As I schlepped my turkey and oysters from work onto a crowded city bus the driver suspiciously looked at my plastic box with duck tape handle and said, "whaddya got in dare?" "Oysters," I replied! Jeezus it’s thanksgiving dude!

To say this is my favorite holiday is an understatement; it’s not that it celebrates the gathering of the Pilgrims and the unfortunate Indians
who invited them to share in their harvest. No it’s the actual act of preparing a meal that as a young child I recalled having come from Europe, where they celebrate eating and sitting at the table as a ritual. Times sure have changed; we don’t sit and talk or eat well for that matter. People are not spending quality time at anything really; no one wants to sacrifice time to make something that will feed your soul as well as the body. Food nurtures us and yet we don’t really take time to see where it comes from, how it grows. I think there are some optimistic signs, green markets, organic are just some of the good things we can see coming back. Somehow were realizing that our way of living depends solely on how we are treating the planet we call home!

Over the weekend I will have some days off to cook, what else? Right now I have my gizzards confiting on the fire for my stuffing, my levain, liquide and stiff are both rising for some rolls or whatever I fancy to make!

This holiday I think is the best food related for me, no gifts, no singing, unless of course it’s Alice’s Restaurant! Just good old turkey, stuffing and all them fixins!

The menu for Thanksgiving 2007

Wellfeet and Beausoleil oysters, with a mignonette sauce

Roasted turkey with our traditional gizzard confit and mixed rice stuffing

Parsnip puree, sweet potato and ginger puree, haricot vert and chantrelles

Cranberry sauce,of course!

Pies
Pecan
Pumpkin
and apple (French style this year!)

And plenty of wine and good company!

Stay tuned for snaps later!

Happy Holiday!