First things first, Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Everyone knows that a huge portion of Thanksgiving is about the food. Some people's portions and varieties of food vary, but, overall, they are generally the same: turkey/ham, stuffing, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, acorn squash, cranberry sauce, and baby onions. People also tend to have salads, but that's a post in and of itself. Afterwards, people indulge in a large spectrum of desserts; From the favorites of pumpkin pie and apple pie to cheesecake to occasionally baklava.
Of course, what would be a Thanksgiving without turkey or ham! The size and (of course) cook time varies with the size of the family. I heard a person on the radio saying that they purposely cooked an extra turkey because there wasn't going to be any leftovers; Who doesn't like the next day turkey sandwiches? I hear that a ham leaves a lot of leftovers. The thing about ham, oppose to turkey, is that with turkey you can just microwave the gravy, but ham generally has its own sauce (like asparagus) which is one more thing you have to make, also less people like ham than turkey. If you have a turkey, you need to make sure you put it in the refrigerator days in advance, so it has time to thaw.
Some people stuff the turkey with stuffing while others just leave the stuffing on the side. There are several downsides with cooking the turkey with the stuffing in it; For starters, the turkey needs to cook at least an hour longer for a 20 lb turkey. This means that you have to start cooking earlier in the day. Also, the stuffing can get too moist. Obviously, these little things can be compensated for and make it even better for a skilled cook. Stuffing's can vary. There's a traditional stuffing with sausage and celery in it, but there's others like Lebanese stuffing which I'm not sure what's in it.
Mashed potatoes is another favorite. They are prepared by adding milk and butter while mashing. Regardless of if you use regular gravy, or a different grave like with ham, mashed potatoes are better with something on them (oppose to high and dry). The variety of potatoes can vary the results of how the mashed potatoes come out. Personally, I prefer the Russet potatoes for my mashed potatoes, but Norland Red's are pretty good too. Some people are more concerned than others about how chunky the potatoes can come out.
Sweat potatoes are separate from mashed potatoes. While mashed potatoes generally have gravy on them, sweat potatoes are prepared with brown sugar. I didn't always like sweat potatoes, but I guess all the years of Thanksgiving warmed me up to it. You may wonder why I had it on my table if I didn't like it, but that doesn't mean someone who came over didn't like it. I had been making it just for them.
Something else prepared on Thanksgiving is acorn squash. Even with a really sharp knife, it can be hard to cut in half. The outer skin is really tough. After someone's managed to cut it in half, it's put in a toaster oven and cooked. Afterwards, the skin just falls off and the insides is placed in a bowl.
Baby onions are one of my personal main meal favorite foods to have on Thanksgiving. The way they are prepared might be one of the things that contribute to their greatness and outstanding taste. They are generally the first thing gone at my house. For the sake of being etiquette, I make sure I cut them in half before eating them even though they are bit size and could easily fit in my mouth whole.
An often over looked item on the table is the cranberry sauce. It can be whole berry or smooth sauce, but I prefer whole berry. After I discovered whole berry, I make sure that I put both types of cranberry on the table. If they don't both get eaten than that's just more leftovers for me.
Now for the dessert. I love pumpkin pie, it is my favorite dessert. Specifically, I prefer it made than sat on the counter to age for at least 24-hours, or it won't taste the best (in my opinion). You can buy pumpkin pie filling at certain store which saves some of the time making it.
Another favorite is apple pie. Apple pies can vary greatly depending on the recipe and whose making it. I have a friend who make a great apple pie with fresh apples. Unfortunately, most local apples are picked, so she has to get store bought apples for Thanksgiving. She still makes a good apple pie, but good ingredients like fresh apples can still improve the recipe.
I hope you enjoyed that post. What are you favorite Thanksgiving foods?
