THANKSGIVING 2014: The Day After Report

Above: Fresh baked baguettes were sliced, toasted and topped with onion jam as an appetizer.

THANKSGIVING 2014 : The Day After Report

by Chef Mitch

I hope this posting finds you having had a great Thanksgiving Day.  Ours was a small celebration as just Chef Philip, Chef Bob and myself were at the table this year.

It's always important to be flexible and have a PLAN B when making a big dinner.  We had to employ a PLAN B when we discovered that the Haricot Vert, (French green beans), had oxidized in the refrigerator and had turned from gorgeous bright green to a scary shade of rust.  I told Chef Philip, "I'm not eating that".  Fortunately Chef Philip had anticipated the need for a back-up vegetable, so he had a fresh bunch of broccoli on hand.  We had other vegetables on the menu, but everything else was a starch, and we really needed something green. Of course broccoli is not allowed in our house without cheese sauce, so Chef Philip whipped up a batch.

We also changed the hors d'oeuvre to crostini after Chef Philip baked up two fresh loaves of bread.  And speaking of bread, instead of making Parker House rolls again, we made Clover Leaf rolls.

More pictures and details of our Thanksgiving 2014 dinner follow.

REMINDER: Enlarge the images by clicking on them.

Below: We used our white porcelain double serving dish for the broccoli, (which was steamed), and the carrots, (recipe here: http://www.kitchenqueers.com/food/roastedcarrots/).  I modified the carrot recipe slightly.  I left out the bell pepper, and I cut the carrots into "coins" instead of sticks.

Above: Cheese sauce for the broccoli.  First we started with by making a roux, adding stock and finally stirring in a nice helping of grated cheese.

Above: Chef Bob made stuffing.  Since it wasn't cooked inside of anything except a pan, it's actually dressing.  But he insists on calling it stuffing so I just went with it.

Above: We heated the Honey Baked ham in the oven so it was nicely warmed when served.

Above: Apple sauce was served to top the ham.

Below: Chef Philip made classic candied yams.  He peeled the yams and then cut them into generous 1/2 slices.  First he par-cooked the yams in the microwave just until they started to soften.  Then he slathered the yams in butter and a hefty helping of brown sugar. The yams were then roasted in the oven for about ninety minutes. 

Above: We made our go-to Gold Mashed Potatoes.

Above: The Clover Leaf rolls are made from the same basic bread dough we often use.  I'll post the directions to make these in the near future.

Below: I used the purple chargers and tie-dyed napkins on a black tablecloth.  These are definitely not seasonal colors and that's what makes it cool.  And queer.

Above: The table has been set for three and the food is ready to be eaten.  I used some of Chef Philip's Lego® creations to decorate one side of the table.  Since we only had three guests we served the food family style.  If we have six or eight guests I put the food on the side buffet instead.