143.4...Thanksgiving in a Flash

Holy moly. Thanksgiving came and went in a flash. I feel like I never stopped cooking and/or eating. It’s amazing how long you prepare for it and it goes by in a flash. 

Last Tuesday started out with my standard breakfast.

IMG 5374

I stopped by the store to get a few last minute items and picked up some sushi for lunch. 

IMG 5375

I spent the day cooking and baking for Thanksgiving. Dinner was Sloppy Joes that I pulled out of the freezer, sweet potato fries and salad.

IMG 5379

IMG 5378

Wednesday’s breakfast:

IMG 5380

The entire day was spent cooking, baking, setting tables and getting every last minute detail done. I was also trying to make as much room in the refrigerator as possible. The last leftover container in there was the rest of the Beef Stroganoff so that was lunch.

IMG 5382

My mom came from Palm Desert to spend the holiday with us. We went to our club that night for dinner. It was “Comfort Night” and boy was the food comforting! Our table shared a delicious salad and deviled eggs.

IMG 5384

IMG 5385

My choice was the Prime Rib. Delicious!

IMG 5389

We shared a few sides: Creamed Spinach:

IMG 5390

Mashed Potatoes:

IMG 5391

Broccoli: 

IMG 5392

Dessert was Pumpkin Cheesecake:

IMG 5393

Such a nice, relaxing evening after working in the kitchen all day.

So, I host Thanksgiving every year. Every other year I host it on a Friday. That allows other family members to spend time with in-laws, etc. This year was my Friday hosting. So, on Thursday, we celebrated actual Thanksgiving at my brother’s house in Los Angeles. It’s always interesting hosting Thanksgiving for 30 people when you loose the day before!

Breakfast before we left:

IMG 5394

I ate it standing up and running around trying to get the car packed and last minute things done. 

We finally arrived at my brother’s house and enjoyed lots of different yummy appetizers.

IMG 5396

IMG 5397

IMG 5398

Since we were planning on having turkey and all the fixings on Friday, my sister in law decided to make it more of an Italian Thanksgiving. We had pasta and her famous “gravy” with a big salad. 

IMG 5407

IMG 5406

IMG 5408

IMG 5409

It’s a good thing that she wasn’t trying to make a turkey because the power went out for a couple of hours. I feel bad for all the people trying to use their ovens. 

I brought a Lemon Cream Pie for dessert (recipe coming). Only problem…no electricity for the mixer to whip the cream! I wasn’t going to let that stop me. I got out a bowl and a whisk and went to town. 

IMG 5413

It worked! Lol. I whipped the cream by hand. I was very proud of myself. 

After dinner we headed back to San Diego. I put the brine on the turkey, shoved it in my massively full fridge and went to bed.

IMG 5415

Friday morning was show time! I quickly ate a bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios and got to work.

IMG 5416

Somehow I managed to forget to take photos of all the appetizers I put out. But it’s about the same every year: cheese, crackers, chips and dips. 

I did snap a few photos of all my tables!

IMG 3737

IMG 3741

IMG 3743

IMG 3746

Finally, everyone started to arrived. My brother brought me a bottle of wine.

IMG 5418

Lol. My kind of wine!

Eventually it was time to eat! 

Creamy Macaroni and Cheese:

IMG 3763

Green Bean Casserole that one of my brothers in law brought:

IMG 3764

Homemade Gravy:

IMG 3765

Peas:

IMG 3766

Stuffing:

IMG 3767

Make-Ahead Mashed Potatoes

IMG 3768

Gulliver’s Creamed Corn:

IMG 3769

Good Eats Roast Turkey:

IMG 3770

My plate of a bit of everything:

IMG 5417

After we relaxed and cleaned up a bit, it was dessert time!

Grandma Ople’s Apple Pie:

IMG 3780

Chantal’s New York Cheesecake (recipe coming):

IMG 3781

The Best Pumpkin Pie Ever (recipe coming):

IMG 3782

 Skillet Chocolate Chip Cookie:

IMG 3783

And…boom! Thanksgiving was over! Bittersweet definitely. I sent all my leftovers with other people. After thinking, preparing and cooking them for so long, I don’t want to see them ever again. :)

Breakfast Saturday:

IMG 5420

It was time to drive back to Los Angeles! We stopped at Milton’s for lunch. I had a salad and half a salami sandwich.

IMG 5423

IMG 5424

It was back to my brother’s house. He had some friends over to watch football and I game him all my turkey and rolls so they had turkey sandwiches plus various appetizers.

IMG 5433

Sunday morning my brother made us delicious egg sandwiches. Nice change of pace from my usual breakfast, huh? :)

IMG 5437

We went to the Yard House at LA Live for lunch. I had half a turkey melt with clam chowder.

IMG 5439

Eh. This is the second time in a row that the Yard House has disappointed me. 

We all went to the Staples Center to watch the Clippers game!

IMG 5447

It’s my son’s favorite basketball team and they won! 

We hit the road back to San Diego. Dinner was Burger Night at our club. I had the turkey burger, lettuce wrapped with arugula, tomato, red onion, chipotle aioli and sweet potato fries. 

IMG 5448

A perfect way to end a FABULOUS holiday weekend!

Then it was Monday. Ugh.

IMG 5449

I took the kids to school, went to a couple of appointments. I saw Jersey Mike’s on the way home and knew I had to stop for lunch.

IMG 5451

Turkey and provolone, Mike’s way with spicy red pepper relish. Ah….it had been way too long!

After Thanksgiving ends, I do not feel like being creative in the kitchen. Since I was out of stuff to eat in the freezer, that’s when I turn to Trader Joe’s.

IMG 5454

Thank you for providing me with cheese ravioli and jarred sauce. I did make a salad so I was a bit creative, I guess.

IMG 5455

Today’s breakfast:

IMG 5456

I made it to the gym after I took the kids to school. It had been a bit over a week. I went to Cardio Strength. Great workout. 

Lunch was a turkey sandwich and leftover Doritos from Thanksgiving. ;)

IMG 5458

Tonight is busy with my son’s basketball practice and a flag football game! Back to normal life for sure!

 What was your favorite dish at Thanksgiving?

Technorati Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Comments

  1. I can't believe you ate so many turkey sandwiches after baking a big turkey for Thanksgiving!
    Btw what bottled salad dressing do you like and what Caesar salad dressing do you use?
    Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  2. @karebear
    I know right!?! I didn't eat a ton of turkey on Thanksgiving so I guess I made up for it with the sandwiches.
    My favorite bottled Caesar dressing is by Girard's. Actually, their brand is really the only brand of bottled dressing I buy. I also really enjoy their Champagne Vinaigrette.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I want that bottle of wine! :D Glad you had a nice weekend - busy!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment