a cranberry-ginger-pear compote

I made a cranberry-orange-ginger sauce this weekend, and it was awesome and easy. (I don't know what a compote is, but I think it must be French for "mixed stuff.") I was really surprised at how easy it was, and it makes the perfect thing to spoon over brown rice for breakfast.

nothing yellow&green

Nothing that is both colors, or nothing that is either? Because, ruling out all green means precious few spices and no vegetables, right? Which sounds like flea's SIL's household.

Whereas, "nothing that mixes yellow and green together" might be -- recent decorating trauma? Some crackpot spiritual issue? A family member who has one of those compulsions about not-mixy things on a plate?

Oh Nutty - it is just baseball rivalry. She is a Giants fan, I am not. I think I'll end up handing her a small baggie of bell peppers along with our "real dish".

Okay, I got 83.3% on the tone-deaf test. I'm tempted to try it again, but that could lead to a day of me sitting hear, head right up against the speaker and me humming.

You're the one who always brings the pickled beets even though only one person within a hundred miles likes them, right? Ditto the sweet potato dish.

You're the one who always brings the pickled beets even though only one person within a hundred miles likes them, right? Ditto the sweet potato dish.

Ooh, I wish we had pickled beets at Thanksgiving!

I am now the person carrying on the family liking of this thing we call Harlequin vegetable, which I think is mashed carrots and parsnips? For a while, my grandmother was the only person who was really into it, but now I'm all about it, too.

We may also purchase and bring a chocolate pecan bread pudding from our local bakery because it is Teh Awesome.

Is that from A&J King, Nora? Hmmmmm. Mayhaps I'll have a contribution other than making the gravy this year.

Rutabaga.

My Grandmother always made rutabega and nobody liked it.

But the year after she died we were splitting up who makes what and my family wound up with rutabega -- because nobody could stand to skip it.

We went to the grocery store and had to hunt for it -- none of us had ever even seen it in non-mashed form before. It's a giant turnip covered in wax... m'kay. Then we had to figure out how to cook it. How do you peel an giant turnip covered in wax? I think we hacked it in half and cored it out pumpkinly. Two of us nearly lost fingers. Then we boiled it and mashed it up with butter, etc. and took it to dinner.

Even though nobody liked mashed rutabega everybody took some as they always had. And they LOVED it. It was really good. So we told the saga of discovering what they looked like, figuring out how to peel it, nearly loosing fingers (complete with eight by ten photographs with circles and arrows an a paragraph on the back of each)... and my one aunt started LAUGHING. "Mom always used frozen, every year I helped pull apart the orange chunks we took out of that bag."

(And you still get stuffing, you just cook it under the butterflied turkey, which sits on a broiler pan or wire rack set over the pan with the stuffing in it. So the drippings drip down onto the stuffing, and flavor it just like it was inside the bird! And it cooks in 2 hours!)

Yes, we did this too. YUM.

Is that from A&J King, Nora? Hmmmmm. Mayhaps I'll have a contribution other than making the gravy this year.

Yes- their thanksgiving treats on offer are:

Chocolate Pecan Bread Pudding (Serves 6-8)
Cranberry Corn Cake (Serves 6-8)
Large Apple Tart (Serves 6-8)
Pumpkin Cornmeal Hearth Bread
Oatmeal Cinnamon Raisin Rolls

We may make the stuffing out of the pumpkin cornmeal bread. Or not. Haven't decided yet. I think you need to preorder this stuff, btw... by this Thursday, and the pickup is Wednesday.

If anyone is interested in the no knead bread recipe, I found it here: [link]

My family tends to be "traditional" as in, very little variation. My mom tried an oyster stuffing one year and my dad revolted. Kind of boring, but it's really good. I usually bring dessert for Thanksgiving and Christmas. I rebel by bringing one new dessert each year. I always bring something everyone likes (carrot cake, chocolate cheesecake, apple pie, etc.) and then I do something new each year. Any thoughts? I'm bringing a carrot cake, but need my wild card. I'm considering a tarte tatin, but that's kind of close to apple pie. suggestions?

Thanksgiving is making me sad this year. I don't have Friday off, which means my not-from-here self doesn't get family. I also may not get Mr. Jane, as he would really like to go see his parents in Arkansas. Neither his parents nor mine are terribly far away (3 hours for mine and 6 for his) but the idea of driving-holiday-driving sounds exhausting for someone who'll be at work at 9 am Friday.

Also my birthday is Sunday, and my birthday twin turned out to be an ass, so this is the first time we'll not celebrate together in 6 or 7 years.