Today

[kelliem]

Well, for another 17 minutes anyway. This is the first time in years we're having the Family Do at our house, so I've spent the last 24 hours cleaning house. We even got the housemate to get rid of about half the boxes she had stacked in her living room and excavate her couch! You can see the cushions for the first time in about three years, I think. Maybe longer. No, I am not joking. It looks great! Well, for OUR house, anyway. Our poor cats are traumatized. Sora wouldn't even come downstairs. He's terrified of the vacuum cleaner and we ran it several times today. Riku hates it when anything changes, and since we put away a lot of things he keeps walking around the house craning his neck trying to figure out why everything looks WRONG!

Also did a bit of pre-cooking today-- made a jalapeno cranberry sauce loosely based on one they made on Iron Chef America: Battle Thanksgiving a few nights ago. It's actually quite delicious, and you don't really taste the jalapenos, they just give it a slight warmth on the tongue. Also taught the kidunit how to make pumpkin pie. My usual recipe uses cinnamon, ginger, allspice and nutmeg, but we were out of allspice so we used a little cardamon and cloves instead and if the little bit we accidentally got on the side of the crust protector and tasted is anything to go by, it worked really well. Also made a pan of roasted harvest vegetables-- cut up rutabagas, parsnips, golden beets, purple carrots, sweet potatoes, leeks, brussels sprouts and red boiling onions, tossed with olive oil, sea salt, thyme and rosemary. The house smelled wonderful while they were cooking and the bite I snuck after I took it out of the oven was really delicious. The kidunit tasted it and even he said it was good, which shocked me because he usually dislikes nearly everything in it.

Tomorrow all I'll hve to do is cook the turkey (using the pancetta herb butter recipe from last year), make the dressing and the gravy. Mom's bringing the traditional green bean casserole, the housemate is supplying the mashed potatoes, and my brother is bringing pretty much everything else.

Comments

[darklock.livejournal.com]

Huh... I want to come to YOUR house for Thanksgiving. The roasted vegetables sound like I want some right NOW. I, thankfully, did not have to cook this year. *still reeling* I'm just bringing the pickles and rolls. Heh... wee.

[franciskerst.livejournal.com]

Ah ah! I hadn't read your comments before posting mines. Personally, I'd wish Thanksgiving to be exported world-wide, and especially in my own country. I'd heartily exchange it against all the Disney and Hollywood stuff.

[kelliem.livejournal.com]

Yeah, it always seems odd to me that it hasn't gone international, because really, doesn't nearly everyone have something to be thankful for?

[franciskerst.livejournal.com]

Some poor countries on this planet have really little to offer to their people but curiously, they are often among the most ready and able to rejoice and celebrate at any given occasion. We are the spoiled children. There never will be this sort of holidays in France, unfortunately, because of our rigid principles of secularism (which in some politicians is bordering to a real hatred of faith and religion).

[kelliem.livejournal.com]

It's nice not to have to cook, too. I'm really tired now. ;D

[franciskerst.livejournal.com]

Well, I'd love to be a guest in your home today!

[vsee.livejournal.com]

I want an invite to your house just to eat your vegetables. *g* Golden beets....yuuuuuuuum.

[kelliem.livejournal.com]

I only discovered golden beets a couple of years ago but I fell in love with them. They're SO good!

[crysothemis.livejournal.com]

Oh, you have made me want to make a panful of roasted vegetables like that. Yum!

Hmmmm, wonder how many roastable veggies I have in the fridge . . .

[crysothemis.livejournal.com]

Just so you know, I did end up making roasted veggies, and they were fabulous. We had parsnips, rutabaga, golden beets, fennel, onions, and shallots, and I couldn't decide which was my favorite.

Thanks for the inspiration!

[kelliem.livejournal.com]

It's a great dish, isn't it? And SO easy. (Well, other than all the chopping.) Until you just reminded me, I actually forgot I put fennel in mine, too. It went over well at my house- even my mom and brother, neither of whom like brussels sprouts at ALL, liked it! I told them it's all in the method of cooking. If you boil them, they're kind of nasty but if you roast or sautee them, they're good.

[imkalena.livejournal.com]

Cardamom in pumpkin pie is BRILLIANT.

I made one with the usual spices this year, and still don't like it. One of these fine days I'm going to make pumpkin bread, which I do like, and I'm going to put cardamom in it!