Canadian Thanksgiving is finally here, and my heart has been swooning with excitement at getting to plan a weekend menu full of pumpkin pies, buttery dinner rolls and everything else that screams Thanksgiving dinner. Like anyone else, I love the holiday seasons for the relaxing time with family and the social acceptance of indulging in more food than usual. But for me, most of my excitement about Thanksgiving comes from getting to endlessly browse seasonal recipes, dreaming about the many, many things I can make to celebrate the holiday. The endless possibilities of things to create is what inspires me to spend so much time in the kitchen year-round to begin with. When you mix that in with an occasion that actually calls for scavenging fall cooking blogs – you could call me pumped!!
Each baking or cooking project, as I like to think of them, for me often begins with a new ingredient – typically whats seasonal or consuming my cravings at the moment. Because of that, grocery shopping is something I usually look forward to (that sounds so lame, but bear with me). A different ingredient in your grocery basket can really spark the imagination for a new dish, maybe a new dessert or even a new way to make an old favourite. The Fall season offers some of the best, most inspiring ingredients like root veggies, squash, apples and of course gourds and pumpkins. My mind starts racing with ideas as soon as the fall harvest hits store shelves come October.
And it doesn’t stop there. Thanksgiving dinner offers the perfect opportunity to try new Fall inspired recipes, and of course bring back annual Fall favourites. Typically, this results in me spending the two weeks before Thanksgiving weekend in full blown blog stalking, recipe researching, and Martha Stewart archives digging mode.
And so, after all of the dreaming and planning and shopping, I’ve finally compiled my list of what I’ll be making for Thanksgiving this year. Most of these dishes are by no means my own, and so I linked the original source for you to use. But they are some of my favourite fall recipes, and can confirm – crowd pleasers! Hoping you all have a happy and food-filled Thanksgiving weekend and get to experience some fun in the kitchen, or at the dinner table, with your loved ones this holiday.
Happy Thanksgiving!!
– Sandra
Thanksgiving Menu
Caramelized Apple and Ricotta Crostinis
Buttery Whole Wheat Potato Rolls
Roasted Garlic & Rosemary Potatoes
Apple Cider Roasted Carrots
And for Dessert!! Apple and
Cranberry Crisp (with Vanilla Ice Cream, of course) a variation on my Peach Summer Pie
A Few Photos from the Table
Sandra Stainton 