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Recipe Tue Nov 23 2010
An Underpaid, Overworked Orphans' Thanksgiving
Last year's Thanksgiving threw a monkey-wrench in my normal traditions. For some bizarre, overly capitalist reason, the US futures markets are open on Thanksgiving. If you're bored waiting for your bird to cook or have time between potato mashings, you, yes YOU can trade the S&P. Which meant for me, last year I had to work on Thanksgiving. Boo hoo. I know I'm not the only one. There are plenty of folks that had to work, couldn't take the time off, couldn't afford the trip to see family and otherwise didn't get to have a proper Thanksgiving. Cue the pity party.
Well I decided to do just that. Invites went out for a "Underpaid, Overworked Orphans Thanksgiving" only for those sorry souls who had to work, couldn't see family, and were otherwise deserving of a pity party. I needed help from a good menu to stick it to the man. A real, blow out, non-traditional menu with that doesn't look like a Norman Rockwell painting. Forget tradition, forget the pilgrims. We were poor stranded orphans in need of a feast of great proportions. I found this Thanksgiving Menu from Bon Appetit and knew it was just the right fit. It is a true American feast with recipes that jump back a few hundred years to pay tribute to our real American roots, before those dang Europeans came in with their guns, germs, steel and stock markets (I'm realizing how self-incriminating this statement is...). With a nod to the South and Central Americans, the mole-roasted turkey is stuffed with masa harina (the kind the Tomale guy peddles) topped with a roasted poblano & pineapple salsa. And thanks to the Americans of the great plains we had sweet potatoes glazed with wildflower honey and whiskey, crisp green beans tossed with pine nuts, and cranberry-zucchini muffins.
All in all, I made 11 dishes. I'm a stickler for texture so I skipped the flan but made the rest of it, with the help of a dedicated roommate. Eight guests arrived with wine and hungry stomachs and I provided the rest.
So for your drooling pleasure here they all are. If you're looking for something new-ish but not too far from the norm, try the mashed yukon potatoes with carmelized shallots, or the chocolate cashew maple pie. Or, if you are really feeling brave, pull out the big guns and go for the mole turkey. It'll take you three days to make it so you'd better get cracking, but it made the best Thanksgiving leftovers.
The makings of mole.
The bird and masa stuffing.
Caramelized shallots, shocked green beans, pineapple poblano salsa and sweet potatoes pre-glaze.
The spread.
And of course, the pie.
To all you orphans and workaholics out there, this one's for you.
