give thanks

Tomorrow dawns my favorite holiday; I love Thanksgiving for so many reasons: being with family and friends, traditional dishes served, crisp, fall weather outdoors, anything spiced, or pumpkin, and mulled cider. Over the years, Thanksgiving has taken on new faces. Growing up, we always did the meal with my grandparents and aunt and uncle in OKC. When we moved away in the early '90s, we would either do our own thing as a family of 4 or be grafted in by various close friends (mostly the Sandovals). Since Aron and I married, we have done a variety of things as well. Aron's Aunt Dinah makes Thanksgiving every year and starts preparation days in advance. Each year the menu changes, except for a few staples (ramaki--water chestnuts wrapped in bacon, and her famous chocolate mousse). This woman is the quintessential Marth Stewart of Thanksgiving and I'm sad we have not been able to sit at her table for the past 3 years. However, being away has lended itself to starting our own traditions. The first 2 years we lived in Texas, Shannon and I prepared Thanksgiving; it was fun to plan the menu and shop for the groceries. My aunt and uncle and grandparents drove down one year and Angel also joined. Last year in Chicago, Matt & Rachel, and Shel & Randall shared the meal with us.

This year it will just be Aron, Mags, and I. We plan to do our own Turkey Trot before we eat, sit down to a meal prepared by us, and, afterwards, well, just do whatever we feel like. :)

Here's the menu run down (many recipes are from Cooking Light; you know I love that magazine!):

*Ramaki
*Holiday Salad (we have made this the past 3 years, so it's probably becoming one of "our" yearly dishes) This dish has unusual ingredients (pomegranate seeds, endives, Gruyere cheese), but everything pairs so well.
*Scalloped Pumpkin and Spinach
*Chiptole-Maple Sweet Potatoes
*Green Beans and Red Onion and Warm Mustard Vinaigrette
*Apple Cider-Brined Turkey (my first EVER attempt at cooking my own turkey; so easy and is brining as I write! As Angel might say, I am finally an adult!)
*Gravy (store bought :)
*Laurie's family Stuffing
*Shelley's Angel Biscuits
*Pumpkin Pie with Pecan Pastry Crust
*Egg nog gelato from Whole Foods
*Shiner Bock, red wine, and water to drink

Although, I'm in the market for a good holiday tonic. Any tips?

Happy Thanksgiving!