Annual Thanksgiving Foodie Film Fest

A few years ago, Mel and I established a pre-Thanksgiving tradition of cooking up a micro-Thanksgiving dinner and watching the movie Pieces of April.  We use this ritual of getting together in early November to chat about our plans for Thanksgiving, and to catch up on each other's lives (altho admittedly, we do that over the phone on a regular basis).  We've fallen into a pattern: I use this day to try out the salad I'm thinking about for my Thanksgiving meal, and sometimes I'll throw in another side dish or appetizer.  Mel does the heavy lifting of cooking everything else.  I firmly believe that everyone needs a good Friend in her life who will not only cook food for her, but will also stretch and inspire her to new culinary heights.  Mel is that person in my life.  My food's pretty good, but Mel's is off the chain.  I just love it when she cooks for me!

My contributions:  Fig and Goat Cheese Bruschetta with Prosciuto and Mint Garnish

Baby Arugula, Radicchio and Endive Salad with Candied Pecans

Mel's contributions:  Turkey Legs and Homemade Gravy (this was such a treat!  I love turkey legs but I never get them at Thanksgiving - they always wind up going to the kids)

Taste of Mouth-Watering Thanksgiving Sides

This whole meal was fantastic!  It's hard for me to pick a veggie off the plate above and call it my favorite.  Let's see...herbed carrots?  Always tasty.  Potato loaded with butter and garlic?  Can't ever go wrong with that choice!  Rutabaga?  Fluffy and full of flavor.  Classic cranberries?  It's just not Thanksgiving without them! Mushrooms?  Still not a huge fan of their texture, but their flavor pairs so well with fall veggies they just can't be dismissed.  And then there were the brussel sprouts.  Never been a big fan, but these were lightly fried and that changes everything.  Frying the sprouts totally changes the texture of the outside leaves. I could honestly call them tasty!

Thanks, Mel, for the inspiration!