'Tis the Season...

to stuff our faces.....Tonight I went out and bought picked up my Riverside turkey from HEB. A nice big pre-cooked, frozen, 23 pound feller. Probably raised in a warehouse and injected with lotsa poisonous goodies, but he was FREE and he will be a grand treat for all of my Thanksgiving guests.

I want to do some trial runs of Thanksgiving.

In fact, I think the feasting done on Thanksgiving should be performed several times a year. We have breakfast for dinner don't we? Why not Thanksgiving for Spring Break, for the beginning of summer, Easter, Memorial Day, etc.?
I have fond memories of Turkeydays past. It is one holiday I sorely regret not being able to go home for. In Odessa I get to partake in multiple Thanksgiving feasts, each of them with traditional and unique dishes that are absurdly delicious. Why wouldn't we eat these more than once a year?

It usually goes something like this:

Helping prepare the meal, carrying the dishes over to the host's abode or preparing the abode for guests.

Chatting away and picking at food while the meal is finished up.

Eating said meal. Miserably returning for seconds and thirds.

(watch football)

Nap time

Wake up and eat more.

Eat food for the following week.

Eat bean/ham stew mom makes with leftover ham.....You know the drill, or know something similar.

My stepdad often fries a turkey after injecting it with cajunesque goods- the BEST way I have ever had one. Although one year my mom did the brine and it was mighty fine too. Then there was the deep-fried-turkey-accident year, a day my stepdad was severely burned, so that was put on hold for a few years.

My mother always goes overboard, as she does with most holidays. She makes homeade stuffing (the kind where you actually bake cornbread and such), broccoli and rice cheesy casserole, cranberry compote (admittidly NOT my favorite), stuffed mushrooms, millionaire pie which she attempts to hide but my brother and I always find, some sort of veggie because people tend to forget about healthy-er stuffs, etc. etc. etc.

My grandmother makes a red velvet cake, the best I have and will ever have.

Pam, my stepmother, always makes Twiced baked potatoes and her version of broccoli and rice casserole which is moy yummy.

My MiMi Karen makes this strangely delicious dish that has pineapples, Ritz crackers, and cheese among other ingredients that make for a surprisingly good party in yo mouth. She also makes these deathly good Chex caramel peanut butter bars. We are lucky to get those at Christmas time as well.

It's interesting to see what families have a tradition of making. Some do green bean casserole, which I love, but I don't remember ever having. Some do duck or pheasant or steak. We stick with the turkey, ham, and sometimes Turducken. (tasty indeed!)

Throughout my many years of gorging, I have made a mental list of my favorite dishes and as I prepare my own Thanksgiving feast this year I will force these dishes upon my pals. While there are several recipes I found in Gourmet magazine I want to try, such as a fig tart, I will always have my favorites that have been with me since my childhood.

The following are must-haves at a Jennifer Thanksgiving feast:

Turkey

Mashed Potatoes

Giblet Gravy

Cranberry Sauce- and although I make homemade version, my favorite is from a can.

Broccoli and Rice casserole- the type with wild rice and velveeeeta

Stuffed mushrooms

Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake

I'm sure I've left some things out- I'll probably have to make a few edits.

But this is what comes to mind for now, and these are the things I will be dreaming about until Thanksgiving day.

Oh, and I MUST do the wishbone.

Happy November!