At our house, the job of cooking the turkey is mine. I also make the stuffing. Mine is a rather “kitchen sink” stuffing with sausage, apples, celery, mushrooms (cooked in wine), raisins, pickle relish, chopped onion, all in a bread crumb base. I add a lot of seasoning, but don’t keep track so that remains a secret. Usually the amount depends on the amount of adult beverage consumed.
I add maple syrup and soy sauce to the mix when I’m mixing it all together.
This year I made the stuffing yesterday so I am putting cold stuffing in a cold turkey. We let the turkey thaw for five days and there was still a big chunk of ice inside. Means an extra hour or so cooking.
We are sharing Thanksgiving with next door neighbors here in our place in Temecula. Its great – they have kids and grand kids and they are making all the rest of the dinner — so we can go and relax.
Andy and Co are with Karen’s parents at one of her sisters in Utah (We usually move Thanksgiving to Saturday so we can spend it with them but this year geography got in the way. JT and Francine and Ash are in Washington celebrating in their home.
Some advice for around the Thanksgiving table:
- No politics. I know they are a little off base with their political beliefs, but I love them anyway. I’m not going to change them, they aren’t going to change me. So be it.
- You know that uncle or sister in law that you can’t stand? Give a little and talk to him or her about someone who is no longer with you. Maybe you could make a new friend.
- Football is good — Argue about the game. No one ever lost a friend over football — at least I don’t think they did.
- Take a walk after dinner. The tryptophan will kick in after the turkey, but a nice walk on a crisp evening will help settle your stomach.
- You are going to eat nearly 5000 calories today. Its ok — just don’t eat much tomorrow
And most of all, be thankful. We are blessed. We have worked hard for what we have. We couldn’t have done it without grit and perseverance, but we also couldn’t have done it without all the people along the way. Don’t forget them.
Happy Thanksgiving to one and all
JVH and the Parking Today Media team
