Thanksgiving

I do menus. Often several weeks in advance. Breakfast, lunch and dinner. Every day. There are four people in my house for three meals, seven days a week. Two of them are "little people" who are never full and always asking "Mom, what's for ****?"

So, I do menus.

This is our Thanksgiving menu.

Appetizer:

Wild Salmon Pate on nine grain crackers, crudites and probably some kind of fruit. Pears lightly poached in Riesling and honey, if I'm feeling adventurous.

Dinner:

Turkey, glazed with orange juice, stuffed with apples and oranges. Basted compulsively until done perfectly.

Cornbread stuffing, green bean casserole, potato rolls, mashed potatoes, corn with herb butter, giblet gravy, and amaretto cranberry relish.

Served with a light and refreshing Gewurstraminer or sparkling cider.

Dessert:

Maple Pecan Pumpkin Cheesecake, Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pie, maybe Apple Pie if I'm in the mood for it. French press organic shade grown espresso roast coffee with cream or mulled cider.

The only remotely "pre-made" item? The green bean casserole. Everything else is , as they say, "from scratch".

So, why do I tell you all this? Is it to brag? To boast of my culinary skill? Of course it isn't. I'd invite you all if you weren't all scary and stuff cuz you're on that there Internet. :)

You'll just have to understand I won't be around much until next week. First the cooking, then the feasting and then the repenting will just consume all my time!

I start cooking tonight and I will finish sometime around Thursday afternoon.

So, I'm off to make cranberry sauce.

And drink some vanilla cream liqueur. I think I need it after today.