The Thanksgiving Feast

Today is Thanksgiving Day in the USA, a national holiday celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November to express gratitude for all we have. It is traditional to prepare a turkey, cranberry sauce, stuffing, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, multiple vegetable dishes, and there should always be pumpkin pie for dessert. Americans will consume 46 million turkeys, 3.1 billion pounds of sweet potatoes, 250 million pounds of potatoes, 770 million pounds of cranberries; and think of all the butter that goes into all of those dishes!

The first Thanksgiving held in Plymouth Colony (now Massachusetts) in 1621, celebrated the harvest of the first crops. Perhaps they also celebrated the fact that they had survived life in the harsh environment. Their feast lasted for three days and was shared with the Wampanoag people.

It is interesting that so many traditions fade away from generation to generation; however the feast continues to survive. Societies have been feasting pretty much since the beginning of time. It is a tradition that is held in every society, and unlike many traditions, is one that has not diminished over the centuries.

Early societies feasted for practical reasons, a large animal was killed, and since preservation methods were limited, a feast was held. As societies became more sophisticated by domesticating animals and growing an abundance of crops, feasts were held to display signs of wealth and strength. Fast forward many generations and we are still feasting to celebrate weddings, anniversaries, religious holidays, birthdays, graduations, promotions, and holidays like Thanksgiving.

While we are still in France, our family has gathered at a big house in California to celebrate. A few years ago we gathered together at a large rental house in Snoqualmie, WA. We had a blast; we played games, cooked, ate, drank wine, watched football; it was so great to be together.

A few years before that, my daughter and son-in-law hosted the holiday at their home. There were 18 people there, dear friends and family. They prepared a fantastic meal which we all thoroughly enjoyed.

I have greatly enjoyed cooking on Thanksgiving and have found a few techniques for a delicious turkey. The first one is to soak the turkey overnight in a brine. This is a time consuming process, but with delicious results.

Another technique that I have seen many different chefs use is to make a mixture of butter, olive oil, salt, pepper, lemon zest and lots of herbs, mix throughly and gently stuff some of the mixture under the skin and spread the rest over the outside of the bird. My daughter and I have had fun over the years with this method.

There are many other methods for preparing the turkey including smoking, deep frying, air fryer, slow roasting at a low temperature, beer-can turkey, and more. Some families choose to stick with traditional recipes, others like to shake things up a bit with new techniques. I enjoy trying new techniques, like adding a few tablespoons of Chambord to my cranberry sauce. Hopefully, whatever methods you choose will result in an enjoyable holiday for everyone.

I believe the main reason we feast is not so much the food, but to gather around a table, break bread, laugh, cry, make a toast or two, give thanks, and just to be together with the ones we love. Thus the feast continues.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Tricia