Thanksgiving Menu

Tomorrow's not going to be a big culinary scene here. In fact, we dropped the ball when it came to turkey. We didn't find out where to get a fresh turkey, we didn't pre-order a Cajun deep-fried turkey from Popeye's, and we didn't get a frozen turkey four days ahead of time to let it thaw sufficiently in the refrigerator. (Side note: I wonder if whole turkeys will go on sale tomorrow?) We're just having the vegetables from our CSA box and a few other things. Here's the plan:

* Turkey breast roasted in white wine and herbs, bought today at the Fresh Market
* Dakota bread from Great Harvest Bread Company
* Sweet potato biscuits from the Fresh Market
* Cabbage cooked with bacon grease
* Green beans sauteed in olive oil with garlic
* Butternut squash, probably just roasted with some butter and maple syrup
* Deviled eggs
* Pickled okra
* Pickles
* Pomegranates
* Clementine oranges
* Store-bought lemon meringue pie (Fresh Market once again)

We have a few relish tray items, as you can see. One thing we're not doing is stuffed celery, though. This is a shame, as it's a Barton family tradition and I like it. I grew up with stuffed celery on every relish tray for every holiday meal. Jonathan doesn't like olives, though, and I didn't want to be stuck with a bunch of celery stuffing that I'm the only one eating.

I recently asked my mom how it came to be that we've always had stuffed celery. She said it went back to a double date she went on. The two guys were friends, and my mom and the other girl didn't know each other. It was a picnic date, and both girls brought food. This other girl brought stuffed celery, my mom liked it, and the rest is family history.