Only a Turkey Would Forget Thanksgiving

I've been getting friendly nudges from people who have noticed that it's been a very long time since I've posted on the blog. Sorry about that... it's been very busy and I can't seem to get around to the blog until midnight or later. Like now. Me sleepy.

Anyway, I realize I should post this one ASAP before people run out of leftover turkey: the theme is Canadian Thanksgiving (Oct 12 this year). If there are any American readers, you can certainly use the following as inspiration for your own Thanksgiving on Nov 26.

Lynn, my very good friend and occasional collaborator on this site (lady, you need to post more) kindly invited me to her house to join her family and some friends for Thanksgiving dinner. Lynn is one of those natural, effortless chefs who cooks amazing food at quantities that would feed an army, then says "that was nothing"... and you believe her.

The pièce de résistance was a whopping 20 lb, organically-raised turkey. I wanted to call her Big Bertha, but Lynn thought it was weird to give a name to a creature we were going to eat. I think the bird roasted au naturel for about 6 hours in the oven, roasting to a golden crisp. With patient, consistent basting, the meat turned out juicy and moist.

For the privilege of partaking in this feast, guests brought some side dishes. Our friend Ireen brought a fragrant and savory Chunky Apple and Onion Soup, featured in the Autumn 2009 issue of the LCBO's Food & Drink magazine. It featured apples, herbs, sweet potato and caramelized onions, reminiscent of French onion soup but with a little extra sweetness and hearty texture.

After this tasty starter, Lynn brought out the turkey and all the fixin's. Heavenly gravy (from the turkey drippings), cooked peas and greens, cranberry sauce, cooked carrots, fluffy mashed potatoes, and mashed buttercup squash (prepared by her younger son). If you want recipes from Lynn, post your comments right here!

My offering for the evening was Savoury Wild and Brown Rice Stuffing, also from Food & Drink, the August 2006 issue. I had made it before for another Thanksgiving with Lynn and was asked to make it again. Instead of stuffing the turkey with it like last time, we opted to cook it separately. Baking it in a dish gave it a light, crunchy crust that was quite pleasant.

Sadly, I couldn't find any fresh tarragon, and also had to resort to a sack of pre-mixed brown and wild rice instead of choosing the proportions myself. If it were up to me, I would make the dish heavy on the wild rice and cut back on the brown rice so that the stuffing doesn't get too mushy. I don't know about you, but I think stuffing should be a little toothy, not soggy like oatmeal. This is a nice alternative to traditional bread-based (and carb-heavy) stuffings.

We were ready to be rolled home by this stage, lulled to contentment by the tryptophan and wine.

But of course, the evening was not complete without dessert. Not one but two pies were presented: a store-bought apple pie (awesome) and a home-made Raw Vegan Superfood Mousse Au Chocolat Tarte (incredible).

Lynn and her younger son had made the latter, using a recipe from Gourmet Vegan Chef Patricia Ganswind. The dessert was shockingly devoid of any refined sugars. The mousse consisted primarily of dates, stevia, cocoa powder and avocados. Yes, avocados. I've made Chocolate Zucchini Cupcakes before but never a dessert using avocados. And yet after hearing this it seemed to make perfect sense, given the velvety, creamy texture of mashed, ripe avocados. This would make a fantastic dish for anyone who is diabetic, lactose-intolerant or gluten-intolerant. It is decadent yet guilt-free -- what more could anybody want?

FYI, the title for this post comes from a church billboard near Lynn's house. I was stuffed to the gills and waiting for my bus ride home when the sign caught my eye.