Monday, November 21, 2005

Happy thoughts of FOOD




Are you ready to eat???

2 days until Thanksgiving. Where has the rest of the year gone? I won't ask the trite question
"What are you thankful for in the past year"'. Seems everyone asks that. **rolls eyes**

I'm going to ask something a little different. [[ that's good, yes?]]

What are your absolutely favorite desserts and food to eat on Thanksgiving (notice dessert was listed first??? ) AND, if you are asked to bring something to the celebration, what would your food item be???

I'll go first.
I LOVE bread stuffing

black olives,


, the dark meat of turkey,


butternut squash flavored with butter, brown sugar and a hint of nutmeg, and



baked sweet potatoes.





For desserts, I LOVE the pumpkin rolls that have creme cheese filling, apple pies with vanilla ice cream and chocolate cream pie.



Hungry yet???


For what to bring, this year, I'm bringing mashed white potatoes (for some reason, they didn't want the purple!!! ) ...and I was asked to bring my favorite easy thing to make, chocolate rice krispy treats...NOT made with messy marshmallow BTW - it is made in the microwave..and from start to finish, it takes 10 minutes total. What a great, quick chocolate fix! And they insisted I bring that this year. The question is, how much will be eaten before it even gets brought to where the celebration is to be held?
Only me and my tummy will know.. *grin*

So what about you?

What ever you do, eat, or go for this American Holiday,
I will be Thankful that you arrive safely, eat heartily , celebrate joyously and return home hale and happy.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING !!!!!

21 comments:

Brandy said...

Hmmmm, we are going to my Dh's sister's home for Thanksgiving. So, I don't have to cook alot. (and I am ever thankful for that)
My favorite things there will be the ham (hate turkey), yeast rolls, and Pecan pie.I wish someone would make a squash casserole. I will be taking a dessert. Because I was asked to. I am going to make a Red Velvet cake. BUT, NOT the way most other Southeners make it. There will be NO cocoa in mine. (That's the way my Mom made it. (no cocoa)).

Avindair said...

I'm fairly simple: Pumpkin pie and whipped cream. Everything else is negotiable. :)

Michele said...

I guess I'm lucky too, Brandy.
One year I tried to have the celebration at my home, but no one wanted to travel here. We live on a hill...everyone hates our hill. My parents place is equidistant to all , so , we go there. AND, I've never had to cook, only contribute like you are doing.
I have to ask..WHAT is a Velvet Cake? Never heard of it....is it really that good? I'm always looking for a new recipe...hmmmm, care to share the recipe???
Oh, and Brandy, you are not alone in not liking turkey...we usually have some baked ham for the few who also hate the fowl. (I usually throw a slab or two onto my plate too *grin*)


Simple is good, Avindair!
Pumpkin pie is classic...although I'm wondering if you are negotiable on whether the Whipped Cream has to be home made or store bought. Personally, freshly whipped is SO much better...I'm not into the Cool Whip scene.

Avindair said...

Sadly, Michelle, my palete isn't sophisticated enough to tell the difference. Too many years of coffee and late nights, I suspect.

Michele said...

LOL, Advindair!!!!!

Something tells me you like REALLY hot chilli...or at least, hot stuff.
A family member is that way.
Jaded tatebuds perk up for him with spicy foods.

Judson Knight said...

Hiya, Michelle! Thanks for the shout-out at my blog--you make me actually want to post something new! Imagine that!

Sounds like you got it goin' on for Thanksgiving. We always spend the holiday w/ Deidre's family (siblings, mother, stepfather, stepsiblings, and many nieces and nephews), and because there are so many gourmet chefs in the house--most of them male, btw--we usually have little in the way of food responsibilities.

Anyway, though, I'm with you about liking the dark meat of the turkey better--turkey breasts are highly overrated. I also tend to think that chicken thighs are better than breasts as well. (Now if you just removed the modifiers "chicken" and "turkey" from the above, you'd have a radically different statement!) Anyway, Happy Thanksgiving to you too!

Gregg said...

Michele- I expect to be eating salt cod stews and fried plantains in the Azores :-)

My Mouth said...

I plan to stuff anything I can into my mouth, regardless of taste or appropriateness.

But maybe that's just me.

Michele said...

Judson,Hey There, Hi There! Long time, no see!
I'm glad you read my note on your blog. I had hoped you would see it before the holiday.

"remove the modifiers," eh?
LOL!! You are Too funny!!!!
***shakes head giggling***

Always look forward to your comments.
Thanks for the Greeting back!
Happy visiting!!


Gregg, that's Right!! You are going to Portugal, right? That is going to be SO exciting!!
I hope you have a safe trip and a journey that will provide happy memories and smiles for years to come.
I wish for a safe return to you and your girlfriend.
And the wish that what happened to my friend while visiting Italy, doesn't happen to you.
What happened your wonder?
She went with a group. The day the group came home, she wasn't with them. She was not allowed to leave the country. Seems she's not an American citizen and had forgotten to bring her green card with her on the trip. I can't even imagine what they must have been like, to see all your other friends get on a plane to return home,and instead, being stuck in another country, alone. She's back...few days ago. All is OK, but Wow, what an experience for her!!!!
So, like said Gregg, hope your journey is smooth, fun and uneventful in a stree-kind of way.
Excitement should only bring smiles!!!
Did I just ramble??? Sorry...
You get the point. Happy T-Day!!!

Michele said...

LOL, What's a "stree"???
Typo for Stress.....

Fingers were stressed from typing such a large answer ,I guess *wink*

Michele said...

*grin*
My Mouth,
I'm sure, being Thanksgiving and all, there'll be plenty to choose from to fill your mouth and tummy.
Have a great day!!!!

Angela's Designs said...

My dinner will be much like yours. I-love olives. My neice used to say that, she called them I-loves. One of my favorite holiday foods was my aunt's beet salad and green bean with crunchies dish. It was her birthday on Thanksgiving every few years. She passed 10 years ago. Food memories are fond memories. Especially the traditions I guess.

Anonymous said...

I'm glad I had lunch before checking your blog, otherwise I may have nibbled on the screen!

The Girl You Used to Know said...

I bake great pies. I should be more humble, I know. But, when it comes to my pies, I just can't find any humility anywhere.

We host T-giving every year. Only 8 people will be at my house this year--usually we have about 15. I make the turkey, ham, and pecan, pumpkin, and apple pies.

The pies are the best.

Today I'm in a food coma because we had our lunch potluck. O.M.G.

Of course, somebody brought the jello with fruit and marshmellows. They obviously didn't get the memo: JELLO AND FRUIT IS NOT A REAL DESSERT. EVEN IF YOU PUT MARSHMELLOWS ON TOP.

End rant.

Happy Turkey Day everyone.
-Mel

Michele said...

That's really beautiful Annalee.
Green Beans with crunchies..sounds like something my SIL does with not only green beans, but broccoli too.
You're right, food memories and their traditions do make holiday memories special. Thanks for Sharing that. You always have such wonderful stories!!!


Jason..LOL!!
Guess my post was drool-worthy,hmmmm???


Wow, Mel!! You are SO right about the Jello Salad!!!
Jello becomes desert when you take vanilla cupcakes, poke little holes, pour Jello over and into the wholes and top it off with Cool Whip.. and a tiny marshmellow on top,.put in the fridge and then serve cold. YUM!!!

A food rant...Love it!!!!
Feel free to do that anytime, Mel!

Anonymous said...

I hope you have a great Thanksgiving!!!

Kelli McBride said...

My favorites:

Turkey - I am such a junky

My mom's dressing. It is simply delicious. IN fact, we often have dressing sandwiches as leftovers. I won't reveal the recipe, but she does cook an entire chicken to put in it, and she bakes it on a 2" cookie sheet, so the outside gets crisp but the inside stays moist.

My Mamaw's casserole: layers of velveeta, cream of mushroom soup, parboiled onions, and crackers, baked until the cheese on top is bubbly and slightly brown. Very rich and scrumptious.

Riced potatoes with turkey gravy. Ricing the potatoes makes them extra smooth and creamy. However, I will eat a gallon of lumpy mashed potatoes as well. ;-)

My Uncle Delbert's jello dessert. He takes 2 different jellos (usually cranberry and strawberry) and lets them semi-set. Then, he mixes into the thickening jello a blend of chopped up apples, oranges, bananas, stawberrys, blueberries, and pecans. We eat it with whipped cream. It is so delicious. Plus, if you have people with sugar problems, you can make this with sugar-free jello and whipped cream, and choose fruits that aren't too sugary.

Oh man! Now I'm hungry, and I have to wait till tomorrow. ;-(

Michele said...

Thank you, Bonnie! And I wish the same for you too!



Kelli, that casserole sounds heavenly..wow! Jello salad?? LOL, Ssssshh, don't let Mel hear you say that..*snicker*
Thanks for sharing Kelli!!
You have me chomping at the bit for tomorrow too....yum

The Girl You Used to Know said...

oh I heard it...I'm just ignoring it.

Jello salad. HAH.

It is NOT dessert.

Michele said...

HAHAHAAAA!!

Mel, can't get nothin' past you!!!


You'll be happy to hear, there was NO jello present where I was.

Kelli McBride said...

I have satisfied my Turkey cravings for the year, though I will delightedly eat more at Christmas.

Thanksgiving was a wonderful time. Turkey and ham. My Aunt Nell's homemade bread (she brings a loaf just for me). No jello salad or Mamaw's casserole. We went very light this year - corn, green beans, potatoes, dressing, and meat. I did discover a new way to mash potatoes that is heavenly:

1. Boil potatoes with the skins on. I boiled 8 baking size potatoes, cut in half.

2. Set aside to cool when done. Then peel the skin off - potatoes may be odd colored at this time, but they will turn out okay when mashed.

3. Using a hand grater - the side that shreds cheese the finest - grate your potatoes.

4. Warm a quart of heavy cream and a cup of butter until butter melts.

5. Add the cream and butter a little bit at a time (about 1 cup, increasingly getting smaller as your potatoes take on the right consistency).

6. When you've added enough cream and butter, the potatoes will be a bit heavy and lumpy, so get the electric mixer and whip them until fluffy. Add salt and pepper to taste.

I'm telling you, this will make the most wonderful potatoes. There were none left at our house. I was joking that they belonged in the Louvre. Truly creamy and smooth.

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