What unusual thing must always be on your Thanksgiving table?

[Anonymous]

Interested in people’s thoughts—What unusual thing must always be will be at your Thanksgiving table?

For me it’s a relish tray with black olives right out of can and celery stuffed (must be 1/2 of celery stalks with peanut butter and 1/2 with soft cheese). The cheese can vary —- pimento, pub cheese or other. My mom always did this for every Thanksgiving, Easter, and Christmas. That made it a “special” thing.

A family friend had to have gravy topped with sliced hard boiled eggs.

What is yours?

[Anonymous]

I’m with you on black olives but you lost me at peanut butter celery. I actually like PB celery but that is a truly unusual choice for thanksgiving!! No judgment though. A little crunch never hurt anyone.

This isn’t that unusual but oh man do I love canned jellied cranberry sauce. I can easily eat half a can. Homemade is great too but something about the texture of canned is so satisfying with turkey.

[Anonymous]

Jello!

[Anonymous]

In my family, we all had cranberry sauce but along the way we just all absorbed that it’s “supposed” to be there for thanksgiving, so it evolved into a tradition where we find the fanciest possible crystal dish, preferably on some kind of pedestal and plop an unopened can of cranberry sauce on top.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Interested in people’s thoughts—What unusual thing must always be will be at your Thanksgiving table?

For me it’s a relish tray with black olives right out of can and celery stuffed (must be 1/2 of celery stalks with peanut butter and 1/2 with soft cheese). The cheese can vary —- pimento, pub cheese or other. My mom always did this for every Thanksgiving, Easter, and Christmas. That made it a “special” thing.

A family friend had to have gravy topped with sliced hard boiled eggs.

What is yours?

Olives/relish tray / stuffed celery is not that strange. I think all the moms / grandmas read about it in the same 50s magazine and it became fancy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In my family, we all had cranberry sauce but along the way we just all absorbed that it’s “supposed” to be there for thanksgiving, so it evolved into a tradition where we find the fanciest possible crystal dish, preferably on some kind of pedestal and plop an unopened can of cranberry sauce on top.

I love this tradition. Just imagining the dishes of varying heights vying for the fancy title.

[Anonymous]

Baked apples, usually granny smith. Mom sticks them next to the turkey as its roasting. So they soak up all the meaty juices. We are immigrants so back in the day we couldn't figure out how to make a moist turkey so the apples were key to it being edible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Interested in people’s thoughts—What unusual thing must always be will be at your Thanksgiving table?

For me it’s a relish tray with black olives right out of can and celery stuffed (must be 1/2 of celery stalks with peanut butter and 1/2 with soft cheese). The cheese can vary —- pimento, pub cheese or other. My mom always did this for every Thanksgiving, Easter, and Christmas. That made it a “special” thing.

A family friend had to have gravy topped with sliced hard boiled eggs.

What is yours?

Olives/relish tray / stuffed celery is not that strange. I think all the moms / grandmas read about it in the same 50s magazine and it became fancy.

“Relish trays” are one thing (hate that term), but I have never seen peanut butter or “stuffed” celery on one of them. Plain celery? Yes. A dip in the middle of the tray? Sure. But peanut butter celery is…not part of a relish tray.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Interested in people’s thoughts—What unusual thing must always be will be at your Thanksgiving table?

For me it’s a relish tray with black olives right out of can and celery stuffed (must be 1/2 of celery stalks with peanut butter and 1/2 with soft cheese). The cheese can vary —- pimento, pub cheese or other. My mom always did this for every Thanksgiving, Easter, and Christmas. That made it a “special” thing.

A family friend had to have gravy topped with sliced hard boiled eggs.

What is yours?

Olives/relish tray / stuffed celery is not that strange. I think all the moms / grandmas read about it in the same 50s magazine and it became fancy.

“Relish trays” are one thing (hate that term), but I have never seen peanut butter or “stuffed” celery on one of them. Plain celery? Yes. A dip in the middle of the tray? Sure. But peanut butter celery is…not part of a relish tray.

I'm sure if you haven't personally seen stuffed celery as a Thanksgiving appetizer (I also hate the term relish tray--we didn't call it that) then nobody eats it. At all.
https://www.boston.com/food/food/2014/11/24/celery-and-olives-dominated-thanksgiving-for-nearly-100-yearsuntil-they-didnt/

[Anonymous]

I don’t think it’s really strange but I was surprised at how many people in my thanksgiving circle this year don’t think apple pie is completely and utterly necessary. Everyone seems to think it comes after pumpkin, pecan, and sweet potato pie, whereas I grew up with pumpkin and apple being coequal it’s not thanksgiving without it desserts, and anything else is just an add on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Interested in people’s thoughts—What unusual thing must always be will be at your Thanksgiving table?

For me it’s a relish tray with black olives right out of can and celery stuffed (must be 1/2 of celery stalks with peanut butter and 1/2 with soft cheese). The cheese can vary —- pimento, pub cheese or other. My mom always did this for every Thanksgiving, Easter, and Christmas. That made it a “special” thing.

A family friend had to have gravy topped with sliced hard boiled eggs.

What is yours?

Olives/relish tray / stuffed celery is not that strange. I think all the moms / grandmas read about it in the same 50s magazine and it became fancy.

“Relish trays” are one thing (hate that term), but I have never seen peanut butter or “stuffed” celery on one of them. Plain celery? Yes. A dip in the middle of the tray? Sure. But peanut butter celery is…not part of a relish tray.

I'm sure if you haven't personally seen stuffed celery as a Thanksgiving appetizer (I also hate the term relish tray--we didn't call it that) then nobody eats it. At all.
https://www.boston.com/food/food/2014/11/24/celery-and-olives-dominated-thanksgiving-for-nearly-100-yearsuntil-they-didnt/

I mean, thanks for an article about old-ass food trends that no one uses?

[Anonymous]

My in-laws always eat red cabbage cooked with apples and lingonberry jam and apple cider vinegar. I like it too and now know how to make it myself! It's a good contrast with other thanksgiving foods and fairly healthy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don’t think it’s really strange but I was surprised at how many people in my thanksgiving circle this year don’t think apple pie is completely and utterly necessary. Everyone seems to think it comes after pumpkin, pecan, and sweet potato pie, whereas I grew up with pumpkin and apple being coequal it’s not thanksgiving without it desserts, and anything else is just an add on.

We don't have pumpkin or pecan or apple pie. I dont like any of those much. Definitely not sweet potato either.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My in-laws always eat red cabbage cooked with apples and lingonberry jam and apple cider vinegar. I like it too and now know how to make it myself! It's a good contrast with other thanksgiving foods and fairly healthy.

That sounds amazing? Recipe/approximate proportions???

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Interested in people’s thoughts—What unusual thing must always be will be at your Thanksgiving table?

For me it’s a relish tray with black olives right out of can and celery stuffed (must be 1/2 of celery stalks with peanut butter and 1/2 with soft cheese). The cheese can vary —- pimento, pub cheese or other. My mom always did this for every Thanksgiving, Easter, and Christmas. That made it a “special” thing.

A family friend had to have gravy topped with sliced hard boiled eggs.

What is yours?

Olives/relish tray / stuffed celery is not that strange. I think all the moms / grandmas read about it in the same 50s magazine and it became fancy.

“Relish trays” are one thing (hate that term), but I have never seen peanut butter or “stuffed” celery on one of them. Plain celery? Yes. A dip in the middle of the tray? Sure. But peanut butter celery is…not part of a relish tray.

Not OP, but I grew up with stuffed celery on our relish tray too. Some with peanut butter, some with cream cheese.