Menu for raw and cooked Thanksgiving

[Sharon in Colorado]

Here is the menu I'll be placing out on each place setting. You'll notice that the majority is raw, except for the "traditional" food mostly in the main course. I marked all raw (fresh) items with an * asterisk.


Thanksgiving Dinner Menu

Blessing & Toast
Sparkling Apple Cider

Starter
Ambrosia*

Soup
Strawberry with cashew cream*

Salad
Lettuce, cranberries, sun chokes & green onion*

Main Course
Roast Turkey Breast
Cream of Mushroom bisque*
Cranberry relish* ~ cranberry sauce
Mashed Potatoes ~ Pumpkin Yam Bake
Stuffing with walnuts & currants
Steamed broccoli ~ rolls

Dessert
Creamy Pumpkin Pie ~ Cheesecake*
Black Tie Bites* ~ Fruit*

*fresh

[Sharon in Colorado]

By the way, the Ambrosia is a modified version of Samuel Wilson's orange cream drink. Thank you Samuel!

P.S. I hope posting this is acceptable. I wanted to show people in mixed families that it can be done, and the people who don't eat cooked can enjoy the meal right along with everyone else.

[fiddler]

Sharon, that's a cool post. Our family is also having a mixed meal. I helped my Mom tonight prepare the RAW stuff. We're also having a RAW Cranberry relish and here's what's in that:

RAW CRANBERRY RELISH
In a food processor, blend the following but not too finely:
3 cups cranberries
1 orange with peel cut into 1" pieces
1 cup dark cherries
1/4 cup of honey
1/2 cup pecans diced before blending with above

Let sit for a couple hours or overnight. Yummy. The pecans really make this recipe taste great! This recipe was pulled from my G'mas cookbook she had from somewhere, don't know exactly where it originated though. Mom has been making this for years even before I knew anything about eating all RAW.
I've always liked it :-)

Also, we made some Waldorf without the mayo -- good as well:
Waldorf w/o mayo
2 Granny Smiths diced small
1 Fuji diced small (Grannys/Fuji combo yields both the tart and sweet)
2/3 cup celery
1 cup walnuts coarsely chopped
2/3 cup raisins

Also serving a huge RAW salad with Lemon Herb dressing from Rhonda Malkmus "Recipes for Life". Probably bring a date nut torte too just to try this out for myself and for the family to taste.
And we're having a huge fruit and vegetable tray.

Can hardly wait to eat this stuff tomorrow with the whole family.

Sharon, I'd like to see your Cranberry Relish recipe if you'd like to share.
BTW, that's a neat idea to print up a menu for each place setting. I'll remember that tip!!! That way, folks can see ahead of time what will be served. You could also email the menu out a week early to get everyone salivating or to just get feedback.

Thanks for the tips,
fiddler

[Sharon in Colorado]

Thank you Fiddler. We never get to do anything special all year and everything is so casual, I like to make a real statement on those special holidays. I got the menu card idea from a Miss Manners book. My son is the napkin folding guru and my daughter makes pretty placecards. We are only having one guest over, too bad, would have been nice to have more folks over. Maybe I'll take some pictures of the place settings.

Ha - your cranberry relish is very similar to mine:


Cranberry Apple Relish by Sharon Oliver
The sweet and tangy side dish is a perfect accompaniment to more savory dishes.

1 cup fresh cranberries
Juice and zest of a Valencia orange
½ cup honey or agave nectar
2 tart apples, such as Granny Smith or Pippin

Place the cranberries, orange juice and zest and honey or agave in food processor, process until cranberries are minced. Add cored and sliced apples. Pulse/chop until everything is finely minced, but not smooth.

[fiddler]

Thanks for posting your recipe!!

Next time you make the cranberry relish, try adding the pecans. I tried it tonight before the pecans and it was excellent. Then Mom said, "Oh, I forgot the pecans". After adding the pecans it was a whole different bursting flavor. Delicious!!

Amazingly how close those recipes are... :)

Happy Thanksgiving to you all and your meal plan looks fabulous!
fiddler

[Sharon in Colorado]

Thank you Fiddler. Granny Smith apples abound too, aren't they?

I would have used those pecans but I was skeered, really skeered I tell you after my Big Carrot Pecan Burger Mishap. I seriously think those pecans have gone over the hill. I really should just toss the things.

[Autumn]

Excellent post, Sharon. Thanks for sharing your special menu with us. :D

Hope everyone has a wonderful holiday!