Thanksgivings Past
Thanksgiving is a holiday tailor-made for those of us who enjoy gathering friends and family together to share in a feast of fun, fare and tradition. It is an occasion to pause and acknowledge our blessings, and a time to express our gratitude to those people who make our lives a better place.
My husband and I have enjoyed being lucky guests at our friends, Matt and Eleanor’s, Thanksgiving table. This perfectly choreographed day has been an occasion they plan for all year through, with no detail overlooked. The tables- beautiful, the wines and appetizers -delightful and beautifully presented, the meal – classic and perfectly prepared, and the deserts….oh my! Their time and efforts have truly been an expression of love and service.
Teaming Up
As with most things this year, the Pandemic has really thrown a “monkey wrench” into the works. The idea of gathering in a large group for hours of feasting and fun is probably not the most advisable of holiday strategies. So, as the saying goes, “necessity is the mother of invention” and I have been inventing some ideas we can use to pivot and change our holiday plan. To sweeten the pot, (so to speak), I have teamed up with someone who loves the Thanksgiving holiday as much as I do, Eleanor Andersen, queen of all things Thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving and the Gift of Friendship
When I got married just almost 50 years ago, I truly didn’t know how to fry an egg. My mom was a great cook. My sister Kathy was interested in cooking so she learned and I bowed out of the kitchen. Now cooking is one of my passions! I think of cooking food for others, whether it is for a large group or just me and my husband Matt, as a creative way to say I love you. Planning, shopping, preparing and then watching others enjoy the product gives me great joy. I also love to garden. Matt and I have a large vegetable garden and I have lots of flowers. We ski, hike, fly fish and love to travel. When we travel we usually take one cooking class together.
We have no family in Spokane, where we live, but lots of wonderful friends who love to cook and eat! Many of those friends have no family in town either. That is how our large Thanksgiving gatherings started. “Let’s feed our homeless friends.” We’ve been doing it for over 20 years. The guest list has evolved over the years but it is always a lively group with lots of great conversation around the table. We rearrange the furniture in our living room and dining room so we have one long table that seats 20-22 people. Two years ago I finally gave up on doing it all and started assigning dishes to friends. I found that by doing this I enjoyed the day more and I think our friends did too. In addition to the turkey I still make 3 or four different kinds of pies and Matt makes a decadent chocolate dessert.
Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday of the year. The only gifts are the gifts of friendship and thankfulness.
Eleanor’s Centerpiece
One of my favorite things about preparing for Thanksgiving is planning the table and figuring who sits where. My goal is to have conversation that doesn’t want to stop. So where I put people is important. One year I put our friend Mike between my two very talkative friends. As the evening went on, I went in the family room to find him sitting in a daze on the couch. I asked if he was okay? He smiled and said “I just needed a break.” Maybe I overdid it for him. The centerpiece is also important. With a table this long it is usually multiple items rather than one centerpiece. The are usually quite small so there is plenty of room for all the serving platters. I usually work with items I have that are significant to me rather than going out and buying new things. The year after my mother passed away, her sugar bowl that I inherited, was at the center of the table. Below is her story about the bowl. I placed a small card with the story at each place. It almost felt like my mom was at the table with us.
Why Do I keep This Thing?
by Hannelore Fassnacht
My maternal grandmother played a large role in my childhood and I have many fond memories of her. She suffered from arthritis and didn’t go far afield any-more, but she had many friends who would come to visit in the afternoons. Invariably, when the ladies arrived, the coffeepot would be put on top of the stove and the china cups and saucers would appear on the table. My grandmother baked every Saturday morning (cake and Danish) and that would be served. When I left Germany for the US there was no thought to take keepsakes, and after all, my grandmother still used her “good dishes”. The war in Europe started two weeks after I arrived in the US and mail took a long time to get back and forth across the Atlantic and after Dec. 7 1941 mail stopped altogether. My Grandparents both passed away during the war (of natural causes) and we were able to begin corresponding with my aunt Helene beginning in the summer of 1945, after the war in Europe ended. In one letter I mentioned that I would love to have one of “Oma’s” small pieces of china, “someday”. My aunt managed to know someone who had a permit to travel to “The West” once in a while on business and gave him the sugar bowl to mail to me from West Germany. I don’t use it sugar, but I often set it on the center of the table with a bunch of flowers in it and think of my “Oma”. I have loved it.
Change In Plans For Thanksgiving To Go
Due to the recent rise in COVID-19 cases, we have modified our plans in order to be compliant with new mandates. The morning walk is canceled and an email was sent with new details.
Thanksgiving to Go Version 2.1 So we’re sure you were expecting this! 🍗🤪🥂 In light of Governor Inslee’s new Covid-19 requirements we are updating Thanksgiving to Go. This is how we have revised the plan for Thursday, November 26th: Please arrive at 10:30 with your food to share. Please stay in your vehicle. Dave, Lisa, Matt and Eleanor will collect your meal contributions. We will then quickly redistribute them so each car will have a bag of dinner! We will bring your bag to you in your vehicle. Be sure to keep some of the dish that you prepare for the meal for yourselves! To allow for us to have some socializing time, Lisa and Dave are hosting a Zoom cocktail time at 1:30 pm. (See the invitation below.)
Hosting Thanksgiving In 2020
This idea is sort of a cross between a progressive dinner and a tail-gate party where everyone will have the opportunity to contribute and gather in a socially distanced and safe celebration.
Don’t worry, it’s easy and I have broken it down into Stages, Roles and Assignments.
Stage 1
It begins with the HOSTS sending out invitations, either via email or by snail-mail. Along with the party details, the invitations will provide each household of guests their roles and assignments for the holiday celebration and instructions for picking up needed supplies, (carry-out food containers, recipes, etc.), a few days prior to Thanksgiving day.
Stage 2
On Thanksgiving Day morning, everyone will meet at an out of doors location, (hosts driveway/garage/covered porch, local park or even a centrally located parking lot), for a ‘Turkey Trot/Walk’. Guests will bring their dinner contributions with them which they have packed in the individual ‘carry-out’ containers provided by the hosts earlier in the week. (Warm food items could be brought in coolers or insulated bags to help keep the food warm). This will provide everyone an opportunity for a little exercise and some time together while being safely socially distanced.
Stage 3
After the walk, each guest will be given their own fabric marker to use to write holiday wishes on each of the tote bags. The tote bags will then be given to each guest (household) to collect their dinner items for the next stage of the day — DINNER. (Hosts may provide warm beverages and/or nibbles to enjoy outside while guests are writing on the totes and collecting dinner items.)
Stage 4
To keep the collective celebration going after everyone has returned home to enjoy their holiday dinner, the hosts may choose to set up a ZOOM meeting, (pre and/or post dinner), for everyone to enjoy a pre-dinner cocktail and/or dessert conversations (virtually) together.
Roles and Assignments
Hosts
Hosts will provide 'carry-out' food containers, labels, special instructions and totes.
Guest Chefs
Menu Items
Table Setting Coordinator (optional)
Ideas May Include
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Sharing Thanksgiving Day with Your Out-Of-Town Peeps
Many of us will be missing our out of town family and friends who we usually share the Thanksgiving holiday with. Not to worry, I have a few ideas for that case too. It requires a little planning, but if you get started now, you will be able to share the day from afar.
It all starts with creating a care package and getting it mailed out early in the month. This package may include; packages of herbs and spices, candles, specialty teas, a personalized apron, recipe cards, cooking implements, meat thermometer, turkey themed face masks, seasonal themed dish towels/cloths/scrubbers, hot pads/bowl cozies, items for the dinner table–napkin rings/napkins, table runner or placemats, “leaves” of thanks, music, wine implements; stoppers/aerator/corkscrew/chiller, etc. Place all of the items in a cloth tote which you and other family members and friends can sign to remember the occasion. NOTE: You could write down something that you are thankful for and then include the fabric marker in the package with instructions for everyone on the receiving end to do the same. Could be a fun thing to do each year, especially if there are kids involved.
Arrange some ZOOM meetings to visit when they get their package, prepare some of the dishes, or just before and/after Thanksgiving dinner.
Create a Care Package
Ideas of Items You May Choose To Include
Sample of an Email Invitation
Thanksgiving To Go Celebration Protocol
In an effort to continue the tradition of Thanksgiving and honoring the good work we have all been doing to stay safe and healthy, we have come up with a protocol for our Thanksgiving Party. Please remember if you are not feeling well or have been around someone who is sick, we will understand if you don’t participate.
- Event will be outdoors at Matt and Eleanor’s home.
- Masks will be worn throughout.
- Six foot distancing should be maintained when possible.
- Hand sanitizer will be available.
- People who want to go on the walk should arrive at 10 am.
- At 11 am those not doing the walk arrive..
- We would like to assign you a dish to contribute to the ‘to go’ feast when you RSVP.
- Hosts will provide you ‘to go’ containers for your dish before Thanksgiving. Please bring your food separated in the individual to go containers so each person/couple can grab their portion and go.
Our FAVORITE Thanksiving Recipes
Making Homemade Butter
About two years ago when visiting my niece in Boston, I checked out her cookbook shelf. One of the books I found was, “Food, Gift, Love”, by Maggie Battista. I bought it because it is full of great ideas for giving food as gifts. Best of all, she has lots of creative ways to present the gifts. One of the recipes I make the most is the Homemade Butter.
If you are hosting Thanksgiving it’s great to serve your fresh out of the oven rolls with this yummy butter. In the spirit of “How to Host Thanksgiving 2020”, butter could be assigned to a guest chef.
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Happy Thanksgiving!
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