A Very Halfway Gourmet Thanksgiving

Is there any food holiday better than Thanksgiving? I think not. In fact, I am certain that Thanksgiving was created for the sole purpose of the leftovers that it provides. There is just something about putting turkey and stuffing in between two pieces of bread that makes me happy.

But I am getting ahead of myself here. Before you have leftovers you have to have the meal...and what a meal it was. Now, I must preface this my saying that this Thanksgiving was different than any either Kelly or myself has ever had. Kim, Todd, and Hannah were supposed to drive in from PA to share in the festivities (much like they did last year), but we found out on Tuesday that Hannah had come home sick from school with a fever and a stomach ache that turned into something much worse over the course of the next three days (poor girl). Needless to say, they were unable to make the trip so it was just me and Kel for Thanksgiving. The issue is that we bought enough food to feed all of us not only for Thanksgiving, but also for Friday brunch when my folks and little brothers were coming over. So, we had LOTS and LOTS of food for just the two of us.

Despite her heartache over not seeing her sister, Kelly put her heart and soul into this meal. Seriously, it was astounding. The turkey was the most moist I have ever had (with a nice, crispy skin to boot), the asparagus were cooked to perfection and the mustard and caper sauce that covered them was bright and lovely, the cranberry and apple compote was the perfect combination of sweet and tart.

And then there was the stuffing. Oh the stuffing! The cornbread and Italian sausage stuffing (that I am still smiling about) was, in my opinion, the star of the show. This should surprise none of my family though as I am a notorious stuffing eater, but this was seriously some of the best stuffing I have ever tasted. The only miss on the day was the crockpot sweet potatoes that I was in charge of. Those will never be mentioned again.

I was planning on also telling you about the Black Friday Brunch that Kelly put together, but I've already written way too much. Another post for another day perhaps. Plus, after writing all of this I am STARVING.

Off to the fridge!