Thanksgiving Menus
 

What's on your Turkey Day menu? Does your family have any non-traditional foods that ARE a tradition in your family?

My kids and parents are going up to my grandparents' in the Chicago Burbs, so my husband and I invited over a couple from church that has children our age who are off doing missionary work and won't be home for Thanksgiving. I'm putting together a formal sit-down dinner(as opposed to family style pass the plates).

Menu:
Burgandy Duck
Cornbread Dressing
Sweet Potatoes
Green Bean Cassarole (duh)
Biscuits/Rolls

I'm also contemplating trying Ginger Crêpes with Pumpkin Pie filling in lieu of Pumpkin Pie. I think I could make an excellent presentation out of it that would compliment my formal dinner. Would anyone be hugely disappointed to get a pumpkin crêpe, instead of pie?

I grew up having cheese grits with Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner, so I always thought it was "traditional." My first Thanksgiving with my hubby taught me otherwise, though. So, now I always take cheese grits whenever we have a holiday dinner with his side of the family.

AlphaFrog, I would most definitely NOT be disappointed with a pumpkin crepe. In fact, I think I'd prefer it.

Thanksgiving is the "big" holiday for my mother-in-law's side of the family. Turkey, ham, green beans and broccoli casseroles, mashed potatoes (about 30 lbs worth), sweet potato casserle (my contribution), rolls, desserts, jello salads, etc. The stuff I found unusual or non-traditional (but is a no brainer for them) is oyster casserole and chicken n noodles (homemade by one of the aunts). I pass on the oysters (yuck), but the chicken n noodles has become on of my favorites. Everyone eats it heaped on top of the mashed potatos.

I'll be really honest with you -- I'd be hugely disappointed to get anything pumpkin. I simply can't stand pumpkin in any shape or form, and I'm always very bummed when I get to a Thanksgiving dinner and that's the only dessert option. In my experience, pumpkin is one of those foods people either really like or really don't, so I'd suggest you have something in addition to pumpkin (whatever) for dessert, or at least find out in advance if your guests like it.

Meanwhile, as someone who is also not a turkey fan (I know, I know), I heartily endorse the duck idea.


In coastal/Eastern NC, oysters -- usually scalloped oysters or oyster dressing -- are about as traditional as one can get for Christmas. When my siblings and I were all married and having to alternate families and holidays, my mother started making them for Thanksgiving as well, so that any of us who wouldn't be at our home for Christmas would still get them. As far as I'm concerned, it's not Christmas without scalloped oysters -- I make them every Christmas now. Heaven.

You're like a Thanksgiving killer.

I'm having dinner with my sister and her boyfriend (of fairly new vintage) and some of his family. They're Italian-American, so apparently there will be some Italian dishes along with the traditional. I won't mind having something different, but it'll take a lot of effort not to roll my eyes whenever she calls spaghetti sauce "gravy." She always has to try too hard like that.

I always make pecan pie, especially since the ones my sil has bought in the past have been much too skimpy on the pecans.

I'm not wild about the turkey, either, unless it's swimming in cranberries!


The mental picture I got from your remark was awesome!

You mean the spa-ghey-tay sauce? :p

LOL. I actually love Thanksgiving. I just hate dry turkey (which almost all turkey is, though I'll gobble up :D smoked turkey) and left-over turkey, and I hate pumpkin.


That's what we typically had when I was growing up. (I wasn't the only one in the family who didn't crave pumpkin.) A good pecan pie can't be beat, especially if there's a bit of bourbon in it.

Here's the thing... turkey is critical, even though I don't love eating it on Thanksgiving Day.

It serves three purposes, though:

1. It's the cooking vessel for the dressing - now, I know - not everyone will eat the stuff that comes out of the bird, but in my opinion it's the best. But, I've found that the Crock Pot works well as a secondary option - the dressing is still really steamy and good, but I didn't have to go elbow deep into a bird to get it.

2. Without the drippings, there would be no gravy. Without gravy, there is no point of even coming to the table. Gravy can be used later in the weekend on hot, open-faced sandwiches.

3. Which brings me to the turkey itself. I could take or leave the actual bird at the formal meal, but nothing, and I mean nothing is as good as turkey sandwiches the next day.

If you are not yet familiar with Durkee's Sauce, you need to get to your store and get some. It's... I can't even describe it - it's like mayonnaise and mustard and Hollandaise sauce had a three-way, made a baby and it was Durkee's. Slap that, and some cranberry sauce, and some turkey on fresh, nutritionally-bereft white bread, and Give Thanks all over again.

As for pie, pecan or chocolate chess, please. Pumpkin is fine, but if you're giving me a choice, it's a 3rd place.

As for dressing - cornbread with sage, rosemary, green onion - and NO CELERY. Cooked celery is the bane of my existence.

We always have pickled peaches (which nobody eats), we always have congealed salad.

And there is always a selection of olives. I don't know why.

After four years of being in charge of Turkey Day, I'm giving the reins back to Dad.

I'll be sitting in front of the fire, listening to Alice's Restaurant Massacree.

And dreaming of gravy.

^^^^Couldn't agree with you more on most of your list. Turkey is not my favorite either, but I do LOVE the stuffing out of the bird. It is so tasty and full of turkey fat and drippings:)

Love gravy over the stuffing and mash potatoes. Heck I love gravy.

Could walk away from pumpkin pie. I just don't like it. Never have. Pecan pie is a different story. LOVE it.

We always have a relish tray too some family tradition I suppose.

MC, have you had deep fried turey? My mom does her meal the weekend after Thanksgiving, and they always do 2 turkeys. One roasted in the oven or roaster, and the other injected with somesort of flavorful goodness and then deep fried outside. My God, deep fried turkey is my kind of heaven. Never ever had a dry bite yet.

And I make a kickass pecan pie, but with some Captains in it instead of bourbon. (We save the bourbon for Christmas bourbon balls, which get made the first week of december, but don't get eaten until Christmas, so they're potent!)

As for the oysters... his family isn't from the east coast, so I wonder where the tradition came from. But yes, the oyster casserole is like an oyster stuffing/dressing. I'm just thankful they don't stuff the bird with it. First year I was there for a meal when we were dating, he didn't tell me what it was. I took a bite, gagged and couldn't swallow it.

Here comes the Thanksgiving killer.

1. We always had dressing cooked separately. The bird was totally superfluous to the dressing.

2. If the bird weren't so dry, the gravy woudn't be needed. I've never liked gravy (and yes, I've had Durkee) or wanted gravy -- please don't put it on my rice or my mashed potatoes -- but I have to use it if I'm going to get the bird down.

3. See my point above about left-over turkey. I don't eat turkey sandwiches, and the thought of a sandwich with gravy on it makes my stomach turn just a little. (I know I've mentioned here at GC before one of my other peculiarities -- I hate sandwiches and consider them a meal of last resort. Again, I know, I know.)


And IL, yes, I'll agree with you on deep fried turkey. I should have added that to smoked turkey as good turkey that doesn't rival the Sahara for dryness.

traditional dishes at my house .. popovers and dressing balls.

The dressing balls (we think) came about from dressing that was extra from what was
stuffed in the bird so my grandmother would fry it up ... now no one in my family stuffs the bird .. we just have the fried dressing balls.

Also for using leftover turkey .. HOT BROWNS (receipe from the Brown Hotel in Louisville, KY)

open face turkey sandwich

toast
layer of turkey (and/or ham)
layer of turkey gravy
layer of cheese sause
layer of bacon (partially cooked)

grill until bacon is crisp ..serve hot

YUM YUM .. would almost rather have Hot Browns than the Turkey-Day dinner

^^^ That's what we end up eating the whole week after Thanksgiving :) It's usually just all of the leftovers in a sandwich. Turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes, more gravy, green beans, some mac n cheese... Soooo good.