What We Ate...Thanksgiving 2012

If you've ever eaten with our family, you'll know over-production is the name of the game.  4 people coming for dinner?  Let's make 6 courses?  Wait, two more are coming?  Better bump it up to 12 courses.  Thanksgiving 2012 was no different, although we've finally begun to master cooking everything in advance and assigning courses to guests...meaning we had almost an entire free hour prior to the meal.  We were at a loss, let me tell you.  I for one wandered the house aimlessly in an apron, bewildered and unsure what one does on Thanksgiving when not chopping furiously in a kitchen and/or passed out post-meal on a couch in a delightful food coma.  

So, without further ado, and for future reference, here's what we ate at Thanksgiving 2012.  10 people, 2 days of cooking, a whole lot of delicious dishes:

Appeteasers:

• Blue cheese and fig paste cookies
• Olives
• Mixed Nuts
• Not the spiced mixed nuts from 2011, although those were delicious and made me giggle every time I mentioned them.
• Too-Too's Clam Puffs
• Set the way-back machine for 1950's luncheon hosting and imagine cream-cheese clam dip stuffed in a hot profiterole.  Yeah.  That happened.
• Pate, Terrine, Spanish cured meats...basically just lots of random tasty meats.

Julie's Blue Cheese and Fig Paste Cookies.  Beware: you will face her wrath if you sample the goods and mess up the design before the guests arrive!!

First Course:

• Duff's Butternut Squash, Apple, and Garam Masala soup shooters with Morbier cheese toasts

Main Course:

• Brined stuffed turkey.  Duh.
• Mom's sausage, prune, and madeira bread Stuffing
• In the bird and out, for your personal preference.
• Corn pudding
• Caramelized shallots
• Braised carrots and parsnips with "warming" spices of cinnamon and cayenne
• Brussels Sprouts with chestnuts and prosciutto
• Gravy
• Cranberry Sauce
• Robbie's whipped mashed potatoes 

Lili walks folks through each dish of the main course.  Corn pudding in the foreground always features prominently as it's a perennial favorite.

 
Salad Course:

• Leafy greens with pomegranate seeds, shaved parmesan cheese, and fennel
• Cheese board with 3 cheeses and toasts

 Dessert:

• Pumpkin Pie
• Apple Pie 
• Vanilla Ice Cream
• Lilac Chocolates

Libations throughout:

• Beer
• Prosecco with Rose simple syrup
• Stan's famous Sangria
• Aunt Patsy's Bourbon Slush
• Wine.  Lot's of wine.
• Dessert Wine.  Lot's of dessert wine.
• Calvados

We ate ourselves into a state of agony - multiple family members and friends could be found passed out on the couch shortly-post meal with utter disregard for entertaining formalities!  And lest you think it's all high-brow (high Brown, heh), all the time in our house, never fear!  Thanksgiving was started off in true Jersey style with this little breakfast treat from Stan...which Julie gracefully fried up when Mom recoiled in horror.  

If you don't know, you better ask somebody.  Probably from Jersey...