Happy Post Thanksgiving weekend! I hope you’re enjoying whatever post turkey day activity suits you best, whether it’s Christmas shopping, watching Ohio State take on Michigan, or enjoying the remains of your Thanksgiving feast. And I hope your holiday was all you hoped it to be.

Nothing like grooving to The Four Tops, Sam & Dave and Aretha Franklin to keep the drying towels moving.

Our bungalow was stuffed to the gills with friends both old and new and we resurrected an old dining room table to make sure everyone had a seat.

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I love that our compliment of friends is so varied and interesting. We had educators, a P.R. professional, a couple of engineers who happen to be musicians, a writer/editor who is also a musician, a clergywoman, a marketer or two, a plant manager and an ex-cop, not to mention two very dear young people, aged almost 9 and 13, who were responsible for the loveliest napkin folds we’ve ever had on our Thanksgiving table. I’m deeming them useful origami. We were also blessed to have our 90-year-old matriarch, my Aunt Dee. And I love that everyone really loves to eat!

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For my friend Tom’s benefit I will describe the food ~ We started with cocktails and hors d’oeuvres; smoked salmon on dark bread with a sour cream and caper sauce, warm spiced rosemary cashews, and wild mushroom and Gruyere in filo dough.

Two turkeys, a ham, stuffing, butternut squash lasagna, mashed potatoes a la Yvonne, carrot & turnip, Brussels sprouts with blue cheese, apples and bacon, gravy, cranberry orange mini muffins and cranberry relish hit the table after a heartfelt blessing from Kay, our clergywoman. And the feasting began.

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Happily, my posse has been to this rodeo before and after a relaxing dinner the cleanup went smoothly and quickly with the help of my Motown and Philadelphia Sound mix tape. Nothing like grooving to The Four Tops, Sam & Dave and Aretha Franklin to keep the drying towels moving.

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Some folks walked while others sat and chatted, digesting while the coffee brewed to make room for the dessert buffet, which consisted of Kay’s apple cranberry pie (which, against all Weight Watchers recommendations, I finished for breakfast the next day), Janice’s squash and mince pies, Jinx’s homemade vanilla and decaf coffee ice cream, pumpkin bread pudding with caramel sauce, and raisin tarts. Cousin’s Melissa and Matt came later with a blueberry tart, adding to the bounty.

Today I’m making turkey stock for a Turkey and Wild Rice Soup and boiling up a ham bone for a White Bean and Ham Soup with Arugula and Corn Bread Croutons. These will sit happily in the freezer and feed us through the season. Since more of you have Turkey carcasses than ham bones, here is my turkey soup recipe that is a tweaked version of one on Mountain Mama Cooks:

Turkey and Wild Rice Soup
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped carrot
3/4 cup chopped celery
8 oz mushrooms, diced
2 cloves garlic
1/2 cup leftover gravy
4 cups turkey stock (from your Thanksgiving bird)

1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup mixed long grain and wild rice
2 1/2 cups chopped leftover turkey

1/4 cup milk mixed with 2 T. melted butter
1 tablespoon chopped, fresh thyme

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

Instructions

  1. In a large stockpot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot and celery and cook about 10 minutes until onions are soft and translucent.
  2. Add the mushrooms and garlic and cook about 5 minutes more.
  3. Add the gravy and heat through.
  4. Add the turkey stock, soy sauce, and bay leaf. Turn the heat up to medium-high and bring soup to a boil. Turn heat back down to medium and let simmer for 30 minutes.
  5. Add long grain and wild rice and simmer for 35 minutes.
  6. Add turkey, milk & butter, thyme, salt and pepper. Cook for 15 minutes more.

While this post has been all about the food let me add that Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday and not just because of the bounty on the table. I am blessed to have “friends who are family and family who are friends”, as my friend Jinx once told me. I’ve come to realize that thankful people are happy.

I am very happy.

Deborah
Deb with her new Ikea oven mitts

Deb with her new Ikea oven mitts