Getting fresh with turkeys

Tomorrow is cooking day. Hopefully I will be able to fit everything in the fridge including a 12-15 lb. turkey which I’ll pick up tonight. This is all my way of saying you may not hear from me for a few days, between cooking, eating, and company. This weekend we also celebrate my parents’ 60th Wedding Anniversary. Much cause for giving thanks.

If you are still scratching around looking for recipes, here are a few of my tried and true – that are also a little different.

For hors d’œuvres try Roasted Beet Pesto with Parmesan. This gem came from Chef Karen McGinn, who serves it with a dab of goat cheese on top. For local goat cheese, try Flint Hill Farm. We’ll also be serving some local cheese – Drumm from Bobolink Dairy and Bakehouse in Milford and Tomme cheese from Hendricks Farm and Dairy in Telford. Yum.

We’ll start the sit-down meal with Squash, Corn and Coconut Soup. This has become an instant favorite among our family and friends. And don’t give me a hard time about the corn not being seasonal. I cut the kernels off the cobs myself, and froze over 8 cups last September. It’s local, alright. The soup is sweet and delightful, with a creaminess that makes one want to lick the bowl.

The turkey has been happily running around for the last few months at The Happy Farm in Kintersville (thank you, Tom and Jean), and we’ll brine that bird the night before. For sides, our friends the Galloways will bring Mada’s famous Sweet Potato Pie (not sure if she shares the recipe) and collard greens.

Because you just can’t have enough carbs and starches on Thanksgiving, I’ll also be making Macque Choux, the Cajun enhancement of creamed corn and…challah pineapple stuffing. Don’t you just love the diversity of our nation? I’ll also cook up a batch of Cranberry Port Geleé from Canal House Cooking that is easy and sophisticated.

If none of that does it for you, try spaghetti squash mixed with a garlic-sage cream sauce that we made two years ago when we were doing a low-carb diet. Delicious and very seasonal! Or an easy salad with greens from Blue Moon Acres, topped with roasted beets and goat cheese.

As for dessert…Mom is bringing it, and I don’t even know what it is. For wine, we’ll be opening a bottle of 2010 Le Nouveau from Crossing Vineyards (the young, first harvest wine, similar to Beaujolais Nouveau) and a 2007 Casi Dulce from Villa Milagro Vineyards, the young winery up in Finesville, New Jersey who are using organic and sustainable practices to grow European style wines.

From all of us – me, Mark, Cody and Canta – to all of you, our dear readers, we wish you a very sweet and happy Thanksgiving.

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