Annette’s Thanksgiving

Doris Lee’s Thanksgiving (1935)
The Art Institute of Chicago
Photo courtesy of http://mommyofamonster.com/2012/11/thanksgiving-recipes.html

 This painting is a favorite of mine! It is so homey, so cozy. It reminds me of dinners at my grandparent’s farmhouse when I was young.  My grandmother, mother, great-aunt, and aunts cooked up more than one delicious feast in that small Iowa kitchen. (I have been blessed to have grown up surrounded by wonderful cooks!)  I remember the delightful aroma that wafted from that country kitchen, as the sounds of friendly chatter and laughter joined in combination with the loving preparation of the upcoming meal.

This painting also celebrates my most favorite of holidays: Thanksgiving! Thanksgiving, a time when we take the day to give thanks to our God for all that He has given us, embrace the love of our family (All of my kiddies will be home this Thanksgiving week-end!!! :o)), and taste the bounty of the array of food made available to us.  It is also a time to relax, take a family walk, play games and watch (maybe even play) football games, and Thanksgiving appropriate movies; the ambience set by the glowing fire in the fireplace.  …kind of like Christmas, but without the inherent pressures of gift giving. :o)

Below is my list of Thanksgiving TV and movie favorites to watch around the Thanksgiving holiday, in addition to the Thanksgiving Day Parade and Thanksgiving day/weekend football games, of course. :o)

 Annette’s list of fun Thanksgiving TV Episodes and Movies

A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (1973)-a fun Peanuts made for TV special that finds an unwitting Charlie Brown obligated to prepare Thanksgiving dinner for the gang.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iN4Grf4Sem4

 Mayflower Voyagers –This Is America, Charlie Brown:
Season 1, Episode 1 (1988)-a mini history lesson on the first Thanksgiving in Plymouth.
http://www.bionicdisco.com/2012/11/22/a-charlie-brown-thanksgiving/

Both of these are on the DVD shown above.

 

The Munsters (1964) –  Low-Cal Munster  (Season 1, Episode 6) My favorite of all The Munster’s TV series, Herman goes on a diet just before Thanksgiving and finds that his willpower may not be enough. This one makes me laugh every time.

http://www.bionicdisco.com/2012/11/21/brady-bunch-moments-gregs-thanksgiving-movie/

The Brady Bunch (1970) –The Un-Underground Movie
(Season 2, Episode 4) Greg makes a movie, Our Pilgrim Fathers, for a class assignment, and the whole family gets
involved.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-NlLxyacAPk

 WKRP in Cincinnati (1978)- Turkeys Away!
(Season 1: Episode 7)  This is a funny episode about a radio Thanksgiving Day promotion gone disastrously awry.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PeCGURWzjwE

Believe it, or not, this episode was based on a real life event!
http://radio.about.com/od/thanksgivingradio/a/WKRP-In-Cincinnati-Turkey-Drop-Episode.htm

Mister Ed (1962)- Ed, the Pilgrim (Season 3, Episode 9) Mr. Ed, the talking horse, tells his owner,
Wilber, the “true” story of the first Thanksgiving.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sbV1nF9JtwA

Bewitched (1967)- Samantha’s Thanksgiving to Remember (Season 4, Episode 12) Samantha’s, Aunt Clara, accidently transports the whole family, plus nosy neighbor Gladys Kravitz, back to 1620 to spend Thanksgiving with the pilgrims. http://howsweetitwas.wordpress.com/2012/11/21/bewitched-samanthas-thanksgiving-to-remember/

The Bob Newhart Show (1975)-Over the River and Through the Woods (Season 4, Episode 11) Bob’s wife spends Thanksgiving with her family and leaves her husband back at home to be available for his patients.  Alone, Bob invites his single guy friends over to spend the day watching football, but things get a little out of hand with too many drinks and nothing to eat, culminating in an inept and humorous attempt to order Chinese food.

Garfield’s Thanksgiving (1989) Jon invites Garfield’s vet, Liz, to Thanksgiving dinner. Unfortunately, Jon has no idea on how to prepare Thanksgiving dinner.  Grandma pops in to save the day.  I love the part where Grandma wields a chainsaw in her dinner preparation!
http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL55EC32CF4D23AB66

Saturday Night Live– (November 20, 1976) I have to admit, that I just discovered this one, while looking for some information for this blog. Paul Simon, known for his rather serious persona, dressed up in a turkey suit is pretty funny.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uNterlu_VVU

Paul Bart:  Mall Cop (PG)- (2009) Kevin James as Paul Bart, is as the title implies, a mall cop who must protect his beloved West Orange Pavilion Mall against a sophisticated band of thieves on Black Friday/the day after Thanksgiving.

All Hands on Deck (1961)- Pat Boone is lieutenant on board a Navy ship with Buddy Hackett and Owasso, his pet turkey. This movie has a Christmas song and “mistletoe”, but I say that the pet turkey makes this movie more appropriate for Thanksgiving.  :o)

Deck the Halls (PG)-(2006) This Matthew Broderick and Danny DeVito holiday comedy, of neighbor against neighbor, has become a holiday favorite. My family often watches this on Thanksgiving weekend, kicking off our holiday film fest for the Christmas season.

Miracle on 34^th Street (1947) A holiday classic with Maureen O’Hara, John Payne, Edmund Gwenn, and a young Natalie Wood, opens with the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade and ends on Christmas morning.

By the Light of the Silvery Moon (1953) Doris Day stars in this upbeat musical that revolves around an American family just after WWI. When the turkey that the family is fattening up for Thanksgiving dinner becomes the young son’s pet, things get comical.

Holiday Inn (1942) Another holiday classic, with Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire, this film revolves around an inn only open for the fifteen, 1942, holidays per year. It was in this film that the velvety strains of Bing Crosby’s Christmas melody White Christmas was first heard.

A Couple of  Thanksgiving Recipes to Share

Turkey, prepared by my hubby, on our grill’s rotisserie-delicious!
2012

 Part of the Thanksgiving celebration, of course, involves the much-anticipated Thanksgiving dinner.  Several traditional recipes show up on our family table for Thanksgiving each year.  Please allow me to share two of these recipes with you below. Enjoy!

My son helps me in picking apples, Fall 2012

On autumn weekends, as well as Thanksgiving weekend, you can smell this brew warming in the crockpot on my kitchen counter,
inviting you to help yourself to a big cup.

 Hot Apple Cider

 INGREDIENTS:

 1-gallon cider

2 cinnamon sticks

8 whole cloves

4 whole allspice

1/4 – 1/2 lemon sliced

1/4 cup honey

Directions:

Add spices, honey and lemon slices to cider.

Simmer 10 minutes, or place in crockpot until hot.

Remove lemon immediately.

(They make the brew bitter, if left in.)

Spices may stay in, but strain when ladling into mug.

Enjoy a warm cup in front of the fire for a cozy evening.

Serve 6-8.

This cute story is a family favorite at my house

      These turkey cookies have been part of our Thanksgiving since my kiddies were small, and helped me to make them each year. In fact, my brood still assists me in assembling these treats, when they all gather home for Thanksgiving.

Turkey Cookies

Recipe inspired by and photo courtesy of http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Cookie-Turkeys
Originally published as Cookie Turkeys in Quick Cooking November/December 2004, p17

     INGREDIENTS:

40 fudge-striped cookies

Approx. ¼ cup chocolate frosting

1 pkg. malted milk balls*

 (Chocolate covered cherries were used in the photo.  YUK!)

20 pieces of candy corn

DIRECTIONS:    

Place 20 cookies on a flat surface, solid chocolate side down. With frosting, attach a malt ball to the top of each base cookie.

Position another cookie perpendicular to each base cookie; attach with frosting.

With a dab of frosting, attach one piece of candy corn to the front of each malted milk ball for the head. Let stand until set. 

Yield: 20 servings.

*I have also heard of miniature Reese’s peanut butter cups being used.

Thank you for allowing me to share my Thanksgiving movies and recipes with you today. To celebrate the holiday, I present you with a Thanksgiving printable, shown below, (…that my sweet daughter created for me.  Thank you!) in honor of a favorite Thanksgiving TV episode. ;o) Wishing all the best to you and your family for a blessed Thanksgiving season! :o)

Thanks for reading!  :o)

Annette

I attempt to post my blog weekly on, or around, each Monday, but will take a Thanksgiving hiatus, posting again around, December 15. Happy Thanksgiving!

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For a printable version of this, please go to my next blog post here.