese, biscuits, cornbread, cranberry sauce, a nod to vegetables with green beans, and under all that was the turkey. Best meal I ever had - and twice in one day!
Our turkey IS always cooked with cheesecloth as my mother taught me. Have never had one not come out beautifully. Drape breast, then brush melted butter on the top and keep basting throughout the roasting as cheesecloth dries out. Golden crisp.
This year we're actually ordering pies from Michelle's pie shop in Norwalk. Coconut Cream and Pumpkin with maple streusal. Will let you know if live up to the hype!
Happy turkey day to all.
OK - this recipe is "decadent central" but your guests will LOVE it. It is an amazing side dish that compliments turkey and cranberry sauce exquisitely! I can't take much credit for it as I found it on epicurious.com but it is simple and super tasty. You've GOTTA love mushrooms so if you don't, read no further. But if you do, this "Wild Mushrooms w/ Chestnuts and Thyme" is KILLER! It goes like this:
INGREDIENTS:
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) butter, 8 large shallots (sliced, about 2 cups), 6 garlic cloves (minced),
2 lbs assorted fresh wild mushrooms (stemmed shiitake, crimini, oyster) sliced, 2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme, 3/4 cup madeira, 1 jar roasted peeled whole chestnuts, halved (about 1 1/2 cups), 3/4 cup whipping cream, chopped fresh chives
PREPARATION:
melt 3 tablespoons of the butter in skillet over medium heat. add shallots and saute' until tender. add garlic and stir 30 seconds. add remaining butter and stir until melted. add mushrooms and sprinkle with salt and pepper. saute' until tender and brown (about 10 minutes). add thyme and stir. add madeira and simmer until almost evaporated. add chestnuts and whipping cream and simmer until cream thickens and mushrooms are coated (one minute). season generously with salt and pepper. transfer to bowl and sprinkle with chives.
This dish is SURE TO PLEASE and i highly recommend it!!!! Gobble Gobble to all!
I've determined that Thanksgiving is my all-time favorite holiday. I am not a fan of the cold-weather seasons so it's not the impending snow that gets me. But there is something about the whole family coming together, gathering around the kitchen while the turkey is roasting, drinking good wine and eating way too much, catching up on what's new and reminiscing about the past, that truly is magical. Our Thanksgiving is always filled with the traditional foods...roast turkey, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, onion casserole, stuffing, cranberry sauce, rolls, gravy. Uhh...I can feel my stomach extending just thinking about it. This year we are doing something a little different though. Instead of a huge mass of food, we are going to do an eight-course tasting menu incorporating the flavors of the holiday with a gourmet twist. The eight courses, in order are: 1) Butterfly shrimp with quinoa cake, red & yellow pepper puree & jalapeno sauce 2) fig torte with arugula, goat cheese & blood orange vinegar reduction 3) bosc butternut soup with shallot fries 4) wild mushroom pasta with truffle oil 5) frisee & persimmon salad with cranberry sauce vinaigrette 6) smoked turkey tenderloin with roasted fingerling potatoes and roasted garlic chestnut gravy 7) pumpkin mousse with sweet pancetta and finally 8) cheese plate with honeycomb and apple butter. As much as we love the traditions, we are all very excited to try something a little different this year. I'll let you know how it goes!!!
Since my brothers and I have gotten older, married, moved around the country, the only holiday traditions we've managed to preserve ARE food related. I could do without the turkey, the mashed potatoes, the cranberry sauce, the pumpkin pie... as long as there is a feast of wine, stuffing, and the White-Trash Trifecta— three favorite appetizers from my mom's Navy Wives' Recipe Swap Club c. 1972. First, there is "The Showstopper", a pumpernickel loaf filled with a sour cream concoction. Every year, it's a source of family pride finding the chipped beef and Beau Monde spice for that dip. Next is "The Coronado Salad Ring", two jell-o flavors in a mold, no marshmallows in sight. Finally, we make the simplest Artichoke Dip, which can only be served with Red Oval Farms' Stoned Wheat Thins. Throw some cream cheese-stuffed olives (from a can, of course) on the side and you won't even want that turkey dinner!
NOTE: Before pulling the Trifecta together, be sure to have about 5 gallons of mayonnaise in your cupboard.
Happy Holidays Everyone!
Whole Roast Suckling Pig among other things
I'm all about the basics...nothing fancy. I have started making a baked homemade mac and cheese so my kids will have something to eat, we make my nana's stuffing recipe, baked string casserole with the crispy onions, sweet potato pie with marshmallows and pineapple and this year I'm adding a healthy alternative to mashed potatoes by mashing cauliflower with parmesean cheese. I also swear by the cheesecloth for a fab turkey. Happy Holidays everyone!!
Where can i pick up a piece of turkey and sides today? Our daughter is sick so we will not be visiting w/ family as planned... Help, we love thanksgiving foods!
You should be able to find all the basics at Whole Foods or Balducci's. I know Abbondanza in Westport and Nicholas Roberts in Norwalk are doing take-out. Good luck! Sorry about your daughter.