A Thanksgiving Feast

Many of the reasons which make Easter my favorite holiday- namely an importance of gathering with friends and family and sharing a sumptuous meal and the lack of presents- also make Thanksgiving one of my favorite holidays. This year, in Berlin and far away from my family, I decided to have a Thanksgiving gathering at my house. And gather we did! About 12 people came over to share in my very traditional Thanksgiving fare, conversation, fun, and games- it was a hit.

The planning for the festivities began last week when I realized that although I would be attending Thanksgiving dinners on Wednesday and Saturday, I actually had no plans for the Thursday. This made me profoundly sad- what would I do? Make an extra pumpkin pie and eat it alone, most likely. I decided this type of gluttony and isolation was not to be borne and that I should instead throw a Thanksgiving dinner of my own. So, heady with plans and nightly dreams of Thanksgiving treats dancing in my head, I set out to celebrate a very American holiday in Berlin. After the week of planning, days of cooking, and multiple trips to the grocery store- my friends and I enjoyed the most traditional of Thanksgiving dishes:

• Turkey (the first I have ever made and it was very moist and tender, all were impressed and doubted my novice claims)
• Mashed Potatoes (delish and very silky smooth, the lack of potato masher obliged me to use my sieve once more!)
• Green Bean Casserole (with no french onions to be had, I made my own croutons and topped it with them- a very nice twist)
• Candied Yams (lacking marshmallows- I couldn't find them and my attempt to make them didn't entirely pan out- I need to further develop my confectionery skills!)
• Stuffing
• Gravy
• My Grandma Sharon's Dinner Rolls (oh so good!)
• Cranberry Sauce (making your own is surprisingly easy and quite delicious)
• Lentil Nut Roast (my friend Lydia made it and it was quite a hit- very yummy)
• Salads (Marie brought salads which were a perfect accent to all the warm food!)
• Pumpkin pie (you've heard the story already)
• Snickerdoodles (quite a surprise hit, everyone wants the recipe)
  

And it seems everyone who came brought the standard bottle of wine- it was quite a nice evening, more then enough wine, the perfect amount of food and marvelous conversation throughout the evening- it sure beat eating a pie by myself!

And now that Thanksgiving is gone, I am at liberty to begin the Christmas season- it is 24/7 Christmas tunes for me and the snowflakes have gone into full production.