thecoffeehouse | November: FOOD TOPIC

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November: FOOD TOPIC

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November Food Topic: THANKSGIVING!

Yes, it is a time to be thankful and spend time with family and friends, but what makes it even more awesome is all the great food that surrounds us while doing so!

Whether you participate in the holiday or not, tell us:
1) What your favorite Thanksgiving (or Fall) dish and why?
2) How about your least favorite and why?

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My mother's stuffing is always a thing of beauty and joy. I have started collecting and serving rose wines of different origins

My least favorite thing is actually the turkey. It's always dry to me.

Very cool--neat tradition! I don't know much about wine, so could you tell me what the difference of a rose wine is?

Turkey is a hard thing to perfect--I was told if you deep fry it, its super juicy!

You might think of rose as being in between a white and a red, and likewise the classic flavor profiles of roses mix those of white and red - light berries/fruits from the red and minerals/tropical flavors from the white.

Traditionally the wine marketed as being ideal for Thanksgiving dinner is Bordeaux, but the flavors of Bordeaux are too strong for Thankgiving dinner, imho, and contribute to the heaviness of the meal, but a white wine is too light, leaving you only with the taste of the booze (while many do, I don't provide the wine to get drunk on it - at least not for that reason alone). Rose is refreshing and fills your mouth with some alternate flavors while you're eating ham and potatoes and green bean casserole without fighting those flavors for dominance and smothering your palate. If you have the money for it, get pink champagne or a sparkling rose, which makes things even classier.

That's probably more than you wanted to know, but I feel like rose has really taken Thanksgiving to a unique level in our house and few consider it when thinking about Thanksgiving libations.

I think that was a very helpful explanation, myself. I don't like most alcohol, so I wouldn't know what to bring if asked to contribute. Icehouse, anyone?

I think you're on the right track. A lager will be lighter and easy to drink. You might consider a golden or brown ale, too.

On the rare occasion I drink beer, it's Icehouse or a Heineken. I've gone into Irish pubs or to a Wunderbar with my brother in the past and tried whatever he had, usually something dark and strong, and liked them pretty well. I think they're usually imports.

I don't like beers like Budweiser or Red Dog, too weak and sweet. I can drink Natural Ice as a substitute for Icehouse if I have to, but prefer the latter.

Any suggestions of brands that might fit into that? :)

May I first ask where you live generally? Some beer is regional.

I live in Central Florida.

Do you guys get New Belgium things down there? Gotta love Flat Tire.

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realpestilence - 2012-11-05 03:28 (UTC) - Expand

No, that's really cool. I'll have to keep that in mind when I take wine next time!

We have a blackberry merlot and it was good, but that would certainly be considered a red wine!

Wild Vines/Arbor Mist Blackberry Merlot, Raspberry Zinfandel, or Real Sangria are my go-to wines. Anything else just tastes nasty to me, and don't even bring champagne around, ugh!

I might have to try this rose thing. If only they came in tiny bottles, in case I don't like it.

I really hate wine, but this Blackberry Merlot was awesome! :)

Me too!

That is so cool. We are mead people at Thanksgiving though. I deglaze the gravy with Bordeaux, but otherwise I actually consider that too strong a wine most times, unless there's quite a bit of chocolate involved ^^

Have you seen that chocolate soup recipe I've waved around a couple of times? Chocolate soup. Fruit salsa topping. It looks like death by chocolate, and I'd love to dive into a pool of it like Winnie-the-Pooh in his honey pot.

You can't go wrong with chocolate. I had some chocolate wine once, it tasted rather like a White Russian. Not something I'd want all the time, but it made a nice fancy drink for New Year's.

One year, my mother made Cornish hens for each of us. They came out beautifully, and didn't have that gamy taste that turkey often does. It was a nice change.

I haven't had a Cornish hen in years. That doesn't sound half bad. My mother gets our turkey from her office every year, but I may still suggest that to her.

That's a neat tradition. I've never had them!

I remember them as very good. Nice plump hens, enough meat to fill you up and have a little leftover, so you can pack up a lunch-without having DAYS of turkey to deal with.

:D Sounds good!

That is a good point. After a while, turkey gets monotonous.

I say two days, max, because you can vary the meals with a little stuffing and potato salad here, a little ham and corn casserole there. After that? Turkey reeks, you know.

This is completely true. My mom caught a big one recently and gave us the rest and you can still smell it in the house. :(

With Thanksgiving, I combine the leftover... uh, bird with the leftover gravy and stuffing to make soup and then I make turkey in pastry with the rest of the meat. That's about all I have leftover because the bf will sit and eat turkey until he pops, he loves it so much.

We always had a small ham to go with the turkey. My dad and I would have these sandwiches that combined turkey, ham, potato salad and baked beans, all piled on together. SO GOOD!

I went to a friends house one year and she did this too. It was a nice change from turkey (though I do like turkey)

I like turkey, too; but it can be rather a strong meat-and they're usually so big that you get a lot of leftovers. I say two days of that is enough.

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