Rooted in Thanksgiving Tradition

I pride myself on my omnivorian culinary perspective. I will try anything (really, anything—bring it on, Bourdain and Zimmern), and am always up for something new. But when it comes to the holidays—most notably Thanksgiving and Christmas—I’m as traditional as they come, and I know I’m not alone in that sentiment here in America (although our holiday food traditions—perhaps inspired as much by literature and halcyon sentiment as actual ingrained foodways—range far and wide enough to fill a weighty tome). Sure, I may spin the seasoning of longtime tablemates like stuffing (roasted hazelnut and apple with a hint of bacon—can’t seem to get away from bacon for too long—this year) and seasonal vegetables (of late, my Thanksgiving dinner always seems to start with butternut squash soup with aromatic-spiced crème fraîche) into slightly new directions, but the basic building blocks are always in place: turkey, stuffing, rolls and butter, gravy, and seasonal vegetables like sweet and regular potatoes, parsnips, and turnips, as well as seasonal fruits like cranberries, apples, pears, pumpkin, and squash, etc. Toss in some fine American wines and hard cider (enjoying a revitalized artisanal diversity), and you’re fit to feast.

However, although I’ve found that I’m reticent to add wholly new dishes to the holiday table, I’m perfectly fine with looking back and dusting off traditional American colonial favorites—perhaps updated just a bit for today’s diner. Along those lines, Christopher Kimball of Cook’s Illustrated fame provided some commentary and recipes on NPR related to classics like mincemeat pie (yes, versions with real meat) and nesselrode pudding (which actually looks quite frightening…). He even tosses in an equally frightening ’50s “mock plum pudding” (great for any retro Jell-O molders looking to diversify…) among other (less-fearsome) items leading up to present day.

And although the food takes a center spotlight on a day like Thanksgiving, I hope you find the time to dig deep and truly find heartfelt gratification for the many blessings we have in our lives, cultivating, as Abraham Lincoln said in his 1863 Thanksgiving Day proclamation, “peace, harmony, tranquility and union”—not only around your particular tables, but extending throughout your families, communities and radiating across this great nation.