A week ago Monday was the house Thanksgiving meal as it fit everyone's schedule -- sorry Thursday... But we were prepared to make one heck of a meal, and by we, I mean Chris Brumby (housemate) got really involved in finding a marinade recipe for the turkey. He has to give some credit to Martha Stewart and her orange honey glazed turkey recipe. I must say it was fantastic to have someone else take care of the bird whilst I focused on other parts of the meal. How some folks have just one person get everything ready is beyond me. I know I would struggle. But designating jobs really helped move the prep and cooking along. Rohani and Tom Jones were on cutting duties, doing odds and in jobs, so a tremendous shout to them for their efforts.Got cracking around 2PM that day. And after I ruined the roast potatoes at stage 2 by over boiling them, we were on our way to what would be a very delicious meal. Chris was adamant about getting a ham in the mix, so we included an almond-honey glazed marinade ham in the festivities. Our fixins included sweet potato casserole (a must), normal mash (because I ruined the first batch of potatoes, mac&cheese, roast veggies (because we're British), and cranberry sauce. For dessert: Monkey Bread and Fruit Salad.
Here's a challenge for all my compatriots: try explaining that there is no explanation for why Monkey Bread is called as such, when all the Brits want is an explanation. It all leads to several minutes of a heated Wikipedia debate where nobody wins.And another thing whilst on the Monkey Bread topic. They don't have pre-made Pillsbury biscuits over here to easily slice and dice into wee bread balls. The dough making process added about an hour to the overall time but it was well worth it. That and when, Jon Brumby, our dessert connoisseur, had forgotten (or wasn't told) to add brown sugar it added another few minutes.
Then the marshmallows were singed. Or caramelised as Chris described them. Still edible, but they didn't have that beautiful white and pink look to them. Difficult finding marshmallows that don't cost a fortune and are of decent size. Can't deny Chris looks for perfection in presentation so he wasn't going to let a few charred mellows ruin it. And to be fair, that's what you want because in all my years of celebrating Thanksgiving the one thing I've learnt is its never going to be 100% perfect because that's just un-American! And what's Thanksgiving without a few mess-ups?!Overall though, it was a great experience getting in the kitchen and really doing a holiday properly, and good company is what really matters. There were 11 of us total. All the housemates, and then 3 significant others. Really couldn't break tradition with this lot though as they pushed it, so after eating we went out to the grassy triangle up the road for a bit of American football -- which turned into half rugby by the end?
All this food, running about, right before hockey training. We will plan our Christmas dinner a bit better...
