Living overseas, you have to be a bit flexible with your holidays. This might mean accepting certain changes to the traditional menu, celebrating a few months early or a few months late, or putting up with friends from other countries who want to join in but don't understand the significance of the holiday or how to go about celebrating it properly.
October 13th, Thanksgiving Day, was business as usual here in Austria. Since I'd been busy all weekend with company, we (my Canadian friends and I) decided to postpone our Thanksgiving dinner until the following weekend.
Cooking an entire Thanksgiving dinner on my own is something I've wanted to do for ages. This year, a handful of enthusiastic eaters had volunteered to eat whatever I put together, so I thought I'd give it a go.
Thanksgiving dinner in the Bishop household always consists of a roast turkey with stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy, homemade cranberry sauce, various vegetables that I ignore, and of course, a beautiful pumpkin pie. These assorted delicacies are arranged on a table set with Mom's best dishes.
Like I said, celebrating a holiday like Thanksgiving overseas means being a little bit flexible. We couldn't find a turkey, even at the specialty Costco-size grocery store, so I got a goose instead. Never mind that I'd never even tasted goose before. They don't sell cranberries here, so a jar of preiselbeeren had to suffice. And the pumpkin pie would have to be made from scratch, of course, since there are no pre-made pie crusts or cans of pumpkin puree in this part of the world.
I got to work first thing in the morning. Rolled out a perfect pie crust with my wine-bottle-turned-rolling-pin. Had to bake the pie for much longer than normal, probably because it was so deep, being made in a cake pan instead of a pie dish (which I don't own). Evaporated milk had to be replaced by schlagobers, but I don't think that made a difference.
October 13th, Thanksgiving Day, was business as usual here in Austria. Since I'd been busy all weekend with company, we (my Canadian friends and I) decided to postpone our Thanksgiving dinner until the following weekend.
Cooking an entire Thanksgiving dinner on my own is something I've wanted to do for ages. This year, a handful of enthusiastic eaters had volunteered to eat whatever I put together, so I thought I'd give it a go.
Thanksgiving dinner in the Bishop household always consists of a roast turkey with stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy, homemade cranberry sauce, various vegetables that I ignore, and of course, a beautiful pumpkin pie. These assorted delicacies are arranged on a table set with Mom's best dishes.
Like I said, celebrating a holiday like Thanksgiving overseas means being a little bit flexible. We couldn't find a turkey, even at the specialty Costco-size grocery store, so I got a goose instead. Never mind that I'd never even tasted goose before. They don't sell cranberries here, so a jar of preiselbeeren had to suffice. And the pumpkin pie would have to be made from scratch, of course, since there are no pre-made pie crusts or cans of pumpkin puree in this part of the world.
I got to work first thing in the morning. Rolled out a perfect pie crust with my wine-bottle-turned-rolling-pin. Had to bake the pie for much longer than normal, probably because it was so deep, being made in a cake pan instead of a pie dish (which I don't own). Evaporated milk had to be replaced by schlagobers, but I don't think that made a difference.
My usual baking friend came over in time to help rip up bread for the stuffing. That used to be my job when I was little. I referred to my mom's recipe and dumped in summer savory (imported from NB) until it smelled like home. Stuffing the bird was an arduous process that required much squealing on my part and several thorough hand-washings (because eeew, raw meat). After much deliberation over whether the Lucy Goose was supposed to bake belly-up or belly-down, into the oven she went.
The end result was a beautifully roasted goose with stuffing that tasted almost exactly like my mom's, gravy, mashies, and roasted broccoli. We ate off mismatched plastic plates and drank wine, Coke, or water out of mugs, because those are the dishes I own. I don't have any serving platters, so a brownie pan, a mixing bowl, and a plastic tray had to suffice. Plates and forks had to be washed between the main course and dessert, since I only have four. But nobody complained, and by the end of the night, all that was left was a small quarter of pie and just enough scrappings of meat and preiselbeeren for a sandwich.
I would say, given that the enthusiastic eaters are pushing for a repeat next month for American Thanksgiving, that the venture was a success.
I would say, given that the enthusiastic eaters are pushing for a repeat next month for American Thanksgiving, that the venture was a success.