Thanksgiving 2020
I love Thanksgiving. It’s a day that combines two of my favorite things: family and food. Of course this year was different with the pandemic raging and the remaining stench of a presidential election. After being in near quarantine with the family for 9 months, I wasn’t sure how this dinner would be any different than any other Thursday.
So I decided to make this the year to teach my sons how to plan, prep, and cook a feast. We started by talking about traditional Thanksgiving dishes, and brainstormed on variations. We discussed how to break down the prep work over days (or weeks sometimes) so you can actually spend time with the family on the big day. We made a roux and began prepping the brine nearly a week in advance. I picked up the 20 pound bird from a nearby farm that’s been our source for nearly 20 years. Maple Lawn Farms changed their name to Sho-Nuff Turkey Farm a few years ago, but they’re still run by the same family. They still raise free-range birds that are fed organic grains without antibiotics. As you wait in the long line in the cold to pick up your bird, you stand next to the enclosures where they were raised. You just can’t get any fresher or more delicious.
Logan has been cooking from the Inn at Little Washington cookbook for a few years now. For Thanksgiving he found a recipe for the turkey that uses a brine featuring spruce branches. He and Carter thought I was crazy for picking up a bucket from the local hardware store for the brine, but they got a kick out of the process. We prepped all week and had everything under control on Thursday.
Our finished menu:
“Slow Roasted Turkey in a blue spruce brine
Traditional bird stuffing
Cornbread and chicken sausage stuffing
Mashed potatoes with cream and blue cheese
Peas and pearled onions in a white sauce
Beet green salad with goat cheese and vinaigrette
Sweet potato croquettes
Cranberry sauce with pomegranates
Creme Brulee
Pumpkin pie
Cranberry and orange pie
Ginger Bellini”
The other wonderful thing that made this Thursday different from every other pandemic Thursday, was that my mother joined our “pod” for the first time. We all quarantined for 2 weeks before Thanksgiving, and everyone was tested. Logan’s results hadn’t come back in time for Thanksgiving, so out of an abundance of caution, he wore a mask most of the day. Hugging my mother for the first time in 9 months was electric. Like a release of static energy. This was her first hug of any kind since COVID hit, and the moment wasn’t lost on any of us.
I believe in the power of thankfulness. Of appreciation. Of living in the moment while reflecting on the past. This Thanksgiving I’ve been especially thankful of my good fortune to be surrounded by a loving family, to be in a solid marriage with an equal partner, to have my children in my home. I’m thankful that we have a home … and employment. And our health. I don’t need a federal holiday to remind me to be thankful, but it doesn’t hurt.
I’m also thankful that my wonderful neighbor Marc loaned me his camera for a few weeks. I went a little crazy with the borrowed toy and took hundreds of photos and videos. Enjoy!
