Thanksgiving Dinner

My friend Bill has this whacky Thanksgiving tradition of grading all the dishes each year and sending a mass email, so I'll rip off the idea for my blog.

Turkey - very good, moist. I sprinkled the outside with a dash of chili powder so the crispy skin had a nice kick.

Ham - generic, but while rummaging (see below) I found an old jar of jalapeno-honey mustard and that made it really good.

Stuffing - really good, and it was a save. I didn't have sage or chicken broth. So I dug around and found this ancient container of several spices, including a tiny bit of sage. It was so old I didn't think it'd have any flavor left. Then I boiled the celery tops to make a broth. Came out nice and wet with a little brown at the top and edges. (I make it in a casserole dish.)

Cranberry relish - like crack, you can't stop consuming it. It's always made up of 1/2 bag of cranberries, 1/2 cup of sugar, then whatever fruit is in the house (this year, tangerines), and whatever nuts ( this year, pecans). So sweet and tangy.

Gravy - no one touches the homemade stuff but me, so I bought a packet of something labelled "pepper gravy." I wasn't sure what it was, and it turned out to be the white kind (like you pour on biscuits or chicken-fried steak), but people started really liking it after a bite.

Pies - I don't like pumpkin, but it was a good 'un, nicely spiced. The pecan was too runny, but the goo is so good, all buttery and sweet like toffee.

Pickles - my first time making them from scratch (back in August). Great taste, but a little mushy in the middle, I think because I had to quarter them to get them to fit in the jars, and because I didn't have enough ice cubes when I made them (because no one but me fills the ice cube trays when they use them).