Who doesn’t like Thanksgiving? Everyone has at least one favorite dish! Me? of course, I love them all!! In fact, I think we should change the holiday to more of a week of feasting so that we don’t have to try and eat so many different favorites at one time, but could spread them out and enjoy each dish one by one savoring the flavors and memories that come with them. And it’s not just the food that’s to love about Thanksgiving. It’s the family time, the Macy’s Day Parade, the nap (induced by tryptophan in the turkey and over-eating), the coolness of a fall day, and best of all the traditions and time well spent the people you love.
As a chef, I’ve had the opportunity to try out new twists on the classics of Thanksgiving recipes and finally feel I have created my own “classics” that I will give to my family as tradition. But along with these flavors I want to make sure I pass on more memory making events in case my recipes fall by the way side to other new menu ideas. So this year I’ve decided on two family projects I can do with my kids. First I’m going to start a family tree using paper leaves to fill in the names of family members going back at least 5 generations. The second is having each of my children create a laminated placemat that I can use to collect until they are grown up and can take these place mats to their family to pass on.
Still Thanksgiving is largely about the feast, so I have a few ideas to pass along:
1. Start a Thanksgiving section in your personal cookbook. Savor a glass of wine while thumbing through some cooking magazines, choose a few recipes that catch your palate and don’t forget the pictures to accompany the recipes as they provide inspiration as well.
2. Try Something New! This year I decided to stroll my Farmer’s Market and use the seasonal local produce for inspiration. In Hawaii we are lucky to have many varieties of produce that are unique to the Pacific which hold
Fall flavors and yet aren’t often thought about as a standard in the Thanksgiving dinner. Here are a few new ideas for some side dishes:
Kobacha with pine nuts, sage & pancetta
Breadfruit with Rosemary (this is sooooooo good)
Okinawan Sweet Potato Mash
Wing Beans & Shiitake Mushrooms with ginger, garlic & oyster sauce
Bok Choy with Proscuitto
Green Beans with Macadamia Nuts
Hamakua & Shiitake Mushroom Bread Pudding (don't forget the truffle oil)
3. Plan Ahead! As a caterer I cannot express the ease you will feel with the implementation of good list making. Make your shopping list and your prep list prioritizing the items after you have the big picture in place. Mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, gravy and stuffing can all be made ahead of time and just ready to reheat. You really don’t loose quality on these items in fact, as my mom used to say, “your just giving the flavors time to visit each other”!
I’m so thankful for my family and the friends I have made here in Hawaii that have become my “family away from my family, or as we say in Hawaii, “Ohana”. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving and may there be many more savory flavors to bless you throughout the holiday season…..Cheers!
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