If you’re anything like me, you’re already brainstorming Thanksgiving plans. This month, I’ll be writing about dishes that have appeared at previous Thanksgiving dinners or ones that are new this year.* If you’re not a big fan of turkey, you’re in luck, because below you’ll also find an alternative I consider more delicious and perfect for a holiday that features sweet, earthy, starchy, and on occasion, savory flavors (Lamb shanks with Pomegranate and Quince).
My family made passage to the New World in ‘79 and deeply appreciated the raison d’être of Thanksgiving from the first year we celebrated it. While our table was full of family favorites unrelated to traditional Thanksgiving fare, with time, many of our dishes assimilated. Our bureks, usually stuffed with ricotta, meat, or potatoes would now be pumpkin packed to serve alongside our turkey. Our seasonless dessert, compote, with quince, apples and pears, would change up to include fresh cranberries for this holiday.
So, with a somewhat ethnic menu for Thanksgiving to begin with, it was never much of a stretch for me in later years and as part of a new family, to think outside of the pumpkin pie box. Although I usually look forward to having something different every Thanksgiving, recently, there are two standbys I expect to make an appearance: my Mom-in-Law’s crabmeat stuffed mushrooms, which I crave throughout the year, and from my Mom, beloved plov (rice with onions and carrots), which early on lined up alongside regular stuffing and then eventually replaced it altogether. (Do we really need bread, rice and potatoes at one meal? Don’t answer that.)
This year the menu is inspired by Mediterranean foods and flavors (Turkish and Persian). I hope you’ll be ambitious and create variations on your family’s holiday favorites, and if you’re looking for something different, I hope you have a go at some of these dishes.
mediterranean thanksgiving menu
Crabmeat Stuffed Mushrooms
Butternut Squash Cigars
Orange Martini
Chestnut Madeira Soup with Hazelnut Gremolata
Mixed Greens in Parmesan Cup*
Lamb Shanks in Pomegranate Quince Sauce
Baby Brussels Sprouts with Coriander Dressing*
Persian Jeweled Rice
Rioja
(Look for a medium to full bodied wine with accents of berry, sour cherry flavors, leather, smoke, cedar, or hints of spice as an accompaniment to the lamb, rice and brussels sprouts)
Chocolate Orange Pots de Creme*
Apple Tart with Walnut Ice Cream*
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Can’t wait to see these recipes! Your table setting looks lovely, and I wish I could pull up my own chair and join you. I’ll content myself with checking back on the blog in coming days. Thanksgiving should always be about thanks, but never resting on culinary laurels: there’s always some new way to spin the classics. Looks like you’ve found some–and then some.