Thanksgiving 2020 - Traditional, Sort OF
After I wrote the post about Thanksgiving, Virginia got inspired and asked me to prepare a “regular” Thanksgiving dinner for the two of us. Of course, I was happy to do it, so this meant I had to cook some key dishes for the dinner: turkey, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes and cranberry sauce. This year I simply didn’t feel like making stuffing (please forgive me!!!).
Some details about my shopping list:
First, in Italy, turkey isn’t a fowl that is super-produced for one big, national celebration. It’s common in the supermarkets year-round, but unless you special order one (usually a smaller hen) from your butcher, you never see whole birds. My local butcher had a bone-in leg (perfect size) which I purchased. And I’m going to say this: the turkey is of a higher quality and tastes much better here in Italy.
Second, sweet potatoes are not very common here. Some years they aren’t available or I haven’t liked the quality. Fortunately, I was able to find them at a local grocery store.
Third, fresh cranberries don’t exist here and cranberry sauce (like Ocean Spray or other brands) aren’t easy to find. But, I do have a source for dried cranberries and , believe it or not, I can make a good cranberry sauce with them.
Fourth, I chose broccoli for the vegetable. Something simple.
Finally, for dessert, we purchased an Italian-style cheese cake from on of our favorite cafes.
Virginia chose the wine: a Monte Landro Syrah (which was perfect!)
Braising the Turkey
I carved the leg and poured gravy on the meat. I made the gravy by straining the vegetables from the braising liquid into a saucepan and reduced the liquid by 1/2. I then thickened it with a simple slurry of flour and water. I have to say, this turkey was tender and delicious and the gravy was divine.
Sul Tavolo
As we enjoyed our Thanksgiving dinner, we reflected on how fortunate we the Tandem Spirits have been over the years. For us, we are grateful just being together and enjoying good food and wine. We also sent positive energy to our family and friends who, this year, were not celebrating a normal holiday. We were confident that they too were celebrating the good things in their lives.
Epilogue - Thanksgiving in Foligno 2014
This story wouldn’t be complete if I didn’t tell you about our 1st Thanksgiving celebration in Italy. We arrived in Italy in April, 2014 and, at that time, I was coaching English for Umbragroup. This was a wonderful job because my sessions often revolved around culture, history and other topics. Naturally, as November approached my colleagues wanted to know all about Thanksgiving, especially the food aspect (go figure)! Then, one day, my colleague, Roberto Pizzi announced that he wanted to have a Thanksgiving party at his home! Coincidentally, our dear friends, Scott and Gina McGlynn were coming down from Germany for the holiday.
We had a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner with our friends and colleagues that first year. In honor of the occasion, Roberto’s father cooked something VERY special, a homemade porchetta. It was incredible.
Porchetta for Thanksgiving - What a Great Idea!!!!
In the end, this special holiday reminds us that we should stop and celebrate the good things we have in our lives: our family, our friends and our health. Giving thanks for all these things is what makes life worth living!
