Hello, fellow foodies! Food is more than just a form of sustenance; it’s an experience, essential to why I’m so passionate about it. It’s a way to express cultures, evoke memories, and create traditions, which Thanksgiving brings out. It’s the season to gather with the people you love most and bond over delicious homemade food and drinks while reflecting on what you’re thankful for. I can’t tell you how excited I am that I, Prisha, get to write a food column for a Thanksgiving-themed newspaper this week! After watching countless turkey preparation videos, doom-scrolling through reels for good dessert recipes, and piling up recipes for holiday drinks, I’m ready to whip out my meal-planning skills. Although my mom thinks my dinner planning is excessive when I ask her which napkin ring looks better, she is partially to blame for my love of event planning, which I get from her. Everything from the table setting (like dinnerware, napkins, surtout de table) to the people you invite can change the perception of the food. Anyway, let’s get into the food aspect! Like many families, my family adds little twists to Thanksgiving that I’m excited to share with you guys. Many of us enjoy meals from family members, like potlucks; I grew up with an Indian fusion Thanksgiving.
My mom made turkey seasoned with Indian spices, such as coriander powder, cumin, chili powder, turmeric, and ginger-garlic paste. The turkey would turn out tender and have a complex flavor profile due to the marination, unlike the regularly bland turkey. The chili powder brings out a smoky, spicy flavor, and let me tell you — when that turkey comes out of the oven, it brings out this delicious aromatic smell. Even the mashed potatoes don’t let that slide by being bland. We add butter mixed with chili flavoring to the mashed potatoes (after all, we are Indian, so we’re going to make the mashed potatoes spicy too). My favorite dish to make is sweet potato fries. I simply toss them in olive oil and various random spices in the spice cabinet, then bake them. They are so effortless and delicious that they disappear in no time. Another dish I love making is pie, especially pecan pie, which is my favorite. However, it does require a lot more work. Everything from ensuring the dough stays cold to weighing it down properly in the pie tray. So instead, this year, I found some delectable pecan pie and apple pie from Target to save time and spend it making sweet potato fries instead. Call me lazy, but when you’re in a kitchen full of panicking people, it’s relaxing knowing you’re not stuck making pie while also basting the turkey.
Another big one is garlic bread. I get a large baguette from Target and cut it in half, then mince the garlic until it’s like paste and mix it with softened butter and parsley. I spread it on the baguette, then flip the buttered baguette side onto the parchment paper to get it crispy, and place it on the bottom rack of the oven to bake until it’s just right. Then, I pull it out of the oven, add fresh mozzarella cheese, place it over, and broil it in the oven, watching until it turns melty before immediately pulling it out. When I’m done making everything and pull up to the dining table, my family has eaten all of it. None of my family likes mac and cheese, so instead, my mom and I make lots and lots of penne alla vodka without vodka, which is incredibly rich and creamy with a hint of freshness. Anyway, I hope you all gained something from this article. If not, that’s unfortunate, but I still love my food preparations and will happily eat the leftovers throughout the week.
