Thanksgiving 2009! Finally.

Before I began cooking, we ran out to do a little more shopping. We went into Best Buy AGAIN. Dang it. I'm beginning to hate that place. I blame Sergio. We did see an actress from Gray's Anatomy there. Her character is Izzy. She was checking out the exact same DVD player we got the day before. Sergio was next to her and was about to dispense some advice when a swarm of sales people gathered round. We left without buying anything.

On the way home, we made a stop at L & L for a Chicken Katsu Masubi. Not bad. The Spam version is much saltier but maybe better. We sat in the Starbucks next door to eat our snack so I could also get a Chai Soy Latte. I needed the rare shot of caffeine to start my cooking!

While I was having my way with the turkey, Sergio gave Mia a massage. Yes, she will sit like that to be pet. Crazy cat.


After hours of cooking, my family showed up and we chowed down! Sergio and I both meant to change and get cleaned up but once my mom showed up, it all happened so fast...next thing we knew, wine was being uncorked and the turkey was getting cut.





On the Menu:

• Sage Butter Turkey with Gravy (Tasty!!! I swear by a minimum 12 hour brine!)
  
• Sourdough, Apple and Pancetta Stuffing (The tartness was weird at first but we got used to it and it was not bad. Next time, regular French bread.)
  
• Baked Purple Potato Chips (Semi-fail. I burnt half of them. What wasn't burnt was good though.)
  
• Asian Pear and Roasted Pecan Salad with a Pear Vinegar and Dijon mustard vinaigrette (My favorite dish of the entire meal! Even though I forgot to put in the Gorgonzola.)
  
• Boiled Corn on the Cob served with Maple butter (Maple butter is very yummy. I'm going to try it on hot muffin or biscuit next.)
  
• Mom brought our favorite Garlic Lobster from a Chinatown restaurant we've been eating at since childhood. (Delicious as always.)
  
• Jenny made Madelines for after dinner. (Wonderfully eggy and light. Perfect with the coffee.)
  
• Jenny and Chi brought really good wines that pared well with the dishes.
• We also popped open a pink bubbly and sparkling cider.

I regret not taking more photos of the dishes and the table. My feet were so tired that I just wanted to sit, eat and drink. So that's what I did instead.

Post meal, we watched the movie Up! My new favorite movie. I think I've cried every single time I've seen it -- all 3 and a half times.

So, that was our first Thanksgiving in our new house. It was fabulous and wonderful and worth the sore feet. I think I will start a new tradition of hosting Thanksgiving on the Saturday after...it was so much less stressful. Having two days to consider the menu and just run out to the store if I forgot anything was luxurious.