Of course Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday, partly because I sometimes forget to be thankful for all I have, and partly because it means practically a whole week of partying and great eating.
But I certainly don't spend the day fretting in the kitchen or directing a huge, sumptuous feast for my entire extended family. I try to keep it simple, free of hassle and in the generous, gentle spirit of the original.
In fact, in the last few years, I have been getting up at 6 a.m., driving to Clearwater, and running a 5-kilometer Turkey Trot road race, among 13,000 others, before I even start dinner. The race tends to start the day on a congenial note, which is important in reinforcing a relaxed, friendly mood — the most important attribute of a successful meal.
Holidays are meant to be fun, not exercises in familial angst and emotional hyperventilation. Those of you who approach Thanksgiving with annoyance, feelings of resentment and dread, or sheer exhaustion, might try to find ways the day can be fulfilling, the way it was meant to be — a leisurely celebration with friends and family.
If you're on the shy side when it comes to culinary skills and still want to entertain, there are easy ways to do it. Many restaurants cook full dinners that you just pick up, plop down on a beautifully set table, and eat. Why not take a shortcut this year and spend Thanksgiving Day with your feet up, wine in hand, chatting with your guests until the food arrives?
Among the best this year no doubt will be the takeout dinners from Café Largo, one of my favorite French restaurants. For $10.95 per person, with a six-person minimum, you get boned dark turkey meat, herb stuffing, sautéed melange of vegetables (zucchini, squash, green beans and sweet potatoes), gravy, cranberry sauce and gratine Dauphinoise (similar to scalloped potatoes). Tack on another $2.50 per person for dessert, either profiteroles — cream puffs with chocolate Grand Marnier mousse — or rum-flavored mini-cakes.
The tab including tax comes to $86.34 for six, or $14.39 per person ($11.71 per person if you make dessert yourself). Order by Nov. 21, and pick up the hot food between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. Thanksgiving Day. If you're on a tight budget, ask guests in advance if they would be willing to contribute to a kitty for the food. (Be diplomatic, however, and ensure that anyone who might not be able to contribute is quietly taken care of by the others.)
You don't even have to pick up the food if you use a personal chef, like Chef Gui of Provence, whose motto is: "Our chef, your chateau." He rented a gigantic commercial kitchen especially to accommodate flummoxed holiday partyers, and he'll deliver the hot food to your doorstep!
Dinner entails fresh-roasted turkey and a choice of three types of stuffing — sourdough and sage; Italian sausage, dried apricot and nut; or cornbread and chestnut. Pick one of three types of gravy — traditional turkey gravy, cranberry, or shallot and mushroom sauce; then, one of three side dishes — roasted potatoes with garlic; roasted root vegetables with herbs, or turnip and chestnut medley. Chef Daniel Delort, of Ladyfingers Fine Pastry and More, is baking the pies — pumpkin, pecan, strawberry rhubarb and French apple. Dinner for six costs $98.97 with pecan pie, tax included. Order ASAP. The meal will be delivered to your door, warm and ready to eat, on Thanksgiving morning. (Remember to tip the deliveryman 10-20 percent.)
Or, make reservations well ahead at a favorite restaurant instead of slaving over food. The companionship is more important than a home-cooked meal, and if you're too tired to enjoy your guests, why bother to invite them? Most of the dining rooms at the big hotels are open on Thanksgiving, and many restaurants cater to a holiday crowd with elaborate buffets or special dishes to add culinary elan to the day.
If you like to cook and want to do it, go ahead and plot a fabulous feast for friends and family. But do plan ahead so you don't get caught at the last minute, trying to do too much. Why not bake dessert one day in advance? Ask a family member or guest to bring a dish or two; assign someone else to handle wine, beer, tea and coffee.
And don't forget to appoint a committee to set the table and help clean up — my KP team watches football part of the day but puts leftovers away and loads the dishwasher during the commercials. And keep it light: A regular feature of dessert at my house is a messy, mad fight with cold, pressurized cans of whipped cream. I'm sure the neighbors long ago concluded we're all bonkers.
Contact Food Critic Sara Kennedy at sara.kennedy@weeklyplanet.com, or 813-248-8888, ext. 116.
This article appears in Nov 20-26, 2003.