All posts tagged: Thanksgiving

I Invited a Refugee Family Home to Dinner, and It Changed My Life

Sloane around the dinner table with her family and a Syrian refugee family at Thanksgiving (Photo courtesy Sloane Davidson) Over the course of the past election cycle, I was taken aback at the backlash against refugees. I also realized I didn’t personally know any refugees. I decided that if this was an important issue I was going to care about, I needed to better understand and know the refugee community. My family, if polled, would likely say I have never met a cause I didn’t support. I fell into working at a nonprofit in my early 20’s. I was unsettled and without a career path when a mentor suggested I would make a good fundraiser and offered me a job. I took her advice and flourished. I spent most of my career in a variety of nonprofit roles but took a sharp turn this past fall when I decided that I wanted to work directly with refugees. I started with a fairly basic understanding of refugees being people who were forced to flee their homes …

The TueDo List: Enjoy Your Leftovers, Shop Small Businesses and Indulge in Holiday Films

By Laurie White

My goal for this weekend is to do as little as possible. And I’m grateful that I have an opportunity to lapse into inertia. Here are a few other things going on this weekend that I’m thankful for (and you may be too). Happy holidays, my friends. It’s on. Leftovers I could not be less interested in the mall this weekend, but I’m all about leftovers and television. As for the remains of your dinner, Food Network, Martha Stewart, Southern Living and Cooking Light all have recipes for Thanksgiving leftovers — and many of them not the typical turkey-stuffing-cranberry-sauce sandwich variety. Weekend TV guides from Mashable, Daily Beast and Indiewire can help with the glowy box entertainment. Indiewire’s guide is my favorite — they’ recommend watching The Leftovers tomorrow on HBO Signature, calling it a bleak but must-watch drama. Shop Small Amid the Black Friday and Cyber Monday chaos lies Small Business Saturday. It’s an excellent opportunity to remind myself to do most, if not all, of my holiday shopping in my community. This event is (somewhat ironically) sponsored by American Express, which provides a map of local …

How I Stay Sane On Turkey Day: A Chef Shares Her Secrets

By Kim ODonnel

Kim O’Donnel is a trained chef and author of The Meat Lover’s Meatless Celebrations Here she shares six tips for staying sane in the kitchen during the holidays. 1. Don’t Fret. It’s a waste of energy and emotion to work yourself up into a pre-party lather. Before stepping into the kitchen, I actually meditate and/or practice a bit of yoga, or go on a solo walk. 2. Everyone Gets a Job. It doesn’t always work out perfectly, but everyone who comes to our house for a big holiday meal gets a job: Setting the table, dish duty, carving the turkey, making gravy and so on. I’m done with the days of being the maid and not enjoying the meal. 3. Feed the Cook. Have a grilled cheese sandwich or a fried egg around noon for the cook; a little stove top nosh to keep up the energy level and provide a brief respite from the work. 4. Shower Zen. Allow time to rinse off in the shower before guests arrive. Sounds obvious, but it’s another way to get a “time out” …

Thank You Squash! A Recipe for Thanksgiving

By Kim ODonnel

(Photo Credit: Clare Barboza) We understand if winter squash has been on your “avoid” list — you practically need an axe to pry it open. But there’s no need to give up on these beta-carotene bombs entirely; there’s a thin-skinned, quick-cooking option and her name is Delicata. Shaped more like a mini football than a turban or a pumpkin, the delicata squash usually comes in shades of deep yellow, frequently accented with very stylish hunter green stripes. Unlike its cousin the acorn squash, the delicata actually has flavor, a delightful mash-up of corn and sweet potatoes. Ingredients 1 ½ cups water 1 cup Bhutanese red rice (Plan B: long-grain Wehani; cooking times and liquid amounts may vary) 3 to 4 delicata squash (about 1 pound each) ⅛ cup olive oil, plus extra for brushing ¼ teaspoon salt, plus more to taste Freshly ground black pepper ½ cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped ¼ cup unsalted shelled pistachios, chopped (Other options: walnuts, almonds, or pecans) ⅓ cup dried cranberries or cherries, chopped 1 teaspoon fennel seeds 1 teaspoon …

My System: A Buy-it-in-Brooklyn Thanksgiving

By Margit Detweiler

By which I mean I bought just about everything for our Turkey Day fete. With 12 family members popping over tomorrow, I’m all about keeping it easy. To wit: A deep-fried Jive Turkey. Despite buying this sucker ahead of time, we had to wait in a two-hour line for our very own. Seemed like a rite of passage. So be it. I’ve never tried a deep fried turkey, last year we purchased our pre-cooked turkey from Whole Foods. Hopefully this one will be worth the wait! [photo: Courtesy of Jive Turkey] Sides from Bklyn Larder: Yes they’re pricey, but the homemade goodness is worth it. Cheese plate, mashed potatoes, roasted Brussels sprouts with bacon, cranberry sauce, herb bread stuffing, foccacia. Picking those up tomorrow morning. Flowers & apple cider from Grand Army Plaza Greenmarket: The Greenmarket is always open the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, so I hit that this morning, buying some lovely orange fleurs and fresh apple cider. Delicata squash from Whole Foods: The one thing I’m making (and not from Brooklyn), inspired by my …