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11/17/2004 Archived Entry: "Thanksgiving at My House"

For the first time in at least 10 years -- when, diverging from our usual routine, I celebrated Thanksgiving at my then-home in Connecticut, with my family, for a long, memorable weekend -- Thanksgiving is at my house this year. My sister, Andrea, and brother-in-law, Milt, have hosted this holiday since my nephew was born. That would be 26 Thanksgivings ago. Brian is now a doctor. His sister, Rachel, is getting her masters degree in social work this spring. In fact, it is because Rachel is visiting from St. Louis, and Brian is a doctor, a first-year resident at a Manhattan hospital, that I selfishly decided to take on the burden (ha!) of Thanksgiving dinner. I wanted to spend more than just dinnertime with Rachel – she and her parents will arrive on Wednesday, giving us a night of down time together. Brian can’t leave his Manhattan hospital until early evening, making it impossible to get to his parent’s in New Jersey before it would be time to return.

I am probably giving too much family information here. I get accused of that. From my family. Long story made no shorter, we are now 13, although I intend to fool the superstition gods and set the table for 12, waiting for Brian to arrive late before I put the bad-luck number of forks on the table. I have also invited some non-blood-related “family:” Rozanne Gold and Michael Whiteman (married) and Rozanne’s mother, Marion Gold. Robin Zucker and John East (married) are dear friends whose families are in Florida and Hannibal, MO, respectively. Grandma Ruth (Milt’s mother), Aunt Carol (Milt’s sister), and Bob Harned fill the table.

Although it looks like I am out of a job to some, I am so busy that I was about to hire someone to help me. Then my sister calmed me down. We are only 13. You can do it. Milt, as always, would roast the turkey. All I had to do was order a fresh-killed one, which I did, from DiPaola, at the Grand Army Plaza Greenmarket. She would make a dressing, and her mushroom strudel (actually a recipe from Uta Hagen, the actress), which we decided to serve as a side dish instead of an appetizer. (For several years now, we’ve felt it was too rich to be an appetizer. A small slice is all you need next to your turkey.) She would also make – unless I insisted that it was too disgusting to put on my table – the whipped sweet potato casserole with marshmallow topping that my mother and every other 1950s mother made. Bad rap! I hate that casserole for various reasons but I am not the kind of snob who rejects family tradition, even if a hateful tradition.

That said, Rozanne immediately offered to make her favorite cranberry sauce, which is from her Cooking 1-2-3 . And, with Milt, the-low-carb dieter, particularly in mind, she will bring a few samples of dishes that will be in her newest book, "Low-Carb 1-2-3," to be published by Rodale in January. I know we will all love them. They are hardly a sacrifice. I once sat next to a bowl of Rozanne’s spiced pecans. Big mistake. Her 1-2-3 sweet potato whip with ginger is also on the site -- although hardly low-carb. But good carb!

I am tackling appetizers (including gougere, also on this site -- a link follows), and if I can still find it this Saturday, I am buying the Romanesco chartreuse-colored cauliflower that’s been at the Greenmarket for the last two Saturdays. It is fantastic – so much more flavorful than white cauliflower and a really beautiful yellow-green that keeps its color unless dramatically overcooked. I am also making coconut custard for dessert – not in a pie shell (more about that on another posting). Robin and John are baking a cake, and something Missouri-like in honor of his hometown and my niece’s adopted state. My niece is making the pumpkin pie she most loves. Everyone will bring or do something.

I’ll be posting a few more new recipes in the coming days. For now, here are Rozanne’s, and a guide to what else you’ll find on the site that’s appropriate for Thanksgiving.

First, go to 2002’s Thanksgiving Recipe Roundup .

Then, here are a few more recipes that have been added to the site since then,

Turkey Wild Rice Soup

Drying and Roasting Pumpkin and Sunflower Seeds

Gougères (Cheese Puffs)

Turkey Leftovers

Sun-dried Cherry and Cranberry Compote
Makes about 2 1/4 cups

“For a mouthwatering cranberry relish,”says Rozanne, “you can grind up the uncooked ingredients in a food processor and let them sit overnight. Or serve both versions with a holiday turkey, pork roast or duck.”

3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
12 ounces fresh cranberries, about 3 cups
4 ounces unsweetened dried cherries, about 3/4 cup

In a heavy medium saucepan, put 1 cup water, brown sugar, a pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper. Bring to a boil.

Add cranberries and cherries, and return to a boil.

Reduce heat to medium and cook for 10 minutes, or until cranberries have popped and sauce has thickened. If it’s too thick, you can add a little water: remember that cranberries will thicken further as they cool because of their high pectin content. Let cook, then cover, and refrigerate until cold.

Smoked Pecans
Serves 16 (about 8 pecans per serving)

“My advice,” says Rozanne, “is to keep it simple before a big holiday meal. You can eat about 8 pecans and have only 1 gram of carbs that count (total carbs minus fiber); 112 calories, and 1.77 grams of saturated fat. These seem to disappear magically from the bowl.”

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
8 ounces (2 cups) large pecan halves
2 teaspoons smoked paprika*

Preheat oven to 250 degrees.

In a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the pecans, 1 1/2 teaspoons of smoked paprika, 1 teaspoon salt, and a generous grinding of black pepper.
Cook, stirring well, until the pecans are coated, about 1 minute.

Transfer the pecans to a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring once. (Do not let the pecans get too dark, or they will taste bitter.) Toss them with a little more of the remaining smoked paprika, to taste. Remove the pecans from the oven, transfer them to paper towels to drain, and let them cool to room temperature before serving. Store in a lightly covered tin or jar.

Roasted Spiced Acorn Squash
Serves 4

Rozanne says: “This becomes the ultimate Thanksgiving vegetable, replacing higher-carb sweet potatoes. They are also a great source of vitamin C and beta-carotene. Because I’ve used pumpkin pie spice here, you won’t miss the no-no pie for dessert. Each serving has 11.5 carbs that count (total carbs minus fiber); 130 calories, 5.57 grams of saturated fat.”

2 acorn squash (about 1 pound each)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons pumpkin pie spice

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Cut the squash in half through the root ends. Scoop out the seeds. Place the squash, cut-sides down on a rimmed baking sheet. Pour ½ cup water over the squash and place in the oven.

Bake for 45 minutes, until the squash can be easily pierced with the tip of a knife. Remove from the oven.

Preheat the broiler.

Melt the butter in a small saucepan and, using a pastry brush, brush the insides and tops of the squash with butter. Sprinkle the squash very lightly with salt and freshly ground black pepper, then sprinkle more liberally with the pumpkin pie spice.

Place the squash under the broiler, about 6 inches from the heat, for 30 seconds, until golden. Serve immediately.