Twelve months ago, I never would have dreamed that I would be serving Thanksgiving dinner to 73 people in November 2011. Had you asked, I would have responded that it was impossible. That is exactly what happened this past Sunday night, however, and somehow the whole event came off without one disaster, even a mini one. The credit for this, at least where human credit is concerned, goes entirely to the inspiration, organization, and planning skills of my friend Gillian. Without her, I would have likely given up before I ever started. With her, it ran smoothly, albeit with lots of hard work, and in the process, I thoroughly enjoyed myself. I can only hope that she did as well.
Using a few things my mother brought with her from an American dollar store, combined with a few of her own things, Gillian designed the table decorations. Mandarins made a good substitute for pumpkins as they are currently still somewhat in season here.
Once the decorations were settled, we moved into serious menu planning. We wanted to include as many traditional Thanksgiving dishes as possible, but keep it simple enough that what we did make was well prepared. We purchased pumpkin and apple pies from Costco, and when time allowed, included homemade pecan pies in the mix. My grandmother's make-ahead mashed potatoes were chosen so they could be reheated in crock pots, a make-ahead turkey gravy recipe was procured and executed, and the ingredients purchased for stuffing, two versions of candied yams, cranberry salad, green bean salad, and cranberry bread.
With some trepidation, we ordered three turkeys from our local poultry shop. Gillian had never roasted a turkey, and I had only done one, exactly twelve years ago, but with some help from a gourmet food magazine and research by Gillian's husband David, we came up with a plan to get them all finished about the same time on Sunday afternoon. David roasted and carved two of them, a much-appreciated contribution, while Ross and I did the third between the two of us.
Hiring an extra warmer to keep dishes hot proved to be extremely helpful. Gillian managed to find the one below at a very reasonable price after an afternoon's worth of sleuthing and driving around.
We had prepared our guests ahead of time as well as we could for the strange-to-them mixture of flavors and textures they would be experiencing on Sunday. Australians do not mix sweet and savory, so the idea of serving candied yams alongside the turkey was truly foreign. Pumpkin pie is equally hard for them to contemplate since pumpkin is considered savory down under, and is normally served roasted without any sweetening. As for a cranberry salad with marshmallows mixed in, the very idea was rather shocking. The gravy seemed to be somewhat of a novelty as well, but unlike the cranberry salad, was well received. As it turned out, in spite of its sweetness, we could have used another pan of candied yams.
One of our goals for this dinner was to serve the older folks who typically serve us every Sunday during the shared meal that follows the evening service. I shared some thoughts regarding the traditions of Thanksgiving to our audience, and then Gillian provided instructions that asked the children to wait so that our guests to go through the buffet line first, and then actually sit down for once and enjoy their food at their leisure. While they did so, the young ones played outdoors, some waiting more patiently than others.
We were gratified with the enthusiasm shown for sampling all we had prepared, and with the compliments expressed afterward.
In addition to sharing the culinary traditions of Thanksgiving, we also provided a Thanksgiving Trivia quiz to be completed between dinner and dessert. R eventually read out the answers to a good-natured audience.
James adores his buddy Gus, who looked after him quite well throughout the evening.
Even before the event was finished, the question was raised as to whether we would be doing this again next year. While neither Gillian nor I can say for sure where we will be in November 2012, I do think we would like to do it again. It was truly a pleasure to team up with her, and I am immensely grateful for the dedication and talent that she so generously provided to make the evening a success.
Special thanks to Jacob Daffy for taking the majority of the pictures in this post.
What a beautiful job you all did!!! It looks absolutely delicious!
I do have one question however......How did Ross get towards the front of the line?LOL I'm just kidding.
Posted by: Nikki | 11/09/2011 at 01:37 AM
Christie,
Truly amazing! What a beautiful spread. Congrats to Gillian too.
Posted by: Deb Holt | 11/09/2011 at 05:21 AM
Thank you! Nikki, both Ross and David were supposed to be helping us out in the kitchen, especially with the cleanup. Somehow they both managed to sit down and enjoy their food along with all of our guests. Some things never change I suppose!
Posted by: Christie | 11/09/2011 at 02:35 PM
Christie, that is so funny. I'm sure John would have been out front too!LOL
Posted by: Nikki | 11/09/2011 at 02:43 PM
Congrats to both you and Jillian!!!! Looks like you two beautiful women did a wonderful job. Love the mandarin center pieces. So pretty. The food all looked delicious! Looked like everyone had a great time. Real beaut!!!!
Posted by: Crystal Keller | 11/09/2011 at 09:37 PM
I am speechless! You and Gillian are truly amazing women! It looked beautiful, authentic, prodigious and delicious!
Posted by: Amy Smith | 11/10/2011 at 12:42 AM
I'm so proud of you! Wonderful! I'm sure it felt great giving this meal to your church family, and fun for them to learn and try new things. Good job, to you and Gillian!
Posted by: Shanda | 11/14/2011 at 05:46 AM
Sounds like so much fun. Last year we catered Thanksgiving dinner to our small home group of only 20...so you out did us by far. What a blessing you must have been. Way cool
Posted by: Tez Brooks | 11/28/2011 at 11:07 AM