It’s the start of Thanksgiving Week, so here’s a thread.
I got the turkey out of the freezer this morning. It’s 12 pounds, so I’m pretty sure it will be thawed by Thursday. The meat drawer in the fridge is pretty cold (like, sometimes things stay frozen longer than expected), so I’ll let the deadbird thaw a bit before I put it in there.
Mrs. L.A. has a list on the whiteboard going for more supplies.
Mine has been cancelled, so I had my own yesterday. I was given a 16lb frozen turkey at work Friday. It went into a 6.5 gallon plastic fermenting bucket that was filled with cold water, and left outside overnight. 40 deg F. 12 or so hours later it was thawed, and I cooked it. Today I have the carcass and other remnants simmering in a giant pot for turkey stock.
We’ve settled on the plan. 5 adults & two pre-toddlers spanning 4 generations of normally highly isolated folks. So this’ll be a) one of the riskier things we do, and b) quite low risk on an absolute scale.
My job is to create most of the feast and bring it to the toddlers’ house.
Today, when/if I get done wasting time here, it’ll be grocery store time.
Just me, husband and the baby. We’ve got two Cornish game hens, fresh green beans, and endless potatoes. They ran out of cranberry sauce at the store, so unfortunately that Thanksgiving staple will not be served.
Oh, dear. I had to get store-brand green beans instead of Del Monte or Jolly Green Giant. I hope they have cranberry sauce…
Sister and I will go walkies on some remote countryside hiking trail, social distancing taken to a genteel extreme. Trail mix and water. Ah, but what a great view!
can’t you buy cranberries and make your own?
Sure, if I wanted to add extra work for myself. I did make cranberry sauce on my own one year and I did not feel the effort was really worth it. We will continue to try to find it in stores.
No, it has to come out of a can. And have the ridges. Tradition!
It’s going to be just me and the dog, but I wanted something kinda traditional. Got a small bird, gonna make taters, gravy, and cranberry sauce perhaps some stuffing. I might make a cheesecake, which is my usual contribution to the big feast.
Mrs. L.A. wants me to buy a pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving dessert. I hope she likes it; I’ll have one tiny sliver, and the rest is all hers. She also wants yams and marshmallows. Those are definitely not on my diet, so she has to eat all of it.
The local Jewish Senior Services agency will be delivering to me (and other “elderly” who live alone) a whole turkey dinner with all the accoutrements, including a challah, on Wednesday.
My next door neighbors invited me over for T-day dinner, but the husband and wife still go to work in the Outside World, so, being extra cautious, I asked them if I could just come over late in the day for coffee and dessert.
For my dinner on T-day, another neighbor who also lives alone, is picking up (and delivering) dinners for me, himself, and another neighbor of ours from a fancy-schmancy restaurant nearby.
So I won’t be starved for food… just for company.
This is me, too. I processed the pumpkin yesterday for a pie, put the pulp in the freezer till Tuesday. The bird is defrosting in the fridge. Made bread yesterday for dressing. I’ll start giblets on Wednesday for gravy.
I’ll make the pie and dressing on Wednesday. Dinner on Thursday will be roasted turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, gravy and Brussels sprouts with dill. I wanted to make cranberry sauce, but I can’t be stuffed to make a 40-mile round trip into town just to find some cranberries. I’ve got some tart homemade raspberry/blueberry/tayberry jam that will work decently as a substitute.
Pumpkin pie (obviously) for dessert.
I thought about making dinner rolls, but there are already enough carbs for a year and just… no.
Turkey soup and frozen sliced/diced turkey are always welcome additions to the freezer for future sandwiches, salads or – my personal favorite – sherried turkey and ham baked with a cheddar mustard sauce and topped with chopped nuts. It’s worth roasting a turkey just for that!
I will be making stuffing shortly, mashed potatoes and green bean casserole Thursday just for myself.
Turkey has always been the “eat because it’s expected” part of the whole meal, so skipping that.
My sister said she’d drop off a half link of Polish sausage and I do have some pierogis frozen from the last batch I made, which may be dug out. I don’t know.
Or I may order a pizza. 
Oh, you gotta give a recipe for that sherried-mustard turkey. Sounds great.
I wanted to go to the local pie place and get a fancy Michigan triple berry pie, but my husband is allergic and that’s a lot of pie for one person.
Plus that’s probably an unnecessary risk when it comes to COVID, so…
No pie for me. 
I honest to God really miss roast turkey, which I personally prefer to roast chicken. And I like roast chicken. For me it extends well beyond Thanksgiving. In better days I used to satisfy my occasional craving at my now gone and much lamented favorite bar/hofbrau (went down to a combination of rising rents and falling bar trade a couple of years back, pre-COVID). Especially since that place went under I’ve really looked forward to cooking a smaller bird on Thanksgiving. But no family interaction for me this year - particularly as my parents and step-parents are all in their late 70’s and I still go to an actual worksite so come in contact with more potential sources of infection.
So I’ve reluctantly decided to not do a whole bird for myself this year and instead support the restaurant industry by making a reservation for takeout on Thanksgiving Day (which I have to work anyway). Mildly fancy French place and I’m picking up two orders so I have leftovers for the next day - turkey two days in a row is a necessity during the holiday season. A little pricey, but hopefully worth it.
Sure thing! It’s lovely, kind of a cross between a Welsh rarebit and a Croque Monsieur… only different and with turkey and peas. 
A nice easy recipe for after the holiday!
Sherried Turkey and Ham Bake
12 oz cooked turkey, cut into strips
7 oz thickly sliced cooked ham, cut into strips
¾ cup frozen peas (more or less)
2 TB butter, plus a little extra for greasing the dish
2 TB plain flour
1 cup milk
2 TB medium sherry
1 tsp wholegrain mustard, or Dijon if you prefer
½ cup cheddar, grated
½ cup chopped mixed nuts, such as hazelnuts, almonds, and walnuts (optional)
Mix turkey, ham and peas in an ovenproof casserole dish.
Make a white sauce with the butter, flour and milk.
Add sherry, mustard and half the cheese. Stir till very smooth. Top turkey and ham mixture with sauce. Add the remaining cheese and nuts if desired.
Bake at 350F for 25-35 minutes, or until sauce is bubbling. Serve over rice, noodles or my personal favorite, toasted bread.
Makes enough for about 4 servings.
The kind with berries or Thanksgiving is cancelled!
I just added it to Pepperplate!