Favorite Thanksgiving Recipes

French Cranberry Sauce 

It’s been a wild and crazy week. Between dashing to appointments with a very talented decorator at Pottery Barn (a fabulous experience by the way) and pulling the condo together for the season, I don’t feel like we’ve even stopped to catch our breath. What a shame too because the weather in south Florida in November is absolutely delightful. Not too cold, not too hot, and the traffic isn’t enough to make you want to pull your hair out just yet.

Last night I had a little panic attack when I realized next Thursday is Thanksgiving. As usual Meakin’s advice is right on. “Don’t worry,” he said, “just rely on our old standards, which is what most people prefer for Thanksgiving anyway.”

And so it is. We’ll have a traditional oven roasted turkey, a French cranberry sauce simmered in red wine that I’ve made for thirty years, a version of my mother’s Southern cornbread dressing, and baby English peas with butter and rosemary. Dessert will be Bahamian sweet potato pie spiked with a healthy dash of dark rum for an island twist. Simple enough and easy to pull off. Besides, our favorite Thanksgiving food is really a turkey sandwich shared between the two of us before we turn off the lights in the kitchen and go to bed Thursday evening.

On Friday I’ll make one of our favorite fall soups – pumpkin squash, which is what I did last year. It can be made ahead and slowly reheated after a Friday morning shopping spree if you’re so inclined to visit the malls. You most definitely won’t find us there. My first career was in retail management and just thinking about shopping on the day after Thanksgiving gives me a major headache. But for others, it’s exciting to snap up bargains and get your Christmas shopping out of the way early, so I say more power to you. The economy will definitely thank you.

Pumpkin Squash Soup

The details and the recipes can be found by clicking the various links. I’ll be sharing our Thanksgiving favorites with Foodie Friday at Designs by Gollum and On the Menu Monday at Stone Gable.

What are your plans for Thanksgiving? Are you, like us, serving old favorites or are you spreading your wings and trying some new recipes?  Will you be staying home and doing the cooking or are you going to visit family or friends? Whatever you do and wherever you go,  we wish you and your family a very happy Thanksgiving.