Thanksgiving Recap, Tasted on November 23, 2006 — Each year we get to Thanksgiving and try to figure out some way to inject some originality and challenge into this monster of a meal. I'm not sure we've been entirely successful in year's past. And frankly, there's been a contingent among us that gets prickly at any mention of veering from a most traditional course. This year Michael and Anh took the lead hosting thanksgiving for 46 people at their house. That's right 46 people. Insanity. I will say that in year's past we've had fewer people and not executed as well as we'd like in terms of timing. This year the focus was not only on making a large quantity of high quality food, but also on nailing the execution so people weren't eating late into the night. This invariably requires comprise. In particular it requires a lessening of the number of variables. Dishes need to be simplified. Recipes need to be prepared in advance. All while balancing quality. I hate to say it, but I think we crossed into the world of catering. That said, it was a very good catered meal. Lots of folks pitched in and we had, in my opinion, just the right balance of items, not to mention a very appealing menu for the tradition-minded.

Attached are 39 photos covering the highlights of the meal. These included: Anh's family's traditional Vietnamese eggrolls, super peppery delicious; the cheeseball Michael requested, I wasn't quite sure about cheeseballs and wussed out by buying instead of making (next time I'll make one from blue cheese); Satsuma mandarins, my favorite;  the salmon spread (thanks Dana, the lemon zest really gave it a pure sweet lemony flavor); the buttering of the turkey (yes I said the "buttering"); the New York roast before it was cooked; the beautiful table setting (that paper turkey also didn't survive the night - notice its proximity to the candles);  the deep fried turkey arriving from the deep fryer; the three turkeys in a row - deep fried, regular, and peking from front to back; a suggestion for a fourth turkey in case we ran out (we didn't); bacon for distribution with the sweet potatoes; the roast post-cooking and slicing, the golden beet and cream soup (served cold); the cranberry with Flav-O-Ridges™ (yes there was delicious fresh cranberry sauce as well); and a selection of the incredible desserts: chocolate torte, pecan pie (one of two different kinds of pecan pie - both deeply pecan-y, chewy, and sweet), smores pie, pear crisp, and mini-pumpkin cheesecakes (I had two). There are 39 images in the entire album, and I didn't even catch everything. I encourage you to browse. :)

Every year I debate what to do with my pictures from Thanksgiving. I want to post them right after the meal, but I figure the last thing everyone wants to do after their own thanksgiving is experience mine. There's this "fullness" that kind of makes that an unpleasant experience I think. That said, I don't feel like waiting until next November (pre-Thanksgiving) to publish these shots, because I won't be as excited about them then. So, here it is, Sunday morning, and hopefully you've recovered enough to be able to browse these images without feeling too full. Our meal was great, and went off like clockwork. Not sure what innovation will happen next year. Did you do anything interesting or innovative this year? Tell us about it in the comments.