In honour of American Thanksgiving today I thought I would share so food alternatives to the traditional turkey and trimmings!
Now I don’t have recipes for these but in all honesty who doesn’t have Google these days! One of the things I found really strange moving to Canada, who also have Thanksgiving, is the amount of turkey eaten in a year! For me turkey is for Christmas and lamb is for Easter. I had never celebrated Thanksgiving before. So eating turkey for all these holidays is a bit extreme for me!
To me there is nothing more luxurious than a nice big beef roast cooked medium well, and if your like me and sick of all the turkey why not switch it and break tradition? Blasphemy you may say, but seriously 3 turkeys a year is boring!
Potatoes are always a big one for me too, now I love mashed potatoes but it doesn’t scream giving thanks, so why not switch up and make some dauphinoise potatoes, or even just simply roast your potatoes in some duck fat, because that just sounds like eat me! Something luxurious and indulgent to enjoy the holiday with!
Trimmings to me are that nice home made stuffing with a good bread and plenty of seasoning, if your still not convinced on not cooking turkey, you either fill it with the stuffing or cook it on the side for that extra crunch. I’m going to split the room again here with saying Brussel Sprouts are a given, Shredded and cooked in butter with pancetta and salt and pepper simple but so delicious! And the rest of the veggies keep simple, some nice carrots, Broccoli and cauliflower always a win for me!
Sausages wrapped in bacon are another family favorite of mine, known as pigs in blankets in the UK I can guarantee there will never be any leftover! Make sure your bacon cooks until its crispy and your Sausages are brown!
Now I always reference Thanksgiving dinners from watching TV chefs and movies where there is always sooo many sides that must take forever to make but why go so over board, the less main food you make the more room you have for dessert! Something no luxury meal should be without!
My choices for dessert would be traditional I will give you that one, pumpkin pie is a must! Any other pie is a bonus but a good apple or pecan pie just says sweet and thankful! I wouldn’t waste time making this though, plenty of store bought pies are so much nicer and more convenient then spending all day in the kitchen!
I know people spend days baking and cooking preparing for the perfect family meal, however why not spend that extra time with the people you love and are the most thankful for! There is nothing wrong with store bought, and I am an advocate for home cooked foods but on these occasions I am a champion for cutting those little corners that make the holiday more relaxing and less stressful!
I hope some of my alternative suggestions help with an easier Thanksgiving for future years to come!
Gobble, gobble!
The English Hungry Bookworm 