As I mentioned in a previous piece, I've begun to think about Thanksgiving. My invitations and table settings are being inspired by feathered balls I brought back from Paris one year but I am having trouble finding a sketch or a photo of a feather that I can use on my invitations. I can find fruits, leaves, and flowers but feathers are apparently not so forthcoming. The search continues.
I do not, I repeat do not make that horrible American Thanksgiving menu of potatoes and stuffing and more potatoes over and over, year after year. How boring. Why should I let go of my interest in chef style dishes just because it's Thanksgiving??? The only thing that is the same every year is turkey and in the past few years I have added duck to the staple menu as my family loves it. The other dish on my table every year is pumpkin bread. I made it once in 1986 when I got the Bon Appétit that published the recipe and then, as I say, I don't repeat so I didn't make it in 1987 and I got mutiny from my family. So now I make that every year. At my aunt's request I also make it on Sukkot for my family and since the recipe makes two loaves I freeze one for Thanksgiving a month or so later. Good thing it's done because I have taken it into my head to make this recipe for my appetizer. Sweet potato gnocchi. I have never before been interested in making gnocchi given how labor intensive it is and how much hand work it is. I don't enjoy making things that involve 100 processes, flour, rolling, and then forming a lot of little pieces-I get bored of the process. But there is something so beautiful about this dish and so perfect. It seems to embody fall and family, warmth, and good food.
A sage butter sauce sounds pretty delicious too but somehow a sage margarine sauce doesn't do it for me. I will make a chicken stock roasted garlic sage sauce that is modeled after an appetizer I made many years ago when pasta was still fashionable. Pumpkin tortellini sitting in a broth of roasted garlic and pumpkin. I had put the recipe on my menu but the Tuesday before when I went to look through the magazine, to check what ingredients to add to my shopping list I could not find the magazine. Looked high and low, enlisted my husband's help, called my grandmother, parents, aunt, cousin-maybe I had brought the magazine to show them and left it? All to no avail. So I decided I could make such a gravy without a recipe, I did and it was delicious, the women at the table asked for the recipe. Alas, I could not give it to them but I shared the ingredients. I'll do it again with sage instead of pumpkin though I might stir a little roasted sweet potato in to make sure it meshes well with the gnocchi.
Good thing I always take Wed off as this will be one of the 4 projects I always have the day before. I go to the supermarket, make chicken and beef stock, do my baking and set the table. I'll let you know how it all turns out in a few weeks.
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