Thanksgiving Redux

Knowing that our Thanksgiving was going to be extremely mini—just for Miss B and me—the thought of trying to prepare any version of the usual spread, no matter how scaled down, was daunting. But I didn’t want to just let the day go by, either. I wanted something for dinner that was going to make me feel celebratory, not overwhelmed and depressed. So I decided to make like a celebrity chef and prepare a meal that was “inspired” by Thanksgiving. An homage, if you will, to the traditional tastes and smells, but manageable for two of us. Also important: it had to be something both Miss B and I would want to eat, and it shouldn’t be too heavy to appeal in warm mid-spring weather.

Not too tall of an order, right?

Here’s what I prepared:

Turkey risotto (a standard risotto recipe, but cooked with turkey stock, and with chunks of roasted turkey leg and lightly cooked celery)
Warm salad of snow peas (in honor of peas, my mother’s chosen Sunday and holiday dinner green vegetable) and roasted butternut squash (in honor of my sister M’s contribution of same to the longstanding family menu) with balsamic vinaigrette
(Miss B didn't actually want to eat this, unsurprisingly, but since she devoured the risotto I didn't care)
Hot rolls (some of the latest batch of bread dough)
Apple and craisin turnovers (because apple pie is my favorite Thanksgiving dessert, and there had to be cranberries somewhere, and I couldn’t get fresh cranberries for love or money. So, dried—a great combination, actually)

It was delicious, and festive, and a good time was had by both.

Oh, and a paper bag turkey. Because it’s not Thanksgiving without a paper bag turkey.