I wonder if they get a difference within the same area when they ask the cooks vs. when they ask the non-cooks.

Now I desperately want to watch the West Wing episode when President Bartlett calls the Butterball hotline.

I wonder if they get a difference within the same area when they ask the cooks vs. when they ask the non-cooks.

Probably. S and I were talking this morning (while making dressing, in fact) about how, in contrast to Christmas, the traditional Thanksgiving meal was very much based on everyday food -- some kind of bread dressing could be found with any Sunday roast, so it was something everyone knew how to do -- but now it's become once-a-year stuff that you never see outside of the holidays. The linguistic distinction might just vanish in favor of whatever it says on the packaged stuff (even for those of us who keep making it from scratch).

Just finished making the pumpkin pie. I missed the timer, and it baked for almost twenty minutes longer than I'd intended before I remembered, but it looks perfect.

Now, waiting for a free burner to make my cornbread chestnut stuffing (that stuffing is going in the squash -- my mom's more traditional Jewish New England stuffing is going in the turkey, plus some baked separately, too.) My sister's making spinach and my mom's making soup right now, so no free burners at the moment. I'm watching Prairie Home Companion on TV.

Although now I seriously want to overlay the dialect map with a map of the predominant cooking method to see where and whether they overlap. OMG I AM DORK.

I'm pretty sure Google is working on this kind of map overlay at this very minute.

They are nothing if not dork-enabling.

Happy Thanksgiving, those who celebrate! Happy random day otherwise!

Today's adventure is: will the turkey finish defrosting in time? I started too late with the fridge defrost, so I'm going to switch over to cold water here shortly. Meanwhile, I've gotten the spousal approval to make the sweet rolls actually sweet bread in the bread machine, which would deeply horrify my grandmother, were she alive to be horrified, but is much much much easier, especially on a day like today. I prefer it as rolls, but I can just throw everything in the machine and let it go whilst I do the rest of the cooking.

But like David, I don't have that much left to do today. Several things need finishing today, but the tasks other than the turkey (cranberry sauce, stuffing, corn pudding) are all very simple.

Day of Pie is the day that's fraught, but that's all good already, and our guests last night didn't eat that much of it (we were missing the teenage guests, so not surprising) so we've already tossed some in the freezer for later.

Wishing now I had managed to finish up the cranberry bread, because it sounds good now, but oh well. Breakfast is cafe con leche and irish butter on sourdough bread.

They are nothing if not dork-enabling.

Bless their Segway-riding souls.

The first batch of breads is now baking (cranberry and pumpkin nut), and the herb bread is warming up from its overnight proof in the fridge. I have to prep the herbs for inclusion in the dough, and then I have to reduce the cider in order to glaze the brussels sprouts and prep the ginger-lime sauce for the green beans. And then I have to get everything ready for transport to our friend's house.

Hec & JZ - I'll only be a few blocks from you guys. You want I should stop by with a mini-loaf of pumpkin nut or cranberry bread?

The countertop turkey roaster my friend seduced me into buying some years ago makes it all much simpler, too. Things aren't fighting for oven space. And it functions as a buffet server, too, once the turkey's done. I pour water into the base and set the hot side dishes in the little dishes and everything stays uniformly warm and moist. Love.

I only use it once or twice a year and it's a mother to store, but it's totally worth it.

What I make is relish not sauce, cranberries, apples, lemon juice, honey, a tiny bit of salt, a very tiny bit of finely diced celery.

Also dressing,not stuffing. Made on the stove top with sausage, butter, rum and honey. (The butter, rum and honey mixture is also used to baste the turkey.) The trick to making a moist tender turkey with no stuffing? Baste it a lot and often, and turn the oven up for the first 30 minutes or so to sear the turkey and seal in the juices.