Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving turned out beautifully. With Shelagh being sick, she and Rory had to be home with me on my traditional Wed-before-Thanksgiving-prep day. I was really nervous about this b/c usually I need to whole day to get everything super prepped so I can avoid being a crazy person on Thanksgiving Day. It worked out fine though...for once I gave the kids a TV free-for-all and they loved it, of course.

For the big day, I made

• Roasted Turkey with Italian Sausage Stuffing (from Food & Wine last year. I made the same one last year and also brined the turkey for 24 hours beforehand. I swear that makes a huge difference)
• Mashed Potatoes
• Squash with Brown Sugar/Butter
• Peas with Shallots & Prosciutto
• Mini-muffin sized Mac & Cheeses
• Cranberry-Apple Sauce
• Chocolate Covered Bananas for the kids
• Lemon Squares

All went well cooking-wise. I got a little further on my gravy this year than last year and my mother in law only had to save the end of my gravy :) Last year I ended up with minimal drippings and she had to totally save it. This year, I had good drippings, a dark thick gravy, and she only had to add broth and thin it out for me. It came out great. Started off too salty, but the raw potato trick to soak up the salt really worked! My sisters in law brought all the apps (bacon-wrapped scallops, cheese/crackers, spinach dip in a pumpernickel bread bowl), drinks, and my mother in law brought 2 pies and cookies.

We ate a little later than I had hoped, but the dark meat had to be cut off and put back in the oven and the gravy took longer than expected. Thanks to the crock pot for keeping the potatoes hot and the squash for staying warm on it's own.

The kids had a great time playing with their cousins. Rory found himself wrestling with his almost 6 and almost 7 yr old cousins and holding his own. Shelagh played dress up and followed the older girls around in awe. All in all, a great day.