Thanksgiving Feasts

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving yesterday and your tummies were full with good food shared among good company. Lucky us, we took part on not just one, but two Thanksgiving feasts yesterday. First up, to my in-law's house were we had a traditional (and early, 4PM) Thanksgiving dinner.

Husband was in charge of the turkey so after breakfast, D and I packed the turkey (rubbed with crushed garlic and salt and been marinating for the last two days) and chestnut, mushroom and prosciutto stuffing (prepared the night before) along with the kids and drove an hour to the in-laws. Once there, husband roasted the turkey and made fresh cranberry sauce while I assembled the cake for my niece (post coming up) who celebrated her 15th birthday. MIL made the mashed potatoes and praline yams along with rice and coconut shrimp (that fried things you see on top of the turkey in front) -- the Brazilian part of the meal.
Everything was delicious. And knowing that every single thing was made from scratch made the food taste even better. The photo above was my plate taken at the dinner table. I could have eaten this twice over but had to stop knowing I will be having another dinner at my parent's house.
So after the first dinner, we only had the kids to pack this time and drove back an hour for another dinner at my parents' house. The plate above is my family's traditional Thanksgiving dinner. My family does not like turkey so had pineapple-baked ham instead along with (clockwise from top) empanada, pancit bihon, puto, chicken pastel and pandesal.

Sad to say, with the exception of ham (courtesy of my aunt) and pandesal (baked by husband), everything was "catered" :( That's how they put it but basically the food was bought from Filipino restaurants: puto was from Goldilock's, empanada was from another bakery and the rest was from a turo-turo. The way they prepare for this meal was driving around all day to pick up their pre-ordered food.

I've been hinting weeks earlier on what every one can cook for this get-together but no one wants to hear it. If they only knew what kind of things go into restaurant-prepared food. My husband and I know, we used to own an Italian restaurant were we would put a whole stick of butter and a cup of cream to make fettucini Alfredo. Yikes!

My family has become lazy about food these past years and even more so when my lola (grandma) passed away few years ago. Hopefully, I'll be successful in convincing them to have home-cooked food for noche buena (Christmas Eve dinner).

Nine Years Ago Today

My husband and I drove to Cambria get hitched. It was Friday the 13th. He thought it would be great to tell people we got married on what people consider an unlucky day. He contacted the local minister to marry us and we exchanged vows on the bluffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean. It was a simple ceremony, just me, him, the minister and a camcorder set up on a tripod!

I don't think he's aware it's our anniversary today. He's preparing dinner and it just so happens he's making Feijoada. It is a stew of black beans with chunks of pork and beef, considered the national dish of Brasil. He had made it easier (and faster) by using a pressure cooker. If you don't have one, just use a large pot and boil longer until beans are tender.

I have never made this myself but I've watched him make it all the time. Here's his recipe:

Ingredients:

2 TB olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 bay leaves
1 1/2 lbs. pork picnic, cut into 2-in cubes
2 ham hocks, smoked
1 bag (16 oz.) black beans

Directions:

In a large pressure cooker pot, heat olive oil until hot over high flame. Add onion and saute until soft, about 3-5 minutes. Add garlic and cook until soft and fragrant.

Add the bay leaves along with the the pork picnic and stir. Season with kosher salt and freshly-ground pepper.

Put the ham hocks and black beans along with about 8 cups of water (or at least 1 inch over the beans). Cover with pressure cooker lid and let it boil for about 30 minutes.

Turn off heat and let pressure cooker cool a little bit. Open carefully and taste for doneness. You might want to put lid back on to boil, depending on the tenderness of beans or just let it simmer on low heat until beans are tender and sauce has thickened.

Serve with rice. This serves a small army, about 20 people.