So what do you do that is off the spectrum of being considered "normal" for thanksgiving. The turkey is normal, the stuffing, gravy, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes and cranberries are all considered normal Thanksgiving fare. So what's not normal? One year we ate lobsters for dinner. I'd consider that somewhat not normal. So how 'bout you?

M

My favorite hoilday is Thanksgiving, I even have hand painted dining room chairs and each chair is a different thanksgiving scene. I am so traditional that I have not once not had a normal thanksgiving. It will be fun to see what un traditional fare others have had.

The first pilgrims ate seafood. So last year we had lobster too! What a blast to be different. This year we are roasting our turkey in a pit with hot rocks, etc. It's SOOOOOoooooooo yummy. But our tradition is Rosy slush. A punch made of cranberries, pineapple juice,etc, frozen into cubes, then served with sprite. Yummm. It's awful to say, and I'm probably the only one to admit it, but I really don't like Thanksgiving. I love the idea of being thankful, but the whole scene has never been my fav.

My mom tried having baked chicken one year when I was about 10.... I took MY plate to my neighbor's home and came back with some turkey and turkey gravy LMBO
When it comes to Thanksgiving and Christmas, I want MY turkey....so to keep from being embarrassed again, and being teased by the neighbor LOL.... I got turkey every year...even to this day if I go home for Thanksgiving :wink: good thing too...as I don't know any of her neighbors now :shock:

One year when we were kids, Mom made a hogmaw. She never lived that one down. We love that, but come on, Mom, it's Thanksgiving! We didn't realize till years later, it is what we had. My parents had bought our farm the previous year, the potatoe crop was good, Dad had just butchered a couple hogs, and there were 5 of us kids plus the grands to feed.

What is "hogmaw"? I'm assuming it has to do with a pig...not sure if I want to know now!! LOL

SaraSewing, your Rosy Slush sounds like something I'd like to try!

I don't know that my stuffing is so off-the-wall, but being Jewish, my family used challah (Jewish bread) as the base for the stuffing. I've tried others over the years, from instant mixes to cornbread stuffing recipes, and they're good, but no Thanksgiving stuffing tastes completely right to me unless it's made with challah.

I've been through some tough times in my life, so when things got better, Thanksgiving became a very meaningful holiday for me. I would reflect on the things I was thankful for.

This year, after being unemployed for 18 months and with both my unemployment and my health insurance ending this month, I was going to skip it. But I just got contacted for a job interview, so I may have a limited holiday and call it a "Thanksgiving of Hope" - and if I get the job, I'll do a real Thanksgiving when I finally see a paycheck (which, the way they're moving, won't be until late next spring, and will be less than half what I was making - about the same amount as my unemployment check is now, actually - but will at least keep me going.)

adriansmom, hogmaw is a clean pig's stomach, stuffed with loose sausage(sausage out of it's casing), peeled and diced potatoes, and carrots, maybe some peas for color and a liitle onion for flavor. Different cooks, different recipes! You roast it in the oven till the 'skin' is brown and everything is done! It's been awhile since I made one. I do NOT eat that skin! For some people, that's the best part! Ugh! I sometimes make "blind hogmaw", just the sausage and potatoes part !

Lisanne I hope your situation improves. I also remember the challah stuffing. And, back in the day, inside the turkey! Sometimes my Grandma used hard rolls she let go "crisp". Mmmm, some good memories.

kinda sounds like Haggis a dish very popular in Scotland