The Thanksgiving Mega Thread

Every year I've been over here I've cooked a T-day dinner...but unfortunately can't do it this year because my ILs don't have a working oven.  They use a microwave/oven thing...cause they don't cook using an oven hardly at all (Indian).  And it doesn't work well, so I won't be able to make a turkey or even a chicken for T-day.  I think I'm going to have to find a place that will serve a good meal on that Thursday cause it would suck not to be able to celebrate it.

Ohhh ladies..I am taking in all these tasty ideas for Thanksgiving!  Now being a Brit and obviously this is something that I don't normally celebrate..I thought it would be nice to throw a thanksgiving dinner for my US Husband this year and make a "tradition" for our house and invite all the friends and family round.

Can I ask if you guys can post some nice easy recipies for me of your fave dish or something that is "Traditional" for you? 

I thought it would be nice to throw a thanksgiving dinner for my US Husband this year and make a "tradition" for our house and invite all the friends and family round.
Can I ask if you guys can post some nice easy recipies for me of your fave dish or something that is "Traditional" for you? 

What part of the US is your husband from?  If he's from the Southwest, for example, he might not recognise anything from a New England table -- like corn bread! But I'd be happy to send you some of my faves.

What part of the US is your husband from?  If he's from the Southwest, for example, he might not recognise anything from a New England table -- like corn bread! But I'd be happy to send you some of my faves.

Ooh! Sorry! I didn't think of that    He is from Sacramento, California..but he has also lived for a few years in Georgia..His family are mainly from Santa Barbra...

My absolute must-have is cranberry-orange relish. 1 bag fresh cranberries, 1-2 juicy navel oranges (preferably thin-skinned). Grind. (An old-fashioned meat grinder works best, but a food processor is fine, and I've even done it in a blender. It should be chunky and textured, not a puree.) Add sugar to taste and chill until serving time. You can do it a day or two in advance--the sugar brings out the juices and it all blends together beautifully.

My mom and I could eat the whole batch. In fact, the running family joke is that we put less sugar in every year so there will be more left for us.

My absolute must-have is cranberry-orange relish.

Absolutely!  Sounds like my recipe.  I usually grate some of the orange peel to sprinkle on top.  Yum!

Hi LuckyCuz- This is what is on my mom's thanksgiving table (Massachusetts)- 
Gerkins, Olives, Pickle Mix
Crackers and Cheese or chips and dip
Shrimp Cocktail
Stuffed Dates
Stuffed Celery
Assorted nuts in their shells

Turkey
Homemade Stuffing, usually with sausage, but sometimes just the turkey juice from being stuffed into the turkey
Vegetarian Stuffing
Gravy
Mashed Butternut Squash
Turnip
Brussel Sprouts
Sweet potatoes with brown sugar and pecans
Green Bean Casserole
Creamed Onions
Mashed Potatoes
Whole Cranberry Sauce
Jellied Cranberry Suace
Dinner Rolls
Cresent Rolls

Pecan Pie
Pumpkin Pie
Ice Cream Pie
Whitman's/Russel Stover/Whatever is one sale box of chocolate
Andes Mints

We love Thanksgiving, its our favourite holiday and really the only tradition we have.  As my mom says, we can't ever take away a dish, if we want something new, it needs to be added in!

Hi LuckyCuz- This is what is on my mom's thanksgiving table (Massachusetts)- 
Gerkins, Olives, Pickle Mix
Crackers and Cheese or chips and dip
Shrimp Cocktail
Stuffed Dates
Stuffed Celery
Assorted nuts in their shells

Turkey
Homemade Stuffing, usually with sausage, but sometimes just the turkey juice from being stuffed into the turkey
Vegetarian Stuffing
Gravy
Mashed Butternut Squash
Turnip
Brussel Sprouts
Sweet potatoes with brown sugar and pecans
Green Bean Casserole
Creamed Onions
Mashed Potatoes
Whole Cranberry Sauce
Jellied Cranberry Suace
Dinner Rolls
Cresent Rolls

Pecan Pie
Pumpkin Pie
Ice Cream Pie
Whitman's/Russel Stover/Whatever is one sale box of chocolate
Andes Mints

We love Thanksgiving, its our favourite holiday and really the only tradition we have.  As my mom says, we can't ever take away a dish, if we want something new, it needs to be added in!

Phone your mom and tell her I'm coming!!!!!!   

Phone your mom and tell her I'm coming!!!!!!   

Hehehee, I'm sure she'd love to have you!! The more the merrier at our table. Too bad I'm not going to be there  :\\\'(

Ohhh ladies..I am taking in all these tasty ideas for Thanksgiving!  Now being a Brit and obviously this is something that I don't normally celebrate..I thought it would be nice to throw a thanksgiving dinner for my US Husband this year and make a "tradition" for our house and invite all the friends and family round.

Can I ask if you guys can post some nice easy recipies for me of your fave dish or something that is "Traditional" for you? 

I was just about to post the same thing , so i will be watching this thread closely.

Thanksgiving recipes:
This one is popular with kids -- Waldorf Salad
1 eating apple
1 stick celery, washed
chopped walnuts
raisins
mayonnaise or plain yogurt

Chop up the apple and celery. Toss together in the yogurt with raisins and nuts.

Durgin Park Indian Pudding (makes a change from pie)
serves 6
1 1/2 plus 1 1/2 cups milk
1/4 cup black molasses (treacle)
2 tablesp. sugar (I like Muscovado)
2 tablesp. butter
1/4 teasp. salt
1/8 teasp. baking powder
1 egg
1/2 cup yellow cornmeal

Preheat oven to 450 deg. F. Mix 1 1/2 cups of the milk with the molasses, sugar, butter, salt, baking powder, egg, and cornmeal. Pour the mixture into a casserole dish that has been well greased and bake until it boils. Heat and stir in remaining 1 1/2 cups milk. Lower oven temp. to 300 F. and continue baking for 5 to 7 hours (!) Serve warm with vanilla ice cream (ideally that would be Brigham's but you'll have to make do.)
Durgin Park is a restaurant in downtown Boston where everyone is seated at long tables and the servers are not known for their finesse. But the food is to die for. This is from their cookbook. My mouth is watering.

I'm following this thread because I too am a UK wife with a US husband and after being here for over 3 years we are finally celebrating thanksgiving with some very good friends.

My hubby is from just outside Chicago and I feel pretty confidence I can do, make or find a lot of what is on the table its the pumpkin pie thats getting me.

yes I could probably make it but to be honest I really don't want to so was thinking if there is an online store somewhere that I could buy a ready made one?

Pauline 

Pumpkin pie is SO easy!  You can use store-bought crust and all you need is a can of pumpkin (can buy online or at certain shops) and a few other ingredients.

You can do it!!

Pumpkin pie is SO easy!  You can use store-bought crust and all you need is a can of pumpkin (can buy online or at certain shops) and a few other ingredients.

You can do it!!

In fact, the recipe is right there on the Libby's can of pumpkin! 

I'm going home for Thanksgiving and I can not wait! I think if next year I'm not in the states then I'll end up doing it myself. It's something I am not willing to let go of.

Some things I didn't see while browsing through that my family makes besides the usuals,

Fried  Cauliflour (dip cauliflour into beated eggs, then flour then fry)
We ALWAYS have some kind of pasta dish (baked ziti, lasagne etc) we're Italian lol
Quartered Potatoes (Oven roasted with seasonings, is great with turkey gravy!)
Broccoli, garlic and lemon juice ( refridgerate, my aunt always made this, not sure why I think only 3-4 people ate it lol, but I like it )
Italian cookies/pastries

I miss watching the parade with my family. It'll be soooo good! (plus when I'm home my mom is making other fare that I love to eat, I'm having her set the menu for the time in the States before I come lol)