Getting there 
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Finally at seven-ish dinner was served. French 75 with prosecco, ok I had one while cooking too.
Turkey tenderloin rolled in rosemary, thyme, garlic, s&p, smoked paprika, smokehouse maple seasoning, wrapped in bacon, seared in bacon grease and roasted. Pepperidge Farm dressing, onion, celery, parsley and chicken broth. Mashed potatoes, butter, sour cream, green onions. Gravy made from pan drippings, flour, packet of turkey gravy and chicken broth. Ocean Spray whole berry cranberry sauce. Salad was blood orange and fennel over sweet mixed greens with citrus dressing and toffee pecans. Everything was delicious except the dressing. Pepperidge Farms has always been my favorite dressing, but it had a strange musty taste. I think more herbs might have helped.
Dessert if I have room later. Pumpkin cheesecake and mini pecan pie. I had one of the mini pecan pies last night with French vanilla ice cream. It was superb, light flaky crust with a not too sweet filling. More prosecco.
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Love the mixer. My mom’s old stand mixer was a Sunbeam. I recognized the settings right away.
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End of a long day, but a mostly nice one filled with laughs and hugs (“I’m a hugger” said middle nephew as he gave me a hug before leaving — with me, because I’m spending the night at their place 
).
Final apps / grazing table over a few hours:
— Cheese board
— Gravlax on crostini with mascarpone and lemon
— Baked brie with spicy onion jam
— Bacon-wrapped mini irish sausages
— Puff pastry bites with Brie and cranberry jelly
— Baguette with goat cheese, pistachio pesto, and caponata (remember this?)
.
Meal:
— Turkeys (2, because everybody wants some leftovers)
— Mashed potatoes
— Stuffing balls
— Green beans in butter
— Roasted brussels sprouts
— Roasted squashes
— Gravy
— Bread sauce / white gravy
.
Dessert:
— Apple pie
— Pumpkin pie
— Blueberry pie
— Ice cream
.
The turkey was lovely and moist. Not spatchcocked after all, but dry brined and slow roasted again.
The stuffing balls were crisp and moist, though some of them fell apart a bit because they were moved around so many times.
The Brussels sprouts were crisp but a bit under-salted (me), the green beans were overcooked (not me).
No one ate squash 
(will become soup, no worries).
The gravy was delicious but too salty, might have been the drippings at fault again. The bread sauce was fabulous.
Mashed potatoes were less than. Cousin 2 finally had his shot at them as Cousin 1 was arriving later than usual, and he blew it 
— too much salt, not enough milk, really not enough butter. At least we don’t have to wonder anymore when he complains that he makes amazing mash but isn’t ever “allowed” to
I didn’t eat any dessert as usual.
The dishwasher broke at the end.
Hope you all had mostly good days!
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“Sidesgiving” plate: My mother’s classic stuffing/dressing, which she’s been making as long as I can remember* with only slight variations (rosemary sourdough, turkey sausage, mushrooms, apple, celery, onion, fresh sage and thyme, moistened with turkey stock) and gravy; sweet potatoes with orange marmalade glaze; roasted Brussels sprouts with brown butter and lemon (and pomegranate arils, a new addition this year that didn’t meld as much as I’d hoped); red wine cranberry sauce.
Though my mother wasn’t thrilled with the flavor of the gravy (not enough) or its lack of thickening (solved when I explained how to make and use beurre manie), the only actual screwup was mine. When I tasted the sweet potatoes, they seemed sweeter and less sophisticated, and I realized I’d neglected to add the ingredient that makes the recipe unique (and makes it work): Angustora bitters. Oh, well.
The star, as always, was the dressing, which is savory and flavorful.
Not pictured: dessert. Pumpkin pie (baked by mother (though she uses my filling recipe) and mince tarts courtesy of my brother.
*She always bakes what will be dug into on T-day in the same pan, round, steel and matte black on the exterior with two handles, and shiny blue enamel inside. It was apparently a wedding gift when my parents married many decades ago, though she can’t recall who the giver was. My father retained its mate, a tall bowl with a red interior in the divorce
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Happy day after! Hope everyone has recovered from their food comas.
@ricepad - Try this loaf technique. Airy sourdough.
Only one?
Gilding the lily? Pork on pork. Love that.
We were guesting. Just showed up ate and left. Best way to do the holiday.
Nice spread to welcome everyone.
The table stretched to infinity and beyond. And this was just a family dinner. I honestly don’t know how many people there were as I did not have the chance to catch up with everyone.
The rest of the food was amazing. That happens when some of the family worked at Michelin star places. No more pictures as I was too busy eating and chatting.
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It all sounds delicious but that looks especially good!
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Is that crostini with squash back right? Looks good.
Happy day-after-Thanksgiving! I just want to say I am in awe over the amount of work each one of you put into your Thanksgiving dinners. Thanks for sharing your pictures and stories. Even though I already celebrated Thanksgiving, I am thankful for this community and I feel I shared this day with you virtually.
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Oysters, fried chicken, Poole’s Diner Mac & Cheese, arugula and radicchio salad served with pumpkin dinner rolls, followed by sweet potato pie and Milk Street French Apple cake.
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Tell me more about the liverwurst mousse. That combo might be my dinner.
Successful T-day here. Three of the new recipes I tried were really great - roasted garlic gravy, shaved Brussels sprout salad, and Green Chile Cornbread. Small turkey breast was also good although it was done quicker than expected which messed up onion cooking time. Most disappointing item was the sweet potato pie my mom brought. The crust seemed more like shortbread than a regular butter crust. Oh well, ice cream covered the sin and we are not big dessert fans anyway. Drank wine and played Ticket to Ride, then called it a night. This AM, spouse took my mom home and is driving kid to his college Alma mater for alumni band night. Dog and I will nosh on leftovers and enjoy a quiet house!
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I was started off with a Bloody that was half vodka. No wonder we were sound asleep by midnight 
Food was wonderful. Perfect turkey, fab Indian sides, our pies, and lots of wine — plus the lovely company of our friends. What else could one ask for?
Damn straight. Nothing else needed.
Our host was a bit tipsy for the carving 'sponsibilities
Lovely coconut rice & spicy HOT fruit stew with mango and pineapple
Wonderful beets, raita, khichdi
Some random green veg dish with lots of cilantro.
Last, but certainly not least, our pies: coconut custard
Key lime
Went back to the hotel happy & stuffed 
. So nice to spend time with our friends & their adorable kitten 
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What a fabulous meal for one… and a furry plus one 
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What a lovely gift! I have a chicken fryer + lid that I got at a flea market in the Shenandoah Valley about 10 years ago. Don’t know its history but I love it
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What do you cook in it?
Sourdough boules and anything that requires a fry, such as falafel, zucchini fritters, meatballs. The higher sides = less splatter
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Forgot to mention the roasted turkey skin left over from my drumstick experiment in October. Cook’s snack……
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Very cool! Good?
First I want to say how much fun it’s been following everyone’s T’Day dining here. Mind blown by all the different things people bring to the table!
Reporting back on ours. This year we decided on a Thanksgiving without the turkey. It was just the three of us (husband, dog, and me) so I didn’t have to worry about traditional expectations for the meal. When I realized we had half a roast in the freezer, I went for Piedmontese-style beef braised in red wine. Closely based on a Marcella Hazan recipe.
Also added a sauté of fancy mushrooms from local grower Fat Moon Farm with an eye to leftovers. Thanks to @ChristinaM for inspiring the prep on the Swiss chard, though I subbed pomegranate arils for pepitas (had a pomegranate). Mashed potatoes too, not pictured.
Mushrooms before cooking.
Wine was a special red we brought back from visiting our pals in Italy. Monferace is a heritage wine being brought back by a dedicated association of folks in the region of Monferrato, Italy, and the connection to farming and tradition is super interesting to us.
Finally, pie. Pumpkin, which I pre-ordered from a small breakfast and lunch place nearby. Because, delicious.
Hope that you’re all able to enjoy the rest of this holiday weekend in a way that leaves you happy and recharged.
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