Just for fun: What does and does not belong at a Thanksgiving feast

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My normal Thanksgiving is:

Turkey
Stuffing (yes sausage, obviously)
Mashed potatoes
Cranberry sauce (both canned and homemade)
Green bean casserole (all components homemade: fried shallots, and a mushroom cream sauce in lieu of soup)
Rolls

Also pies, you need a variety of pies. We usually do three types, even if we've only got like five people.

Some years we've done
Corn pudding
Sweet potatoes
Turnips

My only real hard no is salad and soup, I think they work badly with the rest of the meal and its weird for Thanksgiving to have courses (apart from maybe some deviled eggs and nuts put out while the food cooks). That said, I think the biggest rule of Thanksgiving is that any thing anyone brings goes on the table. If you bring a salad, I'll put it out happily, I just don't want any.

Am I the only person who actually likes having some kind of green salad, to balance out all the heavy stuff?

I like it but my family won’t eat it so I just forego it since (IME) most green salads don’t make great leftovers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No to any kind of jello based salad. I don’t care if it’s tradition in your family. I don’t want it, not even a bite.

If you've never tried jello pretzel salad, you haven't lived.

Ok i just inherited a stack of cookbooks from the 80s and 90s and I saw a recipe for this dish. I was intrigued! Perhaps I’ll have to try it out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No to any kind of jello based salad. I don’t care if it’s tradition in your family. I don’t want it, not even a bite.

If you've never tried jello pretzel salad, you haven't lived.

Ok i just inherited a stack of cookbooks from the 80s and 90s and I saw a recipe for this dish. I was intrigued! Perhaps I’ll have to try it out.

Seriously, sounds horrific but someone brought it to a cookout a few years ago and it totally disappeared. Keep meaning to try and make it myself.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What does not belong: grocery store pies. Canned yams. Canned green beans. Canned anything, especially gravy.

What does belong: anything made from scratch.

Yes, I know. I'm a food snob. But you asked.

Totally agree on this. Husbands family does literally every prematrimoniale store bought food and it’s so sad, potato flakes and frozen pies. It’s like eating chemicals for dinner.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This whole thread is making me very glad I will never have to go to a Thanksgiving hosted by you stuffy losers. You're all exactly like my parents, so obsessed with appearances you take everything enjoyable out of the holiday. And they wonder why I'm always "too busy" to travel to them.

They do not "wonder" why you are too busy, they are "thankful" that you are too busy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My normal Thanksgiving is:

Turkey
Stuffing (yes sausage, obviously)
Mashed potatoes
Cranberry sauce (both canned and homemade)
Green bean casserole (all components homemade: fried shallots, and a mushroom cream sauce in lieu of soup)
Rolls

Also pies, you need a variety of pies. We usually do three types, even if we've only got like five people.

Some years we've done
Corn pudding
Sweet potatoes
Turnips

My only real hard no is salad and soup, I think they work badly with the rest of the meal and its weird for Thanksgiving to have courses (apart from maybe some deviled eggs and nuts put out while the food cooks). That said, I think the biggest rule of Thanksgiving is that any thing anyone brings goes on the table. If you bring a salad, I'll put it out happily, I just don't want any.

Am I the only person who actually likes having some kind of green salad, to balance out all the heavy stuff?

I like it but my family won’t eat it so I just forego it since (IME) most green salads don’t make great leftovers.

That is why you have a relish tray with these items: celery sticks, sweet pickles, carrot sticks, cherry tomatoes, and pickled beets.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sauerkraut at Thanksgiving is an old Baltimore tradition. It’s always on the table. Only one relatives loves it. A few adults will take a forkful. As kids, we used to harass each other with strands.

yes -- and it has to be cooked with pork.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am usually for anything but not Mashed potatoes. They add nothing to the meal and have no taste.

You aren't making mashed potatoes properly if they have no taste. My potatoes are so good many don't even put gravy on top.

Yeah. Add another 2 sticks of butter.

Plus a pint of sour cream.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am usually for anything but not Mashed potatoes. They add nothing to the meal and have no taste.

You aren't making mashed potatoes properly if they have no taste. My potatoes are so good many don't even put gravy on top.

Yeah. Add another 2 sticks of butter.

Plus a pint of sour cream.

No, no sour cream! Lots of butter, some cream or whole milk, *a bit of cream cheese* and just a pinch of Lawry’s seasoned salt in addition to regular salt and pepper.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My normal Thanksgiving is:

Turkey
Stuffing (yes sausage, obviously)
Mashed potatoes
Cranberry sauce (both canned and homemade)
Green bean casserole (all components homemade: fried shallots, and a mushroom cream sauce in lieu of soup)
Rolls

Also pies, you need a variety of pies. We usually do three types, even if we've only got like five people.

Some years we've done
Corn pudding
Sweet potatoes
Turnips

My only real hard no is salad and soup, I think they work badly with the rest of the meal and its weird for Thanksgiving to have courses (apart from maybe some deviled eggs and nuts put out while the food cooks). That said, I think the biggest rule of Thanksgiving is that any thing anyone brings goes on the table. If you bring a salad, I'll put it out happily, I just don't want any.

Am I the only person who actually likes having some kind of green salad, to balance out all the heavy stuff?

I like it but my family won’t eat it so I just forego it since (IME) most green salads don’t make great leftovers.

That is why you have a relish tray with these items: celery sticks, sweet pickles, carrot sticks, cherry tomatoes, and pickled beets.

Omg are you my mother?! That was our exact relish tray...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My normal Thanksgiving is:

Turkey
Stuffing (yes sausage, obviously)
Mashed potatoes
Cranberry sauce (both canned and homemade)
Green bean casserole (all components homemade: fried shallots, and a mushroom cream sauce in lieu of soup)
Rolls

Also pies, you need a variety of pies. We usually do three types, even if we've only got like five people.

Some years we've done
Corn pudding
Sweet potatoes
Turnips

My only real hard no is salad and soup, I think they work badly with the rest of the meal and its weird for Thanksgiving to have courses (apart from maybe some deviled eggs and nuts put out while the food cooks). That said, I think the biggest rule of Thanksgiving is that any thing anyone brings goes on the table. If you bring a salad, I'll put it out happily, I just don't want any.

Am I the only person who actually likes having some kind of green salad, to balance out all the heavy stuff?

I like it but my family won’t eat it so I just forego it since (IME) most green salads don’t make great leftovers.

That is why you have a relish tray with these items: celery sticks, sweet pickles, carrot sticks, cherry tomatoes, and pickled beets.

Omg are you my mother?! That was our exact relish tray...

Where are your canned black olives, you monsters?

[Anonymous]

Not Thanksgiving: macaroni and cheese

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not Thanksgiving: macaroni and cheese

Is the "macaroni and cheese on Thanksgiving" divide Black/White or Southern/other parts of the country?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My normal Thanksgiving is:

Turkey
Stuffing (yes sausage, obviously)
Mashed potatoes
Cranberry sauce (both canned and homemade)
Green bean casserole (all components homemade: fried shallots, and a mushroom cream sauce in lieu of soup)
Rolls

Also pies, you need a variety of pies. We usually do three types, even if we've only got like five people.

Some years we've done
Corn pudding
Sweet potatoes
Turnips

My only real hard no is salad and soup, I think they work badly with the rest of the meal and its weird for Thanksgiving to have courses (apart from maybe some deviled eggs and nuts put out while the food cooks). That said, I think the biggest rule of Thanksgiving is that any thing anyone brings goes on the table. If you bring a salad, I'll put it out happily, I just don't want any.

Am I the only person who actually likes having some kind of green salad, to balance out all the heavy stuff?

I like it but my family won’t eat it so I just forego it since (IME) most green salads don’t make great leftovers.

That is why you have a relish tray with these items: celery sticks, sweet pickles, carrot sticks, cherry tomatoes, and pickled beets.

Great idea! Also I like to think I am fairly worldly and I don’t think I knew what a relish tray was for. I think I assumed it was for… relish.

[Anonymous]

Macaroni and Cheese does not belong anywhere near a Thanksgiving table. It’s an every day food, not a special food.