thanksgiving 2012 - my first

2012 marks the first year Mr. Mari and I aren't spending Thanksgiving with family. And that's significant because...? It's significant because I've always eaten someone else's turkey. I openly admit: I'm a Thanksgiving turkey virgin. 

Due to a bunch of reasons, Mr. Mari and I have found ourselves in New York City with no Thanksgiving dinner to attend. We toyed with the idea of going to a restaurant but I thought it was the perfect opportunity to have dinner with friends and cook the beast myself. I asked our friends, Ana-Maria and Rives, if they'd be around. The answer was yes and they made plans to sup with a couple other NYC family-less friends too. Perfect! Since their friends hail from Sweden and Korea - and Ana Maria is from Romania. 

Growing up in a Japanese household, Thanksgiving was beyond just the traditional turkey, stuffing, and mashed potato fare. We'd have The Usual but we'd also have sushi, spare ribs, gyoza, and my Uncle who lived near Chinatown, would bring crab in black bean sauce. Needless to say, it was a shocker to Mr. Mari. 

I'm planning on making some standard dishes: a 15-pound turkey (brined and air-dried); chestnut, mushroom and apple stuffing; giblet gravy; mashed cauliflower (gotta mix it up a little); cranberry sauce; maybe a pumpkin pie and my Nippon nod: Japanese-style string beans. I'm excited and nervous about making my first turkey but I'm most excited about having a crazy international smorgasbord. It frankly wouldn't be Thanksgiving without it. 

What are you eating, anything beyond The Usual? Lemme know how you're celebrating!

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! Wishing you all happy bellies and smiling faces. I'll be taking a long weekend to digest the meal and recover from all the "I'm so thankful for ..." toasts, so see you Monday! 

(Image: "Freedom From Want" by Norman Rockwell)