[scrapple]

Just curious what kind of variety people have in their "traditional" menu.
Ours is:
Roasted stuffed turkey
Bread stuffing with celery, carrots, onion, sage, mushrooms
Haven't decided on other sides yet, it's just the 2 of us this year
Fresh cooked cranberry sauce with lime, maple syrup and jalapeno
Since we don't have company, I'm going to try to make a sweet potarto pie. If anyone has a great recipe they'd be willing to share, I'd appreciate it!

[swrinfla]

Scrapple:

My "traditional" Thanksgiving menu has, in the last several years, become "Whatever the cruise line serves!" I've taken at least five cruises over T'giving, and am about to embark on my 6th!

One year, I bucked tradition by having four ("count 'em," four) lobster tails! Last year, my traveling companion and I had a wonderful T'giving dinner at an Argentinian/Brazilian-style restaurant on the island of Aruba, along with my nephew and his family, who have a time-share condo there that they use every year. Cost a bundle, but was wonderful!

As a child, I remember our family joining my parents' friends at their country estate, eating unbelieveably huge quantities of their wonderful food, seemingly from dawn to dusk, all prepared by our hostess. Turkey, ham, pork roast, mashed potatoes ("plain" and with cheddar cheese), accompanied by home-made gravy (of course), two different sweet potato casseroles, green beans with mushrooms, sweet peas with pearl onions, salad greens with cherry tomatoes, followed by home-made pumpkin, pecan and mincemeat pies. And, as unnecessary as it was, home-made whipped cream!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

After eating all this, we repaired to our host's den/study/library to listen to the Army-Navy game on the radio. I think we actually heard very few of these games!

Love reminiscing!

SWR

[Mikitv]

My son is cooking his brined Turkey, with giblet gravy. The dressing will be bread, sage, onion, celery, pecans, sausage, and apples. Waldorf Salad, sweet potatoes and Yukon gold and roasted garlic mashed potatoes. Indian corn pudding and pumpkin pie for desert.

[ham62]

My daughter hubby two grandkids coming from Texas. 20lb turkey, saussage dressing, smashed potatoes w/cream cheese, sour cream etc. Yellow sqaush casserole, freshly ground orange cranberry relish. Brocolli cheese casserole relish tray.
Of course the gravy. Homemade pickle onions, homemade pumpkin/ choclate/ apple pies. Wine with our meal, coffee after and a nap.

[Mikitv]

Ham 62, love the fresh cranberry relish with oranges, we made that all the time when we had larger group.

[redwitch]

When we were in the U.S., it was the traditional turkey dinner. Overseas was, at times, interesting. There were, however, some things that Mom would do her best to have on the table -- cucumber salad, canned jellied cranberry sauce (Mom would always pack a couple of cans just in case), crescent rolls, cherry pie (again, canned cherries were always packed). For "turkey," we've had about every game bird imaginable and ham and lamb and goat and a few other things I'd prefer to forget we ate. (We once had Spam shaped into a turkey -- that dinner was truly hysterical, wonderful and unforgettable.) The one thing not allowed was chicken -- that was for Sunday dinner, never Thanksgiving. Side dishes were as varied as the menu.

[ham62]

Originally Posted by Mikitv

Ham 62, love the fresh cranberry relish with oranges, we made that all the time when we had larger group.

Thak you for your comment, it freezes very well and is super with chicken during the year.

[scrapple]

yu-HUMMMM!!! Can't wait. I love the smells and cooking the meal. Swirnfla, I also love your tradition. And Red's SPAM turkey, yep, do what you can in a pinch. Anybody have any fresh sage available? We had a beauty of a plant out our back door in CO. Nothing like fresh stuff!
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

[scrapple]

Well, here it is 3 years later and I still enjoy cooking this meal. This year We decided to grill the turkey (unless it's as cold as it is today). I'll make my bread stuffing with sage, thyme, snips of dried tomatoes, chopped mushrooms, onion, garlic, celery and grated carrot. DH promised to make me his veggie bake: cube a mix of sweet potatoes, parsnips, turnip, carrot, butternut squash soaked overnight in orange juice, drizzle w olive oil, maple syrup, rosemary, s/p, roast in slow oven stirring often until soft. I'll make my excellent cranberry sauce, mashers and turkey gravy. And sweet potato pie. All this on Friday since our neighborhood likes to go to Katie Belles for Thursday dinner...lots to be thankful for!

[patfla06]

Turkey, Purdue oven roaster chicken, gravy, stuffing, mashed potatoes,
candied sweet potatoes, fresh string beans with garlic,
and biscuits. Holy carbs!

Dessert: pumpkin pie and apple crisp.
I make everything home-made except the biscuits.
This year I made white sangria and red sangria.

We just had our Thanksgiving this Saturday (Son saved
$1,000 in airfare!). Happened to be my husband's birthday
so it worked out well.

When I did my grocery shopping I had Publix all to myself
(Here in Tampa).

[DougB]

I ate so much last Thanksgiving I had to let out my bathrobe.

[Happinow]

We usually have turkey, stuffing (sausage, onion,celery, freshly made bread cubes mixed with store bought and lots of poultry seasoning), green bean casserole along with another veggie, cold slaw, rolls, and gravy. Dessert varies from pies to apple crisp. I can't wait to eat!

[jebartle]

One lonely Thanksgiving in North Carolina the "ole boy" was being funny!

Originally Posted by redwitch

When we were in the U.S., it was the traditional turkey dinner. Overseas was, at times, interesting. There were, however, some things that Mom would do her best to have on the table -- cucumber salad, canned jellied cranberry sauce (Mom would always pack a couple of cans just in case), crescent rolls, cherry pie (again, canned cherries were always packed). For "turkey," we've had about every game bird imaginable and ham and lamb and goat and a few other things I'd prefer to forget we ate. (We once had Spam shaped into a turkey -- that dinner was truly hysterical, wonderful and unforgettable.) The one thing not allowed was chicken -- that was for Sunday dinner, never Thanksgiving. Side dishes were as varied as the menu.

[jblum315]

When I was a child we always had all the traditional dishes, plus fried oysters and Smithfield ham and homemade Parker House rolls. During my 42 years as a wife and mother I added creamed onions (I think my husband was the only one who ate them)and Waldorf salad. I once went to a family dinner featuring Terducken (Google it) which was inedible. This year I am picking up a complete Thanksgiving dinner at Publix for me and a friend. No cooking, no cleanup and plenty leftovers, Yippee.