A Tradition Of Giving Thanks

"Our harvest being gotten in, our governor sent four men on fowling, that so we might after a special manner rejoice together after we had gathered the fruit of our labors. They four in one day killed as much fowl as, with a little help beside, served the company almost a week. At which time, amongst other recreations, we exercised our arms, many of the Indians coming amongst us, and among the rest their greatest King Massasoit, with some ninety men, whom for three days we entertained and feasted, and they went out and killed five deer, which they brought to the plantation and bestowed on our governor, and upon the captain and others. And although it be not always so plentiful as it was this time with us, yet by the goodness of God, we are so far from want that we often wish you partakers of our plenty."

That firsthand account, written by one Edward Winslow of the Pilgrim colony in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1621, describes what is probably the model for today’s Thanksgiving celebration. It was, in essense, a harvest feast, a celebration of the Pilgrims’ first harvest, and a bountiful one to be sure.

This harvest feast was not repeated the next year, but settlers and colonists from many continents did bring customs of days of prayer and thanksgiving, especially to New England, and the first Thanksgiving of the Massachusetts Bay Colony was observed on July 8, 1630.

The first Thanksgiving of the new United States of America was celebrated in 1777, when General George Washington and his army, per instructions of the Continental Congress, stopped in the bitter weather in the open fields of Valley Forge to mark the occasion.

Washington’s first proclamation as the country’s first president was to declare November 26, 1789 as a "national day of thanksgiving and prayer."

Presidential proclamations of thanksgiving stopped for a while in the 1800s, until Abraham Lincoln resumed the tradition in 1863. On November 26, 1941, President Franklin Roosevelt signed a bill establishing the fourth Thursday in November as Thanksgiving Day, which is when it is celebrated up to the present. This year, Thanksgiving falls on November 23.

Among the fowl killed by those four Pilgrims and set on the harvest table was turkey, as well as ducks, geese and supposedly even swans. The first turkeys could have been roasted, but stuffing is doubtful. Nevertheless, as the years rolled on, turkey became the fowl of choice for the occasion, and stuffing became a must as well.

Turkey has picked up a reputation as lean and healthful, which offsets its reputation as a rather bland tasting fowl. The Dean & Deluca Cookbook (Random House, New York, 1996) offers this helpful tidbit: "Because the turkey’s dark meat takes longer to cook than the turkey’s white meat, most roast turkeys in the United States, we dare say, come to the table with dry, stringy white meat that has been overcooked while the chef’s been waiting for the dark meat to cook."

They offer a simple two-stage solution: When the white meat is cooked, take the bird out of the oven, slice off the breast and return the bird to the oven to cook the dark meat. Or, for better presentation, show off the whole bird at the table, slice off the breast and serve, return the bird to the oven and have the dark meat as part two of your turkey feast.

There are now many variations of roasting the turkey and many variations of stuffing aside from the traditional bread stuffing. As immigrant cultures adopt this most American tradition, they add on their influences and thus enrich the recipe pool.

The USA Poultry & Egg Export Council recently sponsored "US Poultry 101," a one-day class held at the US Demo Kitchen at the CCA Center in Quezon City that gave participants a "visual, historical and informative overview on turkey, duck, chicken and egg." Lead trainer Jill Sandique led a demonstration to prepare a traditional roast turkey with a not-so-traditional apple, sausage and hazelnut stuffing. The recipes for the turkey, stuffing, gravy and dressing are included here, to help you get into the Thanksgiving mood. But even if you don’t have a turkey on your table, it is always good to stop and be thankful for all that God has blessed you with.

Roast turkey with apple, sausage and hazelnut stuffing

For stuffing:
450 g US turkey sausage
1/4 cup butter, olive oil or corn oil
2 pcs onions, large
4-5 stalks celery with leaves
2-3 pcs US Granny Smith or Golden Delicious apples, peeled, cored and chopped
1 1/3 cups US hazelnuts, toasted, finely chopped or ground
1 1/2-2 cups US golden raisins or cranberries
6-8 cups day old, white bread cubes, 3/4 inch squares
1 tsp salt (or to taste)
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 1/4 tsp dried sage, rubbed
1 1/4 tsp dried thyme leaves
3/4-1 tsp dried rosemary (optional)
1 1/4 cups US chicken stock
1/2- 3/4 cup port or sherry
1 pc fresh US turkey, about 6-8 kilos
3/4 cup butter
1 tsp salt
3/4 tsp ground black pepper

For cooking turkey:
4 stalks celery
2 pcs onions
2 pcs carrots
2 sprigs parsley
2 cups water

For Giblet Gravy:
1/4-1/2 cup port, sherry or stock
1/4 cup butter
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
salt and pepper to taste
3-5 tbsps heavy cream, optional

Procedure:
1. Preheat oven to 3500F.
2. Saute turkey sausage in skillet till light brown, about 10 to 15 minutes. Strain to remove excess fat. Set aside.
3. In the same skillet, add butter, onions and celery. Saute until softened. Cool then add sausage. Toss in the rest of the ingredients.
4. Use about 6 cups of mixture to stuff turkey. Bake the rest in a greased and covered casserole for 30 to 45 minutes. For a crispy top, bake uncovered for another 15 minutes

For turkey:
1. Wash in cold water and pat dry turkey with paper towels.
2. Brush with butter and season with salt and pepper.
3. Stuff just before roasting. Place in roasting pan. Put vegetables, neck and giblets in roasting pan. Add water. Roast at 3500F for 3 1/2 to 4 hours or until done. Remove from pan and allow to rest for 20 minutes. Cover with aluminum foil while resting to keep it warm.

For Giblet Gravy:
1. Deglaze pan with 60 to 120 ml port, sherry or stock. You should have 3 cups of liquid.
2. Remove parsley and any burnt bits of vegetables. Chop the rest of the vegetables.
3. In a saucepan, make a light brown roux.
4. Add chopped vegetables and giblets. Saute mixture for a few minutes, then add the turkey drippings. Simmer and cook until thickened, about 10 minutes.

5. Seasoned with salt and pepper. You may enrich the gravy with heavy cream, if desired.

Apple, Sausage and Pecan Dressing

Ingredients:
450 g US turkey sausage
1/4 cup butter
2 pcs onions
4 celery stalks (with leaves)
1-2 pcs US Granny Smith or Golden Delicious apples, peeled, cored and chopped
6 cups day old firm white bread
1 1/2-2 cups US pecans, coarsely chopped
100 g US liquid whole eggs
2 tsp dried thyme leaves
2 tsp dried sage leaves
1 tsp dried rosemary leaves
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground pepper
2/3-3/4 cup US chicken broth

Procedure:

1. Preheat oven to 3500F.

2. Grease a 9"x 13" baking dish with butter. Set aside.

3. Saute turkey sausage in a skillet till light brown, about 10 to 12 minutes. Strain to remove excess fat. Set aside.

4. In the same skillet, add butter, onions, celery and apples. Cover and cook for 8 minutes or until softened. Uncover then cook a few minutes more. Add to sausage.

5. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Pour into prepared baking dish and cover with aluminum foil. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes. Uncover, then bake for 15 minutes more.