|
By Eliza Whipple
Thanksgiving is typically a time for families to gather for a large meal, give thanks and probably watch a little football. For someone so gripped with tradition, I grew up loving the few times a year that I could see my father’s side of the family and indulge in the traditional meal of turkey, stuffing and plenty of pumpkin pie.
As is the case with all families, things change and traditions are often forced to change as well. Kids grow up and other family members depart for the next chapter in their lives. For me these changes were never easy. I always wanted everything to stay just the way it always was. As I matured, I started to accept these changes and realized that change can lead to new memories and even build character.
When I was 15 years old, it was my first challenge coping with a change in the traditions I had always know surrounding the Thanksgiving holiday. Lulu and Rocky, my aunt and uncle on my mother’s side of the family, asked my sister Olena and I if we wanted to meet them in New York City for an extravagant weekend stay at the Plaza Hotel. You would think this would be a no-brainer decision for a 15 year old, but my first thought was, I wonder if I can still have turkey on Thanksgiving?
The Plaza is a pretty special place for a teenage girl. Olena and I shared a suite that over looked Central Park. Our bed was full of huge, oversized, tootsie roll shaped pillows that we immediately stuffed between our legs and rode like thoroughbreds down the halls and around the room – not exactly acting our age.
After a little Thanksgiving Day parade viewing, the big Thanksgiving dinner was on our minds. Parked on 7th Avenue close to Central Park, our options as inexperienced New York City dining enthusiasts were limited. Since all I was looking for was a traditional turkey dinner, we dined at the first menu we glanced at off the street offering all the traditional fixings. Even though my meal didn’t compare to my Aunt Marilyn’s traditional Thanksgiving dinner, it was fun to add new flavors to my life. The entire experience was a weekend I will never forget.
I now have the pleasure of working with several acclaimed chefs in New York City who are offering traditional Thanksgiving dinners with a little of their own flair. Break free from tradition and try adding a little change to your meal with innovative menu items such as Chef Bobby Flay’s Roasted turkey with fresh sage and orange butter with wild rice-goat cheese dressing, cranberry-mango relish and red chile gravy; Chef John Fraser’s Brussels sprouts salad with Serrano ham and cauliflower and Chef Maneet Chauhan’s Mexican Pumpkin Pie Horchata.
Happy Thanksgiving!
What I’m:
Eating: My Aunt Marilyn’s Apple Sauce
Drinking: Olde Saratoga Lager
Reading: The New York Times
Watching: English Premier League Soccer
Listening to: Postcards of the Hanging – Grateful Dead Perform the Songs of Bob Dylan
|