Yeah, honestly, I had no idea they were an import, either. I just assumed they were indigenous both in the Old and New World. I wasn’t completely wrong. Crab apples are, indeed, indigenous to the US, but that seems to be about it.
This is the other thread on this subject, btw. It was started on Nov 15.
Pretty sure Halloween is the British equivalent of Halloween, actually.
And yes, we in the UK do snigger a bit at the phrase ‘American as apple pie’, because it’s so far from unique to the US. Admittedly, we don’t single it out as a particularly special pie, but we put pretty much everything in pies over here, especially in the north.
Oh? I’ll have to look that up. I’ve looked through the Wikipedia pages on most of the cuisines in that area, and I don’t recall it being listed.
Sweet and savory?
I swear, sometimes I just feel invisible around here. Post #3.
In the Middle Ages, including Islamic areas, it could be hard to tell the difference. You’re better off asking “with meat, or not” And yes, both kinds.
There is a traditional harvest festival here, in Romania, and I suspect all over Eastern Europe. The festival has been dwindling since the Financial Crisis of 2007-2008, whose political ramifications are still influencing the evolutions in the area (see what is happening right now in Greece, Hungary, Poland, Romania).
Pumpkin is common here, although not as common as apples for instance.
I come from a region near the Black Sea, where there are various communities typical for the border of the Eastern Roman Empire (or Byzantium, if you want), such as Turkish, Tartar, non-Romanized (Greek-like) Romanians, etc. The pumpkin and pumpkin products seem to be popular among them.
I was raised with pumpkin pies. I love apple pies too. I can’t decide which of the two I love better. I don’t have to.
Whenever people raise poultry here, there will be some turkeys too - although they’re not the dominant species.
There are all kinds of berries in Romania and it would be easy for anyone to procure them - even by walking into the nearest grove and picking them - but mixing meat with sweet sauces or dressings is not a traditional thing in Romania. Tastes have been changing though under the Western influence since the fall of the Iron Curtain, but I’m not sure whether these changes have penetrated the bulk of the population. I guess they haven’t yet.
Communism has turned farmers into proletariat. There are very few true traditional peasants. Those with a farming spirit raise turkeys along with their poultry.
Between 1970 and 1980, Romania enjoyed relative prosperity and traditional markets boasted a wide range of farming products. It was the last time I witnessed mammoth harvest festivals. One could go into the market and buy any products at very low prices. My parents bought live chickens (i.e. hens), which my father would kill. He tried to teach me how to cut a chicken’s throat when I was six, which was a horrifying experience when I stood up to my father and he decided I was not ‘a real man’. My parents came from the countryside but I’ve always been a city boy. I remember once my parents bought a turkey, which they kept in the tub of our main bathroom for a week before my father killed it. The meat was tougher than what I was used to and I asked my mother not to buy turkeys anymore.
What’s a pecan?
I’m kidding. Pecans are not popular here, probably because there are plenty of walnuts in the area. Walnuts or any kind of nuts are not commonly used in the preparation of any kind of meat.
I’d quibble about calling Guy Fawkes/Bonfire Night a holiday, since we don’t get a day off for it. The closest to an American Thanksgiving would be Harvest Festivals, which used to be a big thing in churches and schools, but again not a public holiday or big “family gathering” event - that would be Christmas.
There is a regular upsurge of debate about whether we should have an autumn-ish public holiday. Sometimes Trafalgar Day appeals to old-school patriots, and I suppose we could have November 5th as Parliament Day or some such.
But if anyone here has suggested Thanksgiving, I think they have it in mind for July 4th 
A retired Australian that I collaborate online with who lives in France with his French wife was dragged out for Black Friday sales on Black Friday. :eek:
Aren’t you that Hungarian guy who’s married to a Polish gal? Nah, never heard of you.
Close. Polish guy (who spent time in Hungary) married to a Slovak-German gal.
It’s not celebrated here in the UK as far as I know, at least not by UK nationals.
It seems like a nice holiday idea to me - I like the sound of the food traditions that are associated with it (and I do like pumpkin pie a lot).
I’m still very perplexed that the UK latched onto Black Friday, which has gone from non-existent, to insanely-prevalent in the space of a few years. About three years ago, some stores were doing Black Friday. The next year, they had turned it into Black Friday Week and everyone was doing it. This year, it seemed to run for nearly a month.