by L. A. Brown

Created on: October 09, 2010

The big holiday feast of Thanksgiving awaits us. For Canadians such as I, we will be enjoying our day on October 11th and this year it’s my turn to host the meal. It will be a small gathering this year since I was just informed my sister and her family won’t be able to make it. That leaves it being a modest party of 5….maybe 6 if my new “guy friend” is brave enough to join us and meet my family. Not too intimidating for the normal person but unfortunately for me, who doesn’t usually prepare a meal more complicated than basic chicken or pork chops, a large turkey dinner frightens me. Don’t get me wrong, I have done it before and quite successfully but only because I have a little secret. If I share it with you….do you promise not to tell? The majority of my meal comes from a box, bag or can!

Yes, that is what this undomesticated woman does and to my knowledge my poor guests have never suspected. Now of course, the turkey is real and the potatoes and carrots are as real as can be purchased from the grocery store so I don’t feel too guilty about that but my stuffing is mere boxes of Stove Top, my gravy comes in little packages and my pickled beets are in a jar found on a shelf in the condiments section.  Even dessert, a beautiful looking pumpkin pie that is a favorite of my son’s and a noble tradition of Thanksgiving is premade but I do have to heat it in the oven…..does that count?

Please do not judge me. I do the best I can with my limited cooking abilities and every year that I host a meal everyone seems to leave content. Or maybe they’re just being polite….I prefer not to think of that. In my defense, although I do succumb to modern day conveniences, I do try to include some traditional preparation. For instance, when I mix the dressing with the other ingredients, I still stuff the turkey so it is cooked in the bird like normal stuffing should be and when I prepare my packaged gravy, I use turkey drippings instead of water so that it has a natural flavor. Am I forgiven yet? Well….maybe it’ll just take some time. I’ll be patient.

I know that it’s now considered to be a big no no to be eating so many “convenience” products because there are a lot of “non food” ingredients added to help with flavoring and preservation but what can be expected of me when these options are so readily available. If there weren’t shelves stocked with these items, I would be forced to learn how to prepare gravy and stuffing properly from scratch. But that just isn’t the case.

So at the risk of being looked down upon, this year when I give thanks, it will be for the many cans, bags and boxes of premade delights readily found at the grocery store and at reasonable prices, that allows me to successfully host Thanksgiving dinner for my family and friends.

Have a safe and happy Thanksgiving!

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