This year’s Thanksgiving menu came together courtesy of my many wonderful friends, with whom I am so blessed to share this delicious life. Having dear friends with whom to partake of this bounteous generosity, makes it all the sweeter. The choice of game hens over turkey is thanks to Paul, the witty, sometimes punky punster curmudgeon who asked if I had given thought to something other than turkey. My first reply was “How about venison?” but then I realized my hunter friend Casey up in Ukiah probably wouldn’t be able to deliver on demand.
So game hens were stuffed with fresh sage, lemon balm, thyme and pineapple sage, and done to perfection on the grill, courtesy of my Grillmeister husband, who relishes the idea of fire and flame. Stuffing was cornbread with chile peppers, thanks to the inspiration of Tricia Ware, editor of New Mexico magazine, who has done such a superb job driving that magazine in a new direction. Then came a shipment of wonderful Royal Rose radicchio, courtesy of my dear friend Marci, who manages to have the best produce connections in Monterey county. Newly gifted Wednesday evening of a rafter of fresh persimmons from my dear friend Mari from B& R Farms, I made some rockin’ cranberry-persimmon relish to go along with the usual cran-orange-pepper relish that has become a staple for the holidays. Dear Captain John, a wine-loving friend who also makes his own, brought his traditional cranberry three ways sauce (dried, fresh and jellied), which dressed up the cornbread stuffing nicely and looked mighty pretty next to the pile of brussell sprouts with piquante sauce dreamed up by the aforementioned punster, Paul, who also graced the table with a bottle of 2007 Heart o’ the Mountain Pinot Noir, his new fave.
Although my dear friend Mary Eileen was not able to join us this year, having accepted an invite to Palm Springs, I made oven-roasted yams and sweet potatoes in her honor. I managed to crisp them to the point of teeth-breaking. We missed her.
To accompany the game hens, there was an amazing sauté of Royal Rose ® radicchio, fennel, onions, chile peppers from our garden and a touch of balsamic: this was probably the hit dish of the evening, with its saucy, vibrant flavors and approachably rich texture.
Almost forgot the overall topping sauce: I have to confess that I despise the very thought of gravy, with as much flour per half cup of the thick rivermud stuff as you would use in half a loaf of bread. So, I prefer to make sauces of seasonal fruits, in this case, apricot chutney from my longtime friend Mari Rossi of B&R Farms, in Hollister, CA. She makes the best apricot jams, preserves and toppings commercially available. Melted in a saucepan with a remnant of fig jam from my long-time dear friend Molly from Boulder Creek, this figgy-apricot combo was delectable with a generous touch (ok, a half cup – at least) of brandy, courtesy of my friends E & J Gallo, who don’t know me from a hole in the wall, although I’ve awarded them many a medal at wine competitions for their consistently decent distillates.
Must admit I also dosed (doused?) this with a wee splash of Semental tequila– thanks ever so much to my dear friends Jo and Jose Diaz, who also run P.S. I Love You! (gotta love Petite Sirah, but not at Thanksgiving, which is why we have a separate holiday for this in February, called Dark & Delicious.) And then, inspired by our very dear and always in our hearts, friends Mary and Harry from Santa Cruz, with whom we share a deep love of the desert southwest, we had to add a touch of Chipotle catsup from The Chile Shop in Santa Fe. Man, that transformed the sauce from a march to a dance.
Although it barely fit on the overloaded plates, we enjoyed a spicy, refreshing salad of Castelfranco, the beautiful younger sister to radicchio de Chioggia, the more bitter red tight-headed boy. She is light green and white, loose of leaf and flecked with crimson bits, and she is far milder, more like Belgian endive in flavor. Shredded up with some chopped Treviso, a bit milder than the Chioggia, she is at her sassy best when tossed with some fresh parsley, sliced persimmons and dressed with apple cider vinegar, black raspberry honey from the local farmer’s market, a dollop of my friend Candice Dixon from Les Chenes winery in Livermore’s amazing Tequila-jalapeno mustard and walnut oil. Divinely refreshing. especially with the 2003 Esprit de Beaucastel from Tablas Creek, brought from the prodigious cellar of our wine geek friend, Bruce, who also regaled us with a lovely Pinot Blanc from St Innocent in Oregon, and a white Chateauneuf de Pape from 1999, which was elegant and rich, with just the right texture of cross-hatched silk bordering on linen.
Captain John’s white Rhone blend called “Lotus,” from Orfila Winery in San Diego, though, was the clear hands-down favorite: this lush, fruit compote laden buxom beauty delivered flashy floral notes of Viognier, the fleshy pudding of Roussanne and the pear-shaped marzipan richness of Marsanne.
Rounding out the evening was my dear friend Susanna’s apple-pumpkin pie, which she laced with Asian 5-spice and allspice. That certainly set off the evening for a wee bit of J Lohr Late Harvest Riesling, which was certainly fabulous.
It’s good to have friends with good taste, And even more wonderful to share the bounty of the season with them, at every occasion. Thanksgiving is the best way to kick off a season of giving: may your season be blessed with warmth, friendship and love, and don’t forget to give thanks. Every day is a gift.
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