What are your Thanksgiving “must haves?”
30 October 2009

Halloween is upon us, yet thoughts of more substantial holidays are carrying much more influence. Spending some time in a local home improvement store sparked the embers that smolder all year long for everything related to decorating, food, and entertaining over the roughly six weeks that comprise “The Holidays.” Being accompanied by a wide-eyed 4-year-old helps a bit in that department, too. The ridiculously enormous, inflatable yard ornaments, pre-lit Christmas trees, and musical displays caught his fancy, while I took in the overwhelming aroma of cinnamon-scented pine cones, wreaths, and a tower of boxes containing turkey fryers.

That’s when it hit me … I will be away for Thanksgiving! So what’s the big deal with that? For one, I won’t be spending so much time planning the meal. In fact, there will be no time spent planning the Thanksgiving feast this year. As a weekend guest, I will certainly be spending time helping with the preparation, and even doing my part in simply setting the table. Not being the hostess is just a sort of odd sensation this year. I won’t even be bringing food, as it just wouldn’t travel well for such a long trip.

I will be visiting my eldest brother and his family, so it’s not a matter of feeling uncomfortable, or longing for the sorts of foods from holidays passed. We will likely have a combination of my sister-in-law’s customary Thanksgiving foods (she is of German and Polish decent, and was raised enjoying sauerkraut and sausages along side the typical turkey and potatoes) while my brother and I were raised having coleslaw and cranberry sauce. My husband’s family (have I ever mentioned they’re Italian?) rarely celebrates a holiday, especially Thanksgiving, without two or three trays of my mother-in-law’s lasagna being presented as a first course. I now have given in to serving it, as well, although for my first Thanksgiving with his family I was thinking “What does lasagna have to do with Thanksgiving?” Having matured since those early years, and become more open minded to the cultural diversity of our country, I laugh over my initial thoughts, and am ashamed to have ever criticized what people of other cultures, who live in our great country, serve for a feast of thanks.

Factions of this big family I married feel compelled to line tables end to end, seating guests elbow to elbow. The only shortage of anything is space. The love shared is not only evidenced in the food and wine consumed, but also in the laughter and raised voices as each person desires to be heard over another. (Here’s a hint for anyone about to experience anything similar to this for the first time: Be sure to take a prophylactic dose of ibuprofen or acetaminophen. You’ll thank me later.)

With so many ways to celebrate holidays like this, it is remarkable that various foods served among different ethnic groups have not become more deeply fused with regional favorites, thus becoming mainstream fare. I have my favorites, and consider them quite basic. However, my African American friends and co-workers have all raised their eyebrows in astonishment over the lack of macaroni and cheese, corn bread, and wonderfully smoky, fat-back infused, long cooked greens. A former boss looked at me quizzically and said to me one year, “You didn’t have mac and cheese? Then it wasn’t Thanksgiving.”

In coastal areas throughout the country seafood plays a role in the meal. My mother told me of oyster stuffing her family served growing up. She never cared to pass down that tradition, and thankfully raised us with what is considered our family’s basic sausage stuffing or dressing. In New England the seafood would be some form of shellfish, and maple syrup most certainly is a prominent ingredient. The thought of a side of a spicy jambalaya in the bayou areas knocks the receptors in my brain into a tizzy. In the Northwest some form of fish most certainly makes a regular appearance at the Thanksgiving table.

This is where all or your input would be fun and most appreciated. What are your ‘must haves’ for Thanksgiving dinner? Whether you don’t consider it Thanksgiving without your aunt’s green bean and French fried onion casserole, your crazy relations introduced you to the concept of a turducken (now sold in grocery stores, if you can believe it), or you’re a vegetarian and have been offered Tofurkey in a half baked attempt to make you feel like you aren’t missing out on the big bird. It doesn’t matter. I want to know what foods make it Thanksgiving for you and your family. Please contact me through this site, and let me know where you’re from, as well as ethnic influences over your meal. It will be interesting to see the differences and similarities, and it will undoubtedly provide some inspiration for many of us to throw in something new at our tables.

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