Oh yeah. Happy Thanksgiving everyone. I had Indian, with both beef and chicken andra. It was very good.

Now I'm tempted to have some roast turkey over the weekend. Now I'm back in Australia I can buy real cranberry sauce, instead of the canned stuff.

Happy Thanksgiving, USians!

The local grocery store actually has fresh turkeys, grown at the American Farm School. However, I am baking a ham instead, because Devil Baby Needs a Ham.

Our holiday: play tennis with ambassador. Return home to write speech for ambassador/play with baby. Eat. Game. Contemplate going to see Harry Potter.

I did take a few cases of beer and soda over to another American's house, as there's a Navy ship in port and this person is hosting ~30 sailors for Thanksgiving.

as there's a Navy ship in port and this person is hosting ~30 sailors for Thanksgiving.

I know there's a joke in there somewhere.

Foody cereal -

So I've ended up cooking Thanksgiving dinner for my neighbour, because I'm so soft in the head. Is there a traditional recipe for butternut squash mash?

Not in my family. However, CI offers:

Butternut Squash with Ginger
Serves 4-6 (about 3 cups)
2 pounds butternut squash , peeled and cut into 1 1/2 inch cubes
1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter (15-20 gr)
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger (2.5 ml)
Table salt and ground black pepper

1. Fit large soup kettle with steamer basket; fill kettle with enough water to come to bottom of basket. Bring water to boil; add squash to steamer. Cover, and cook over medium-high heat until squash is very tender when pierced with a thin-bladed knife, 14 to 16 minutes.

2. Transfer squash to shallow bowl, add butter, ginger, and salt and ground white pepper to taste; mash with fork to a coarse puree. Adjust seasoning and serve. (Squash can be covered and refrigerated overnight; reheat in microwave or double boiler.)

or

Roasted Butternut Squash with Shallots and Thyme
Serves 4
2 pounds butternut squash , peeled and cut into 1 1/2 inch cubes
6 medium shallots , peeled
2 tablespoons vegetable oil (30 ml)
2 teaspoons minced fresh thyme leaves
Table salt and ground black pepper

Heat oven to 425 degrees (220 C). Put squash and shallots in roasting pan large enough to hold them without crowding. Toss with oil, and season with thyme and salt. Roast squash and shallots, stirring them or shaking the pan every 15 minutes, until they are tender and evenly browned, 45 to 50 minutes. Season with pepper to taste; serve warm or at room temperature.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanks a million Raq! I think I'll go with the first one; he mentioned it being mashed when his mum makes it.

Ooh, shiny! I just discovered that I have David Attenborough's The Life of Mammals on DVD. Odd thing is, I don't remember buying it. Oh, and Brendan decided last weekend to watch all of Firefly, and headed off to see Serenity the same day he saw the last one. Toaster time.

I like Thanksgiving.

Ok, Bitches, here is something that I want every one of you to remember in the stress of the holidays:

You, yes, YOU, are wonderful, beautiful, amazing people. There are wonderful, beautiful, amazing people who love you (even if you can't be surrounded by them all the time like we are here in thread) and if nothing else, that should show you how true that first bit is. After all, water seeks its own level. You deserve to be happy. You deserve to be treated lovingly, respectfully, and graciously. If due to family, job, or other pressures, you accept less than that, let it be out of your own love, respect or grace, rather than out of thinking you don't deserve any better.

I am thankful for you all, Bitches.

Skipping to the end for vwbug:

Your journal is friends-only for commenting, so I'm posting this here--try LJ user JMHM for a political blog. I'm not the political blog type, so I can't compare her to others, but she's a friend and incisive and angry as fuck.

eta: Oops! Better e-mail that.