Hi there! I’m working away at a really joyful (for me, and I hope for you) Friday Food Finds post for next week. In the meantime, since I’m wrapping up my professional development training these next few days, and since many of us might be laser focused on Thanksgiving next week, I thought I’d throw out this little thread post:
What is everyone excited to cook and bake next week? Are there any traditions you’re steadfast on upholding? Are there others you’re ready to let go of or refresh? If you don’t celebrate Thanksgiving, what do you do instead? How do you honor the Indigenous people of this space we call the United States who have lost and been forced to sacrifice their homes, their lives, their cultures — everything — in the name of colonization? Can we begin to transform this holiday so that it centers and celebrates Native American heritage?
These are just some of the questions that are running through my head these days. Please feel free to share any that you’re having, remembering that this space needs to be safe, respectful, and inclusive.
Interestingly, Karin just picked up cranberries today...will make an orange cranberry relish and a cranberry-centered dish as well. Since it is just the two of us, it is hard to get excited about making a big meal as we have done in years past. We really enjoyed our Waif Thanksgiving dinners in Norwich when we would "rescue" international students who didn't have family, and experience Thanksgiving through their eyes and tastebuds. We talked from time to time about inviting the few Native American law students, but felt it would be an insult to their history of suffering at the hands of white settlers. I wish there was a way to reach out to those of that culture at this time of year, but really, from their perspective, there is no "Thanksgiving" as we know it.
I recall reading, as a young child, that cranberries were often used in pemmican, an important part of the winter diet for Native Americans — and ever since I've been drawn to cranberries. This week I'm making two kinds of cranberry relish: one New England style, and one vaguely Scandinavian. Also, thanks to Annie Copps sharing this recipe with us all on our local NPR station yesterday, I'm adding a Julie Sahni-inspired cranberry-date-pistachio chutney. Berry on!
I believe you’re right, Jim. I’ve read a little about this National Day of Mourning commemoration (http://www.uaine.org/) that takes place annually in Plymouth, MA. I think for so many, Thanksgiving represents so much pain.
Interestingly, Karin just picked up cranberries today...will make an orange cranberry relish and a cranberry-centered dish as well. Since it is just the two of us, it is hard to get excited about making a big meal as we have done in years past. We really enjoyed our Waif Thanksgiving dinners in Norwich when we would "rescue" international students who didn't have family, and experience Thanksgiving through their eyes and tastebuds. We talked from time to time about inviting the few Native American law students, but felt it would be an insult to their history of suffering at the hands of white settlers. I wish there was a way to reach out to those of that culture at this time of year, but really, from their perspective, there is no "Thanksgiving" as we know it.
I recall reading, as a young child, that cranberries were often used in pemmican, an important part of the winter diet for Native Americans — and ever since I've been drawn to cranberries. This week I'm making two kinds of cranberry relish: one New England style, and one vaguely Scandinavian. Also, thanks to Annie Copps sharing this recipe with us all on our local NPR station yesterday, I'm adding a Julie Sahni-inspired cranberry-date-pistachio chutney. Berry on!
I believe you’re right, Jim. I’ve read a little about this National Day of Mourning commemoration (http://www.uaine.org/) that takes place annually in Plymouth, MA. I think for so many, Thanksgiving represents so much pain.