Cooking
Roasted Capresse Salad
So, while the rest of you were brining your turkeys and candying your yams, I was shopping & cleaning.
I've mentioned before that we don't really 'do' Thanksgiving. Matt doesn't really care for turkey. Neither Alex nor I eat it, obviously. When I met him, Matt had already created something he called the Two Days After Thanksgiving Dinner; a feast for friends taking place, as the name suggests, the Saturday after.
Deviled Eggs
These dinners were perfect; those who'd been out-of-town were usually back, and many who'd come in for the holiday weren't leaving till Sunday.
Cold Chipotle Fried Chicken
The meals were generally themed; I remember him telling me about one built around 'things inside things'.
Baked Potato Salad
When I moved in, we continued the tradition, and served up some fabulous dinners. Skipping turkey day, we had Wed-Sat to clean & cook. So we turned out amazing, authentic Mexican feasts, and Indian buffets.
Vanilla Bean Cupcakes with Cotton Candy Pink Frosting
When we moved to Tennessee, I was pregnant, and we were living in a small apartment that first year. The next, Alex was small and we were still renovating the house we'd just bought.
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Three years ago, we were finally able to resurrect TDAT. That first year, we did Caribbean food. Last year, we went super-fancy, and elegant, to celebrate Matt's 40th birthday (just weeks prior to the TDAT).
Blueberry Pie
This year, we thought we'd do something different. We had a picnic.
Turkey-Avocado Club Sandwiches
Serving up sandwiches and cold sides, with long tables covered in checked tablecloths. We had a vintage baseball game playing in the background.
Pan Bagnat
We had a perfect day: cold, grey and rainy. Lemonade & iced tea, various pops to drink.
Italian Sub
Just like any other holiday dinner, everyone ate too much. That makes me happy.
Coleslaw
We even scattered tiny plastic ants across the tables...
The Food
Drinks & Dessert
And when they left, guests took home a plastic bucket filled with bubbles, water gun, sunglasses, a special-ordered Yankee Candle to commemorate the night, Pixy Stix and Off! brand wipes.
Everyone had a good time, we got to see our friends, there's enough food to (at least) keep Matt going for a few days, and clean-up was minimal.
That's my kind of party.
- Turkey Leftovers Recipes
If you ask me, the second best thing about Thanksgiving is not the dinner itself, but the leftovers. I like turkey a lot, especially its amazing versatility. Leftover turkey, even dry, overcooked turkey, is good in soups, salads, sandwiches, stews, smothered...
- Thanksgiving Tips & Techniques
I have a confession to make. I've never made a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. I always cook something for the feast at my parent's house, but not the whole meal and certainly not the turkey. I'm not sure I could take the pressure! Thanksgiving...
- My Very Late, And Not Exactly First, Thanksgiving Vegetarian Feast
It's more than a week past Thanksgiving; I'm still playing catch-up (or am I playing with ketchup??). I'd promised Judith I would join her Vegetarian Feast event, but of course I ran out of time (what with the party and everything). In fact,...
- Sugar High Friday#25: Eight Is Enough!!
(or, The Trouble with Truffles) SHF is one of my favorite events. While I may not always eat the sweets I make, I do love handing them off to others! And when I saw that Johanna had chosen truffles for this round, well, it was serendipitous. See, this...
- Heritage Turkeys
A nice piece on the modern turkey by Patrick Martins, director of Slow Food USA. Fast Food Nation meets the Thanksgiving table. We ordered a heritage turkey last year, and it was unbelievably good. No brining or marinading; I just tossed it in the oven...
Cooking
TDATD
Roasted Capresse Salad
So, while the rest of you were brining your turkeys and candying your yams, I was shopping & cleaning.
I've mentioned before that we don't really 'do' Thanksgiving. Matt doesn't really care for turkey. Neither Alex nor I eat it, obviously. When I met him, Matt had already created something he called the Two Days After Thanksgiving Dinner; a feast for friends taking place, as the name suggests, the Saturday after.
Deviled Eggs
These dinners were perfect; those who'd been out-of-town were usually back, and many who'd come in for the holiday weren't leaving till Sunday.
Cold Chipotle Fried Chicken
The meals were generally themed; I remember him telling me about one built around 'things inside things'.
Baked Potato Salad
When I moved in, we continued the tradition, and served up some fabulous dinners. Skipping turkey day, we had Wed-Sat to clean & cook. So we turned out amazing, authentic Mexican feasts, and Indian buffets.
Vanilla Bean Cupcakes with Cotton Candy Pink Frosting
When we moved to Tennessee, I was pregnant, and we were living in a small apartment that first year. The next, Alex was small and we were still renovating the house we'd just bought.
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Three years ago, we were finally able to resurrect TDAT. That first year, we did Caribbean food. Last year, we went super-fancy, and elegant, to celebrate Matt's 40th birthday (just weeks prior to the TDAT).
Blueberry Pie
This year, we thought we'd do something different. We had a picnic.
Turkey-Avocado Club Sandwiches
Serving up sandwiches and cold sides, with long tables covered in checked tablecloths. We had a vintage baseball game playing in the background.
Pan Bagnat
We had a perfect day: cold, grey and rainy. Lemonade & iced tea, various pops to drink.
Italian Sub
Just like any other holiday dinner, everyone ate too much. That makes me happy.
Coleslaw
We even scattered tiny plastic ants across the tables...
The Food
Drinks & Dessert
And when they left, guests took home a plastic bucket filled with bubbles, water gun, sunglasses, a special-ordered Yankee Candle to commemorate the night, Pixy Stix and Off! brand wipes.
Everyone had a good time, we got to see our friends, there's enough food to (at least) keep Matt going for a few days, and clean-up was minimal.
That's my kind of party.
- Turkey Leftovers Recipes
If you ask me, the second best thing about Thanksgiving is not the dinner itself, but the leftovers. I like turkey a lot, especially its amazing versatility. Leftover turkey, even dry, overcooked turkey, is good in soups, salads, sandwiches, stews, smothered...
- Thanksgiving Tips & Techniques
I have a confession to make. I've never made a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. I always cook something for the feast at my parent's house, but not the whole meal and certainly not the turkey. I'm not sure I could take the pressure! Thanksgiving...
- My Very Late, And Not Exactly First, Thanksgiving Vegetarian Feast
It's more than a week past Thanksgiving; I'm still playing catch-up (or am I playing with ketchup??). I'd promised Judith I would join her Vegetarian Feast event, but of course I ran out of time (what with the party and everything). In fact,...
- Sugar High Friday#25: Eight Is Enough!!
(or, The Trouble with Truffles) SHF is one of my favorite events. While I may not always eat the sweets I make, I do love handing them off to others! And when I saw that Johanna had chosen truffles for this round, well, it was serendipitous. See, this...
- Heritage Turkeys
A nice piece on the modern turkey by Patrick Martins, director of Slow Food USA. Fast Food Nation meets the Thanksgiving table. We ordered a heritage turkey last year, and it was unbelievably good. No brining or marinading; I just tossed it in the oven...