My Thanksgiving dinner

In the true McCarthy and Bowman tradition, I shall take a moment to regale my audience with my Thanksgiving menu! (Actually, knowing my readership, I expect this post to be a big hit.)


Thanksgiving dinner came together fortuitously. It started when my coworker Mandi and I were checking our bank balances on Friday night. This was not a particularly odd thing to do at midnight, and we were investigating an alleged bonus deposit, so it was quite the thing to do.

While out in front of our building, we ran into some other foreigners and stopped to chat. It turns out that one of the girls was my next-door neighbour! She is from Ontario, and was hosting a Thanksgiving dinner (for Canadians only!) on Sunday. I immediately accepted the proffered invitation.

I made my traditional Caesar salad (without tarragon or Parmesan, unfortunately, but with ALiz's delicious homemade croutons) and bought a baguette which I served with baked Brie and Camembert. I say baked, but not having an oven I heat up the wheel of cheese in a frying pan, which I suppose makes it fried Brie and Camembert.

Holly (the host) and her friend Nicole had bought a rotisserie-roasted chicken, and were making delightful mashed potatoes and cooked carrots. They had gravy and cranberry sauce, and some delightful salsa-roll appetizers.Everything was super yummy.

Just as dinner was being served, disaster struck - the apartment tripped a breaker and all the power went out. We flipped the main breaker back on, only to have it trip again five times, leaving us frustrated in the dark.
Fortunately, my brightly-lit and recently cleaned apartment was just next door, so I offered up my place as a backup location, and we ended up having a fantastic dinner sitting on my floor around Holly's Korean-style dinner table.

For dessert, another Canadian treat: apple crumble. Erin (a new one) had baked it earlier today, much to our delight. It was really the perfect end to a fabulous dinner.

It was really a great Thanksgiving dinner, and I gave plenty of thanks to meet a new crew of friendly Canadians to share my holiday with. The company was great, and though nothing can replace a family Thanksgiving dinner, this made my day bright and gave me a nice reminder of home.