Sadie’s Thanksgiving

I love Thanksgiving. It has always been a cherished and celebrated holiday in my family. My traditions have changed throughout the years; loved ones have passed, families have grown, houses have been sold and people move… But some things have remained the same; I still get dressed up even though we are just meeting up with family and friends. We don’t take for granted how blessed we are to be together and share in our feast. And I’m from Michigan, so there’s always a Lion’s game.

Many of you know how it goes. Children grow up and get married. They incorporate both sides of the family and coinciding-ly make new traditions. Sometimes parents are divorced, so there are even more houses to visit. If your blessed with grandparents still alive, many holiday routines include a visit to their house. Often those married couples begin to have children of their own… All of the sudden you feel like you’re spending the holiday in the car, and getting your baby and self in and out of it- so you need to reevaluate your traditions. (Maybe that last part is just my experience?)

Of course, I’m truly thankful I have places to go with people who love me and my family. And I’ve learned to accept change throughout the years too. We usually don’t have dinner at the cabin pictured above. (I really wish we did.) This photo was taken the first year, I believe, of owning the cabin and the first Thanksgiving spent without my grandmother. We had always gone at some point during the day to have Thanksgiving dinner at her house, even after I was married with baby in tow; a tradition I had followed since childhood and one that admittedly I miss. At this time, I was pregnant with my daughter and we spent the holiday in the woods with my parents and my sister’s family. It was a beautiful way to transition into new holiday experiences. It also gives you an idea as to the traditional American food we eat. Food that was prepared without a conventional oven that the cabin was missing at the time, I might add.

Confession: I have never made a roasted turkey. Although I have graduated from sitting at the kid’s table, I have yet to actually host a Thanksgiving dinner. Therefore, I have never made the prized turkey. That said, I do feel like I make an important contribution to the annual feast, namely desserts and any side dish with which I may want to experiment.

Here is a sneak peak into what I’ll be bringing to Thanksgiving dinner this year (for the available recipes I have included the link):

For the last, I don’t know, how many years I have been bringing my Cranberry Pecan Pumpkin Bread. It is a sweet bread that we eat with dinner along side the rolls. And if any is leftover, it makes for a great treat with coffee the next morning.

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I love pecan pie in all forms. Here is a Maple Pecan Pie that has become a part of our Thanksgiving tradition, that I will be bringing again this year. (Side note: I can’t wait to update this photo!)

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In addition to this pie I am going to make the “Ultimate Pumpkin Pie with Rum Whipped Cream” from the Barefoot Contessa’s Foolproof cookbook. Because if I can’t try something new, I’m not having fun. Also, let me take this opportunity to apologize to my dad in advance, because he is a pumpkin pie purist. Sorry pops, but keep an open mind! You might love it!

Lastly in the dessert category I am bringing my Pumpkin Cheesecake. And when I say “my” please note that it is not actually my recipe. But it is the same gorgeous creamy cheesecake with graham cracker crust that I love and have been making for years, that I wouldn’t change a thing about and have adopted as my own.

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I’ve also never made a green bean casserole. I’m not proud of that statement. But this is the year I make it happen. I’m just going to ease myself in by trying French’s Green Bean Casserole straight from their site. However, if any of you with experience know that I am making a mistake please feel free to leave me a link with your favorite recipe in my comments, I am open to suggestions… until this evening when I shop for my ingredients.

Lastly, I am making appetizers. But not appetizers for like before the meal, because everyone comes hungry (unless you’ve been to several dinners already ?) for the Thanksgiving feast. These are really more like snacks for later because we are having a late afternoon feast this year (to accommodate several families) and when evening rolls around I doubt people are really going to be hungry when we wake up from our naps (just kidding… someone has to watch the children), but we may want to snack. So I am going to make The Pioneer Woman’s Festive Goat Cheese with dried cranberry and pistachios from her “Friends-giving” episode, and my Smoky Cheese Ball; which I usually ingest while watching the parade… maybe I’ll make two.

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There you have it! Have a great holiday friends and God bless!

Love,

Sadie

 

24 comments

  1. Oh my goodness! I’m just going to have to post on Jennie’s Food Blog about my Thanksgiving feast but I’ll wait till either last Thursday or Friday. It’ll be just the 2 of us and I’m pairing down with my Green Bean Casserole…and I plan to make the Sweet Potato Pie that was aired on Trisha Yearwood’s program last Saturday. Plus, I believe my hubby is going to prepare our Turkey on the Smoker. We will have a rather light meal.

  4. Hi Sadie, I too made a confession last week as I posted my stuffed turkey breast recipe…i have never cooked a whole bird! So you are definitely not alone! I’m sure that anything prepared by you will be outstanding! Happy Thanksgiving 🙂

  6. Oh my goodness! Those all look SO delicious … I couldn’t possibly pick one so you would rely on me for a bit of each (and a fight for who could inhale that last appetiser quickest!). I’m celebrating my first EVER Thanksgiving here this year (I hope it will be the first of many) and I am uber excited. I am an old hand at the turkey-bird but I have been passing so many happy hours trawling through the traditional sides and desserts and so forth. There are only three of us at the table so it is entirely possible we will be found comatose in a few days from surfeit of fare …. I’ve never been knowingly undercatered in my life!! Have a magical day with your family and all your traditions. I raise my glass to you all and wish you Happy Thanksgiving from your rooky (and possibly cuckoo) friend in New England xx

    1. Happy Thanksgiving Fiona! Enjoy your bounty, whatever you decide to serve will be perfect as I’m sure it will be filled with love and received with heartfelt thanks. May there be many more to come!

  7. What a beautiful spread, Sadie, everything looks so divine. Happy thanksgiving to you and your family! Grateful that our blogs made us friends!! 🙂

  8. Happy Thanksgiving Sadie and all my American friends. I miss celebrating with my friends, and although we don’t have it in Malta, we still think of you. Thanks for sharing how you celebrate it with your family. That wonderful table in the cabin looks great and cozy. Enjoy the day! x

  9. Sadly we don’t celebrate Thanksgiving here in South Africa, but am very tempted to start a little family tradition of my own, seeing my brother lives in the States. Your dishes all look and sound amazing. I too, am keen to try a green bean casserole, so I will check your one out, the cheesecake sounds so different, beat it tastes great. Everything sounds great. I know I am a day late, but I hope you all had a beautiful Thanksgiving. 🙂 x

    1. Thanksgiving is a holiday I treasure, so naturally I would encourage you to start one! Maybe you can start out small with that green bean casserole! Thanks Lynne ?

  10. I bet it was delicious! Hopefully you can spend another Thanksgiving there again soon, it looks so inviting. I hope you had a wonderful one this year!

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