I stopped the lavish feasts after my husband died. My only child moved 2k miles away and i have no other family alive. That may sound sad to some but this introvert LOVES it! I usually bake a loaf of bread, make a salad, bake pumpkin pie, and put a pot of soup in the slow cooker. Then i head to the nearby taxpayer supported wild life refuge for a quiet stroll. Usually the only one there. Back at home i pour a glass of wine and read. This year, my partner and i are attending a family potluck and my nervous system is already on alert. 15 people crammed into a small space! I am bringing a brussels sprouts salad with dried cherries and bacon and cranberry sauce. And will patiently wait to go home!
Brussel sprouts and grapes! My favorite local restaurant makes a salad of shredded Brussels sprouts and grapes in a mustard vinaigrette and it is the BEST. This year the grandkids are with their other grandparents and we two oldies are not up to traveling so I was feeling a tad grumpy… and then my husband came home with a half lasagna from another local favorite and announced we were having lasagna for the holiday feast (and at least two meals afterward). There’s a reason I married this man… and yes, I’m making that Brussels sprout salad for us. May your holiday nourish you the way your writing nourishes us.
It's just not a lot of fun for the one who does all of the work is it Elissa? I'm with Elizabeth David on this. Enjoy your apple and cranberry sauce, make a huge bowl just for you.
I'm Australian, so Thanks giving is not a thing here, but I did once cook and host a Thanks Giving dinner for an American neighbour. She gave me the list of must have dishes, which I cooked to perfection apparently, but it really didn't seem like a well balanced delicious banquat to me. She loved it, but it left me wanting a big bowl of salad greens and a bottle of mineral water. May your day be joyful, delicious and relaxed, with an early night of restful sleep.
Used to beg my ex husband for the years we had a Jewish Christmas which means Chinese food and a movie instead of Christmas dinner. Why not an omelette and Sauvignon blanc for brunch and it’s done…..? Love a nine pound turkey on any given Sunday, as a nursing mother I would cook a twelve pound turkey each Sunday. Could it be that the spirit of neither Christmas nor thanksgiving is martyrdom? Not every family is a Norman Rockwell portrait.
This year our kids and their families are all going to their in-laws and we are having Thanksgiving with our neighbor and about 30 guests at her sister’s house in Norwalk. Frankly it’s a relief. We have everybody here on Christmas Eve ( for 7 fishes) and I’ve honestly decided that hosting those two big holidays, not quite 4 weeks apart, is too much for me at my age. Sometimes you just have to give yourself a break! Here’s wishing you and Susan a peaceful Thanksgiving!💕
On point. Tired to the bone pre-holiday. Thank you for this gift of truth!
Speaking of bone, why does every dish Julius Roberts prepares make me swoon with delight while running to the market to buy ingredients for said dish? The Porchetta looks beautiful.
Happy quiet holidays to your small gathering, both Thanksgiving and Christmas.🙏🏼
Turkey-Lurkey Day to purrfection! Great you can share and we are with you. Exactly correct. Great to be able to celebrate every which way and the capon idea, awesome. Most folks don’t know about capon…love it, love you and your writing. Thank you and much aloha from the islands (80 degrees, sorry)
I stopped the lavish feasts after my husband died. My only child moved 2k miles away and i have no other family alive. That may sound sad to some but this introvert LOVES it! I usually bake a loaf of bread, make a salad, bake pumpkin pie, and put a pot of soup in the slow cooker. Then i head to the nearby taxpayer supported wild life refuge for a quiet stroll. Usually the only one there. Back at home i pour a glass of wine and read. This year, my partner and i are attending a family potluck and my nervous system is already on alert. 15 people crammed into a small space! I am bringing a brussels sprouts salad with dried cherries and bacon and cranberry sauce. And will patiently wait to go home!
that photo of your mother watching susan carve...just made my day
Brussel sprouts and grapes! My favorite local restaurant makes a salad of shredded Brussels sprouts and grapes in a mustard vinaigrette and it is the BEST. This year the grandkids are with their other grandparents and we two oldies are not up to traveling so I was feeling a tad grumpy… and then my husband came home with a half lasagna from another local favorite and announced we were having lasagna for the holiday feast (and at least two meals afterward). There’s a reason I married this man… and yes, I’m making that Brussels sprout salad for us. May your holiday nourish you the way your writing nourishes us.
Brussel sprouts with grapes!
It's just not a lot of fun for the one who does all of the work is it Elissa? I'm with Elizabeth David on this. Enjoy your apple and cranberry sauce, make a huge bowl just for you.
I'm Australian, so Thanks giving is not a thing here, but I did once cook and host a Thanks Giving dinner for an American neighbour. She gave me the list of must have dishes, which I cooked to perfection apparently, but it really didn't seem like a well balanced delicious banquat to me. She loved it, but it left me wanting a big bowl of salad greens and a bottle of mineral water. May your day be joyful, delicious and relaxed, with an early night of restful sleep.
Used to beg my ex husband for the years we had a Jewish Christmas which means Chinese food and a movie instead of Christmas dinner. Why not an omelette and Sauvignon blanc for brunch and it’s done…..? Love a nine pound turkey on any given Sunday, as a nursing mother I would cook a twelve pound turkey each Sunday. Could it be that the spirit of neither Christmas nor thanksgiving is martyrdom? Not every family is a Norman Rockwell portrait.
This year our kids and their families are all going to their in-laws and we are having Thanksgiving with our neighbor and about 30 guests at her sister’s house in Norwalk. Frankly it’s a relief. We have everybody here on Christmas Eve ( for 7 fishes) and I’ve honestly decided that hosting those two big holidays, not quite 4 weeks apart, is too much for me at my age. Sometimes you just have to give yourself a break! Here’s wishing you and Susan a peaceful Thanksgiving!💕
On point. Tired to the bone pre-holiday. Thank you for this gift of truth!
Speaking of bone, why does every dish Julius Roberts prepares make me swoon with delight while running to the market to buy ingredients for said dish? The Porchetta looks beautiful.
Happy quiet holidays to your small gathering, both Thanksgiving and Christmas.🙏🏼
I’m so right there with you: sleep
Turkey-Lurkey Day to purrfection! Great you can share and we are with you. Exactly correct. Great to be able to celebrate every which way and the capon idea, awesome. Most folks don’t know about capon…love it, love you and your writing. Thank you and much aloha from the islands (80 degrees, sorry)