Clicking on the Web -- Howard Lestrud, ECM Online Managing Editor-- Prior to making your mouth water about the wonderful food offerings to be featured on the Thanksgiving table, just take a few moments to recall why you are thankful. You may be thankful for good health, for having a job, for having a loving family and you may be thankful to be living in a free society. Sure, there are obstacles in the road, but Thanksgiving is a time to observe for its real meaning.
In this column we will look at the history of Thanksgiving once again and we will also add a few delicious recipes at the end.
I always call Thanksgiving one of my favorite holidays because it gives Judy and me the opportunity to host our family Thanksgiving. When almost everyone is in attendance, the count exceeds 30. Again, Thanksgiving is a family time to say thank you for all of our blessings.
Let’s go to Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, to check out Thanksgiving history. Go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thanksgiving_%28United_States%29
Here’s what Wikipedia says about Thanksgiving history in the United States:
Thanksgiving or Thanksgiving Day, presently celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November, has been an annual tradition in the United States since 1863. It did not become a federal holiday until 1941. Thanksgiving was historically a religious observation to give thanks to God, and is still celebrated as such by many families, but it is now also considered a secular holiday as well.
Most Americans celebrate by gathering at home with family or friends for a holiday feast. Though the holiday’s origins can be traced to harvest festivals which have been celebrated in many cultures since ancient times, the American holiday is tied to the deliverance of the English settlers by Native Americans after the harsh winter at Plymouth, Massachusetts and that event has become the pre-eminent foundation story for English North America.
The First Thanksgiving was celebrated to give thanks to God and the Native Americans for helping the pilgrims survive the brutal winter. Although half of the pilgrims who arrived on the Mayflower had already died, many more would have had it not been for the native Americans teaching the pilgrims to harvest foods.
The first Thanksgiving feast lasted three whole days providing enough food for 53 pilgrims and 90 Indians. The traditional Thanksgiving menu often features turkey, stuffing, sweet potatoes and pumpkin pie. Americans may eat these foods on modern day Thanksgiving, but the first feast did not consist of these items.
On the first feast turkey was any type of fowl that the pilgrims hunted. Pumpkin pie wasn’t on the menu because there were no ovens for baking, but they did have boiled pumpkin. Cranberries weren’t introduced at this time. Due to the diminishing supply of flour there was no bread of any kind. The foods included in the first feast included duck, geese, venison, fish, lobster, clams, swan, berries, dried fruit, pumpkin, squash, and many more vegetables.
The first recorded Thanksgiving ceremony took place on Sept. 8, 1565, when 600 Spanish settlers, under the leadership of Pedro Menéndez de Avilés, landed at what is now St. Augustine, Florida, and immediately held a Mass of Thanksgiving for their safe delivery to the New World; there followed a feast and celebration. As the La Florida colony did become part of the United States, this can be classified as the first Thanksgiving, although it was not a harvest festival.
The modern Thanksgiving holiday traces its origins from a 1621 celebration at the Plymouth Plantation, where the Plymouth settlers held a harvest feast after a successful growing season. It is this iconic event that is generally referred to as the “First Thanksgiving.”
----------------------
Now, let’s talk turkey and find some mouth-watering recipes. One of my favorite Web sites is allrecipes.com
How to Roast Your Turkey
To prepare the turkey for roasting, first remove the giblets! Not only is it disconcerting to find these paper-wrapped lumps when carving the bird, but you may also wish to use the giblets in your gravy or stuffing. Next, rinse the bird inside and out. Pat dry with paper towels.
• If you are stuffing the bird, stuff it loosely, allowing about 1⁄2 to 3⁄4 cup stuffing per pound of turkey.
• Brush the skin with melted butter or oil. Tie drumsticks together with string (for stuffed birds only).
• Lastly, insert a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh. The thermometer should point towards the body, and should not touch the bone.
• Place the bird on a rack in a roasting pan, and into a preheated 350 degree F (175 degrees C) oven.
• Bake until the skin is a light golden color, and then cover loosely with a foil tent. During the last 45 minutes of baking, remove the foil tent to brown the skin. Basting is not necessary, but helps promote even browning.
Another good Web site for Thanksgiving recipe lovers can be found at http://www.foodnetwork.com/topics/thanksgiving/index.html On the foodnetwork.com Web Site you will find 100 Thanksgiving recipes. Let’s do dessert:
Ultimate Pumpkin Pie (Go to Web site, foodnetwork.com, to find directions)
For the crust:
* 2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
* 5 teaspoons sugar
* Salt
* 12 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
For the filling and topping:
* 1 15-ounce can pure pumpkin
* 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
* Salt
* 3 large eggs, plus 1 egg white
* 1/2 cup sugar
* 1 cup heavy cream
* 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
* 1/2 cup pecans, 1 cup fresh cranberries, 1 2.3-ounce package amaretti cookies
* 1 cup fresh cranberries, or frozen, thawed and drained
* 1 2.3-ounce package amaretti cookies (about 12)
In this column we will look at the history of Thanksgiving once again and we will also add a few delicious recipes at the end.
I always call Thanksgiving one of my favorite holidays because it gives Judy and me the opportunity to host our family Thanksgiving. When almost everyone is in attendance, the count exceeds 30. Again, Thanksgiving is a family time to say thank you for all of our blessings.
Let’s go to Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, to check out Thanksgiving history. Go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thanksgiving_%28United_States%29
Here’s what Wikipedia says about Thanksgiving history in the United States:
Thanksgiving or Thanksgiving Day, presently celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November, has been an annual tradition in the United States since 1863. It did not become a federal holiday until 1941. Thanksgiving was historically a religious observation to give thanks to God, and is still celebrated as such by many families, but it is now also considered a secular holiday as well.
Most Americans celebrate by gathering at home with family or friends for a holiday feast. Though the holiday’s origins can be traced to harvest festivals which have been celebrated in many cultures since ancient times, the American holiday is tied to the deliverance of the English settlers by Native Americans after the harsh winter at Plymouth, Massachusetts and that event has become the pre-eminent foundation story for English North America.
The First Thanksgiving was celebrated to give thanks to God and the Native Americans for helping the pilgrims survive the brutal winter. Although half of the pilgrims who arrived on the Mayflower had already died, many more would have had it not been for the native Americans teaching the pilgrims to harvest foods.
The first Thanksgiving feast lasted three whole days providing enough food for 53 pilgrims and 90 Indians. The traditional Thanksgiving menu often features turkey, stuffing, sweet potatoes and pumpkin pie. Americans may eat these foods on modern day Thanksgiving, but the first feast did not consist of these items.
On the first feast turkey was any type of fowl that the pilgrims hunted. Pumpkin pie wasn’t on the menu because there were no ovens for baking, but they did have boiled pumpkin. Cranberries weren’t introduced at this time. Due to the diminishing supply of flour there was no bread of any kind. The foods included in the first feast included duck, geese, venison, fish, lobster, clams, swan, berries, dried fruit, pumpkin, squash, and many more vegetables.
The first recorded Thanksgiving ceremony took place on Sept. 8, 1565, when 600 Spanish settlers, under the leadership of Pedro Menéndez de Avilés, landed at what is now St. Augustine, Florida, and immediately held a Mass of Thanksgiving for their safe delivery to the New World; there followed a feast and celebration. As the La Florida colony did become part of the United States, this can be classified as the first Thanksgiving, although it was not a harvest festival.
The modern Thanksgiving holiday traces its origins from a 1621 celebration at the Plymouth Plantation, where the Plymouth settlers held a harvest feast after a successful growing season. It is this iconic event that is generally referred to as the “First Thanksgiving.”
----------------------
Now, let’s talk turkey and find some mouth-watering recipes. One of my favorite Web sites is allrecipes.com
How to Roast Your Turkey
To prepare the turkey for roasting, first remove the giblets! Not only is it disconcerting to find these paper-wrapped lumps when carving the bird, but you may also wish to use the giblets in your gravy or stuffing. Next, rinse the bird inside and out. Pat dry with paper towels.
• If you are stuffing the bird, stuff it loosely, allowing about 1⁄2 to 3⁄4 cup stuffing per pound of turkey.
• Brush the skin with melted butter or oil. Tie drumsticks together with string (for stuffed birds only).
• Lastly, insert a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh. The thermometer should point towards the body, and should not touch the bone.
• Place the bird on a rack in a roasting pan, and into a preheated 350 degree F (175 degrees C) oven.
• Bake until the skin is a light golden color, and then cover loosely with a foil tent. During the last 45 minutes of baking, remove the foil tent to brown the skin. Basting is not necessary, but helps promote even browning.
Another good Web site for Thanksgiving recipe lovers can be found at http://www.foodnetwork.com/topics/thanksgiving/index.html On the foodnetwork.com Web Site you will find 100 Thanksgiving recipes. Let’s do dessert:
Ultimate Pumpkin Pie (Go to Web site, foodnetwork.com, to find directions)
For the crust:
* 2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
* 5 teaspoons sugar
* Salt
* 12 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
For the filling and topping:
* 1 15-ounce can pure pumpkin
* 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
* Salt
* 3 large eggs, plus 1 egg white
* 1/2 cup sugar
* 1 cup heavy cream
* 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
* 1/2 cup pecans, 1 cup fresh cranberries, 1 2.3-ounce package amaretti cookies
* 1 cup fresh cranberries, or frozen, thawed and drained
* 1 2.3-ounce package amaretti cookies (about 12)
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