I’ve been rolling a Thanksgiving post around in my mind the past few days, and I happened upon one I wrote for Credenda in 2009. So why start over? Here it is.
Thanksgiving is a mysterious American feast day, buried in the month of November, on a Thursday, of all things. It requires several simple things of its celebrants: a turkey, some trimmings (called side dishes), and several kinds of pie, preferably using pumpkin, pecans, or apples. (And don’t forget the cranberries.)
At a certain moment in the late fall each year, the grocery store workers dutifully lay out the ingredients for the pies and the side dishes, and the butchers offer turkeys, fresh or frozen. Other shopkeepers provide tools for preparing the required dishes: meat thermometers, basting bulbs, measuring cups, and gravy ladles. Some sell dishes and platters decorated with turkeys, pumpkins, or leaves, all for the splendor of the Thanksgiving table.
The American citizens file in to the vast grocery stores, searching for the required elements for the feast, and they transport these ingredients home in paper or plastic bags, to be stored until the day of many preparations.
Some of the side dishes, like cornbread stuffing or marshmallow topped sweet potatoes, are only prepared and eaten once a year, at the Thanksgiving Feast. But each holds a treasured spot on the Thanksgiving table, and some even have their own serving dish just for the annual occasion. (Don’t forget Grandma’s silver gravy boat.) Read More