Photo by María Helena Carey
Although Thanksgiving has passed, many of us tend to use some of the same tasty tidbits and sides for Christmas and for holiday entertaining that they do use around the Thanksgiving holiday. If you want to try something new or are in a pickle about new ideas for the party season, a couple of our writers have good ideas for you– the popovers sound awesome! Happy entertaining!
Lauren: As anyone who grew up in New England can attest, we take Thanksgiving very seriously. Growing up as a kid in Massachusetts, we never let a November pass without a trip to Plimoth Plantation, the site of the first Thanksgiving way back in 1621. Various reasons exist as to why the Plantation’s “Plimoth” is spelled with an “i” as opposed to the town of Plymouth, which is spelled with a “y”, but my favorite reason is because spelling wasn’t standardized in the 17th century. Trips to Plimoth were marked by conversations with people walking around pretending it really was the 1600s and the activity I always looked forward to, butter churning! And so, it is in the spirit of butter that I give you the Thanksgiving Popover, a delightful muffin/bread hybrid made of warm buttery goodness. Best of all, it only requires 5 basic ingredients (flour, salt, eggs, milk and butter) and thanks to modern technology you can cook it in your oven with an ease the Pilgrims would have surely envied. By the way, make sure the butter you use is cold– do not cut corners! And once you try the recipe once, experiment with savory and sweet! (Here is a link to a lovely and easy popover recipe over at Orangette’s blog— enjoy! –Maria)
Liz: I make pumpkin pie from pumpkins every year. I don’t really do anything else very traditionally with regard to holidays and food, but I do DO pumpkins, using a recipe I adjusted from some classic of years ago! I started this when I was a reporter, making mini-pumpkin pies with extra “batter” for sources to get interviews with financial types downtown. (NB: Liz, you naughty minx!) It worked! The whipped cream was added on on the spot. Incidentally, scientific studies have apparently shown time and again that men are apparently aroused by the smell of pumpkin (and cinnamon) give off while baking. Who knew? So I make as many as my pumpkins will allow, and I use a mixture of condensed and evaporated milk, so they are rich. This year I am trying cheesecake.