Thanksgiving #7: Not Bad At All

My standard joke every year is that around this time, the night before Thanksgiving, black women across the nation exclaim, "Oh Lord!!!" This happens because we are near exhaustion; it's getting late and we're still up; something didn't get crossed off the list and there's even more to do tomorrow. I was true to form, but my "Oh Lord!" was followed by, "Thank you, Jesus." I'm not exhausted. Tired yes, but not the way I've been every previous year. I took two naps today and several breaks where I put my feet up. That has been the difference between delirium and the calm that comes from managing chaos. I also made sure that I cleaned up after every dish. I mean really cleaned up. Nothing zaps your spirit more than working in a dirty kitchen.

I called an audible today (yes, to myself). I made the cranberry sauce today and left the veggie prep to tomorrow morning. I did stop myself from making a silly mistake I've made before -- icing a cake that needs to be refrigerated when there's no room in the fridge. I wrapped the cake layers in plastic wrap. Hopefully, I knock out the icing in the morning. Here are the pics from today's activities: space

Coconut pastry cream. You wouldn't believe how good this is.

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After I got the pastry cream into the fridge, I moved on to the coconut cake. My coconut cake is going to be a Frankenstein cake -- cake recipe from Cook's Illustrated, filling (coconut custard) from another Cook's Illustrated recipe, simple syrup from Bobby Flay and buttercream from Rose Levy Beranbaum. This is going to be downright sinful. I'll finish the cake tomorrow. See that kinda bare corner in the toasted coconut? That's where I was sampling. I thought I had done a better job of covering it up.

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That reminds me. I did not fix myself anything to eat today. My nutrition consisted of a half cup of tea, pie dough, sweet potato pie filling, pastry cream, cake batter, toasted coconut and smoked turkey that I pulled from the wing I used to make the greens.

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Then there was the cornbread -- another Cook's Illustrated recipe. I had lost the light for the day, so this is the best picture I could get.

space space Next came cranberry sauce. I am a purist. I don't want orange, ginger and nuts in my cranberry sauce. I'm also particular about what type I eat and when. For a full plate, give me homemade whole berry. For sandwiches and the joy of eating dressing by itself, canned jellied cranberry sauce. Slicing it works so well.

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I got my second wind and knocked out the greens and squash. A sink full of greens gets you enough for about four people!

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Splitting acorn squash is a lot easier than splitting butternut squash. This recipe is from the Pioneer Woman.

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Tools of the trade:

I'll do this later. I'm going to bed!