Thanksgiving!
Ready or not, here it comes
Hello Friends!
Whelp, just in time for the holidays two completely different and equally miserable viruses have been moving through my household, so I haven’t given a single thought to Thanksgiving recipes until this morning. Last week I was feeling a little bit sad that we were having a small, quiet Thanksgiving this year but now I’m feeling very thankful that we’re not traveling and we’re not hosting anyone. It’s perfectly fine if we lounge around in our pajamas for a few more days! Sometimes life works out just the way it’s supposed to.
Today I don’t have a “Thanksgiving game plan” for you. I’m just showing up to say it’s okay not to exhaust yourself making the perfect Thanksgiving meal. Some years I’ve planned and prepped the entire week leading up to Thanksgiving and honestly, those meals weren’t markedly better than other years. The most important thing is being together, enjoying your people, and NOT trying to do everything yourself. Also, as corny as it sounds, take a long minute to remind yourself what you’re thankful for. This year, I’m thankful that our illnesses are temporary and we’ll soon be back to good health. I’m thankful for my family and friends, my cozy house and for all of the authors out there writing the books that I’ve been escaping into and enjoying at the end of this year. And after feeling under the weather for several days, I am very thankful for my morning cup of coffee, which I can enjoy once again!
My Tried and True Thanksgiving Recipes
Let’s be honest - Thanksgiving dinner is never simple or easy. There are just too many dishes to cook. If you truly want to make the holiday easier, go ahead and order part or all of your meal from a grocery store or restaurant (pre-cooked turkey is often very moist and delicious!) You can also do what I’m doing, which is sticking to simple, familiar recipes that I’ve made before.
And don’t forget the most important thing - everyone should help with the cooking and cleaning!
Turkey? I’m seriously considering a roasted chicken this year, instead of turkey. There’s only going to be four of us, and three out of the four don’t even like turkey very much. I’ll smear the chicken with butter and herbs and stuff whole garlic cloves in the middle, à la Ina Garten. Sounds good to me!
Stuffing: I always make Alison Roman’s stuffing. I might also make my own brioche stuffing, which is almost more of bread custard. The brioche stuffing is slightly sweet, so it’s really good if you add some pre-cooked, sliced sausage to it.
Potatoes: Instant Pot mashed potatoes are a must, and I’ll either roast whole sweet potatoes with miso butter or roast sliced sweet potatoes with spices.
Salad: I like a bracing kale salad to balance out the rich food. This year I’ll probably use my lemon miso salad dressing or make a kale caesar with creamy miso tahini dressing and lots of grated parmesan.
Mac ‘n Cheese: I’ve never made macaroni and cheese for Thanksgiving, but my kids were thrilled with the idea when I suggested it this year (especially my 10 year old who doesn’t like mashed potatoes?!) My kids like very creamy stovetop mac & cheese; I usually don’t follow an exact recipe but I basically make a simple thickened cheese sauce, like this stovetop mac and cheese from Jersey Girl Cooks.
MORE THANKSGIVING RECIPES
5 Dinners in Real Life
I’m always curious about what other families are eating. Aren’t you? I hope that my week of real life dinners will provide helpful recipes & cooking ideas for your family. Here’s what my crew has been eating lately:
Monday: It was getting late so I swung by Whole Foods to grab a rotisserie chicken for dinner but they were sold out (note to self: never shop at Whole Foods at 6pm on a weeknight). I ended up grabbing a pizza to bake at home, which was mediocre at best and not helped by the fact that I burned it slightly. Sorry family!
Tuesday: I pulled a stack of corn tortillas out of the freezer, grated cheese and opened two cans of black beans to make quick broiled tacos topped with green onion and shredded purple cabbage. I’m always surprised by how good these tacos are!
Wednesday: I made crispy crumbled tofu and we ate it over rice with leftover shredded cabbage, grated carrot, egg rolls and tahini soy sauce dressing.
Thursday: I didn’t have a plan for tonight’s dinner, so I just roasted the veggies I had on hand (zucchini, potatoes and cabbage) and we had it with plain pasta on the side.
Friday: Is it okay to eat tacos for dinner twice in one week? I say yes! By the time we all got home at 5pm on Friday, Sorin and I were exhausted and the kitchen was a mess due to a dishwasher that hadn’t been working all week (the culprit, a pistachio nut shell clogging the drainage hose!) We opted for tacos from our neighborhood taco truck with a side of homemade guacamole made from our very own avocados. Hooray for avocado season!
Cookbooks
Magnolia Table, volume 3 by Joanna Gaines is probably my favorite of the Magnolia cookbooks. It’s full of simple and fairly traditional family meals that I’m eager to try, like enchilada soup, Italian pasta salad and spinach manicotti. This cookbook also has plenty of baking recipes and holiday appropriate dishes, so this is a good time of year to check out the cozy, comforting food that the Magnolia cookbooks are known for.
That’s it for this week! I hope you all have a healthy, restful and fun holiday.
xo
Jenny