What's Thanksgiving Without Pumpkin Pie?

Pumpkin pie is standard fare at most Thanksgiving feasts.  Many of us look forward to eating it for dessert once a year.  However, if you are tired of that thick, sweet piece of pie at the end of this already-filling meal, consider these interesting alternatives.

Pumpkin is a very nutritious fruit -- not a vegetable as most of us believe.  Its scientific name is ''cucurbita maxima'', which reflects the possibility of its ''maximum'' size.  In fact, The World Pumpkin Federation reports the largest pumpkin ever grown weighed more than 1,000 pounds!  There are about 26 varieties of pumpkin, ranging in color from bright orange to pale yellow and green.

You can find pumpkin mixed into soups, salads, main dishes, desserts (other than pies) and even drinks.  Here are a few different ideas to get your culinary juices flowing:  pumpkin soup, pumpkin ravioli, pumpkin-chicken chili, pumpkin risotto, pumpkin ice cream, pumpkin muffins, scones, cookies, bars and breads, pumpkin butter, pumpkin-pecan cheesecake, pumpkin beer, pumpkin fudge, and pumpkin creme brulee.  Recipes for these and many other pumpkin dishes are plentiful and readily available at your favorite online recipe site when you put ''pumpkin'' in the search box provided by the site.

And, if you want to start a new pumpkin tradition, roasted pumpkin seeds are easy-to-make and not as time-consuming as baking a pumpkin pie.  It is a fun multi-generational activity which can be enjoyed by children all the way up to senior citizens as your Thanksgiving Day unfolds.  Here are step-by-step directions:  Rinse the seeds in cold water and remove the pulp and fibers, then drain and blot dry.  Coat pumpkin seeds with melted butter or vegetable oil and sprinkle lightly with salt or your favorite seasoning.  Spread them on a baking sheet and roast at 300 degrees Fahrenheit for 20-30 minutes or until golden brown.  One four pound pumpkin will yield approximately two cups of seeds.

If you roast some of the seeds and plant others, next year you will have your very own pumpkin patch.  Then you can select from pumpkins you have grown for use in recipes, thereby starting another tradition for you and your family!

This Thanksgiving, Serve A Turducken And Delight Your Guests

Each year at Thanksgiving, my family discusses what we will make for Thanksgiving dinner.  Some of us are traditionalists, who shudder at the thought of anything but turkey with all the trimmings.  Others are more adventurous -- especially me, since I did not grow up in the United States and I am not beholden to memories of Thanksgiving Past.  I am always ready to try something new, and I believe (much to the fury of the traditionalists) that Thanksgiving is a great time to experiment with the menu.

And so it came to pass, last year, that I won the fight about the Thanksgiving menu, and, with the reluctant approval of the traditional family members, was given a free rein in the kitchen.  And that's how the "turducken" Thanksgiving began.

What's a "turducken" you say?  It was quite a task but well worth the trouble.  I started the Wednesday before Thanksgiving by purchasing a 12 pound organic turkey, a 6 pound duck and a 3 pound fresh chicken.  I carefully boned each one leaving their structure intact.  You must cut carefully, especially the turkey, if it is to look natural.

I made a stuffing from the giblets of all three, adding some sage, thyme, dried apricots, and Grand Marnier.  I had a little Grand Marnier too ... (not recommended if you're under 21!).  The first thing you do is lay the turkey out, skin-side down, open.  You then put down an even layer of the stuffing, careful to not go too close to the edges.  Next, you lay open the duck skin-side down right on top of the layer of stuffing.  It is smaller so you can put a good layer of stuffing on it.  Simply repeat the process with the chicken.

Now, the tricky part ... You carefully wrap the turkey back up into its original shape, tying the drumsticks, breast, and rear together.  You cover it and bake it slow and low until the innermost temperature is 165ºF.  Be sure to baste often and remove fat as well.  The duck is quite fatty.  Leave it covered until the last half hour or so.  You can remove the foil and it will turn a nice golden brown.  Let it rest for a half hour before carving.  You may want to rest a little bit yourself, also.

The big surprise comes at the table when you proudly stand to carve the ''turkey''.  Using a serrated knife you slice through it like a loaf of bread.  Your guests gasp, wondering what has happened.  What is this thing laid before them?  Then, they are treated to a meal that they have never imagined before, and a new Thanksgiving memory that will last a lifetime.  (And maybe become a tradition of its own!)

First Thankgiving And Pies

In 1621, the Pilgrims and the Indians got together for three days of feast and celebration.  The Wampanoags, a neighbor group of Indians brought the turkey and corn and the Pilgrims brought the pies.  12 selections.  Everyone could choose their favorite kind.  It had to be the pies that were the 'hit' of the feast.  The pies were so good that the Indians invited the Pilgrims to stay.  It had to be the pies.

Pie history according to PJ's Totally Awesome Pies.  PJ's has 12 selections too.

Real Pie history

Pies were baked in America as soon as the early settlers set-up housekeeping on dry land.  Beyond mere preference, however, there was a practical reason for making pies, especially in the harsh and primitive conditions endured by the first colonists.  A piecrust used less flour than bread and it did not require anything as complicated as a brick oven for baking.  More important, though, was how pies could stretch even the most meager provisions into sustaining a few more hungry mouths.

The first pies were very simple and generally of the savory (meat and cheese) kind.  Flaky pastry fruit-filled turnovers appeared in the early 19th century.  Some pie-type foods are made for individual consumption.  These portable pies ... pasties, turnovers, empanadas, pierogi, calzones ... were enjoyed by the working classes and sold by street vendors.  Pie variations (cobblers, slumps, grunts, etc.) are endless.

Pie -- the filling and baking of sweet (fruits, nuts, cheese) or savory (meat, fish, cheese) ingredients and spices in casing composed of flour, fat, and water is an ancient practice.  The basic concept of pies has changed little throughout the ages.  Cooking methods (baked or fried in ancient hearths, portable colonial/pioneer Dutch ovens, modern ovens), pastry composition (flat bread, flour/fat/water/crusts, puff paste, milles feuilles), and cultural preference (pita, pizza, quiche, shepherd's, lemon meringue, classic apple, chocolate pudding?)  All figure prominently into the complicated history of this particular genre of food.  The basic concept of a pie is taken to mean a mixture of ingredients encased and cooked in pastry.