Thanksgiving - November 26, 2020

 

It's a tad chilly on the porch this morning, but not windy, so I think I can hang out here for a while.

I got up early to put the turkey in the oven.  This is a smoked turkey that someone gave us a couple of years ago.  It's been in the freezer ever since, and I told The Husband that if we're ever going to eat it, now's the time.  I took it out to thaw last Sunday.  The package said that smoked turkeys are usually served cold, but we want it warmed.  My instinct was to put it in the oven at a low temperature and warm it for a long time.  So thirty minutes ago, I took it out of the fridge, cut off the packaging, wrapped it in foil, and stuck it in a 190 degree oven.  Then I got to thinking . . . maybe an extended low temp warming isn't safe.  I googled it, and sure enough, that's not how it's done, so I took the turkey out of the oven and put it back in the refrigerator.  I'll warm it at a higher temperature closer to time to eat it.

Thanksgiving Day is a little sad for me because my father died on Thanksgiving in 2008.  Thanksgiving has not been the same since.  This morning, after I'd put the turkey in the oven, I sat down to look at Facebook while I drank my first cup of coffee, and I saw a post from a niece who lives in Texas.  Ordinarily, she would have been here for Thanksgiving, and we would all be gathering at her father's house for a meal.  Her post showed a photograph of a pie crust in a pie pan, ready for pumpkin pie filling.  My mother's rolling pin was in the picture, and that made me sad, too.  

Our Thanksgiving dinner party has shrunk back down to 5.  One of the nephews and his girlfriend aren't coming because the girlfriend may have been exposed to covid at work.

I am so tired of this virus and all the worry it causes.  My grandchildren came bursting through my front door last night and ran straight to me for a hug, and my first thought was, "Don't get in their faces."  Sad.  Just sad.

But I am going to try to shake it off and enjoy this day.  Nanny's making dressing, pecan pie, and the broccoli salad (that I love) with broccoli from our garden.  I've made a strawberry pretzel salad and some candied sweet potatoes.  There'll be some good eating around here today.