Thanksgiving

I'm feeling some anxiety about Thanksgiving this year. For the past three or four, we haven't been home (either at my parent's house in Salt Lake City, or at my mother-in-law's in Missouri). The last time (and coincidently the first time) I made a whole turkey was when I still lived in Utah. Granted, it was an excellent turkey, but it's been a while. I've made some regular turkey breasts since then, but it's just not the same.

I know all the rules (20 minutes per pound, blah blah blah), but there's more finesse to good turkey than following the cooking times.

I have what I consider to be a pretty good arsenal of spices (rosemary, thyme, caraway, rosemary, dill, and if I'm feeling lazy, trusty ol' seasoning salt), so I'm hoping it turns out well. If not, McDonalds (puke) is open on Thanksgiving day.

So for those interested, here's the line up:

• Turkey (duh)
• Stuffing (Cornbread or regular? I can't decide. Probably regular.)
• Mashed Taters & Gravy
• Marshmallow Candied Yams
• Deviled Eggs
• Watergate Salad * (I love this stuff! I always had it as a kid! Yum!)
• Clam Dip
• Cheese Balls (salty chocolate balls? WARNING: LINK IS NOT WORK SAFE!)
• Veggie Platter (carrots, celery, black olives, etc.)
• Fruit & Cream Cheese Dip
• Pumpkin Pie (my favorite Thanksgiving morsel)
• Pecan Pie

*For those of you that have never had Watergate Salad, it's pistachio jello pudding, pineapple, whipped cream, and occasionally nuts & coconut. Sounds like a horrible cooking experiment gone awry, but it's pretty tasty.

If anyone has any recommendations for additional food, lemme know. Also, I'm going to be eating turkey until Summer 2006 unless I have some assistance with leftovers. If you're family (or adoptive family - you know who you are), and need/want some Thanksgiving grub, come on over!