Melissa Clark’s Thanksgiving
The New York Times writer offers her recipes for a meaningful feast.
[This article was originally published on Oct. 30, 2018.]
Thanksgiving mornings were chaos when I was a kid, and my dad was always in the middle of it. There’d be butter splattering from the turkey basting, pans of mushrooms hissing. It was always right at the most hectic moment when he’d look up, tears in his eyes (from the onions he was chopping), and declare, “Thanksgiving is the best holiday, because it’s all about the food.”
What he was talking about was not just the meal itself, but the messy, convivial process of everyone cooking it together: the garlic mincing, vegetable trimming and pie dough rolling, all punctuated by the chatting, kvetching and endless debate over the paprika in the brussels sprouts and whether the turkey was done.
For me, the joy comes in pressing the butter into the flour with my fingers, trying to get the lightest, airiest pie crust, while my husband, Daniel, mashes butter and bourbon into the sweet potatoes, humming to the Bowie he’s put on the morning’s playlist. My daughter, Dahlia, likes to pick the leaves off herbs and nibble on marshmallows when she imagines no one is looking. As friends and family arrive, they end up in the kitchen too, wine glasses and potato peelers pressed into their hands. And just as when I was a kid, there’s the chatting, the kvetching and the endless debate about whether to put candied ginger in the pie or the ice cream — and whether the turkey is finally done.
Then there’s strategizing, experimenting, tweaking. Thanksgiving is the most traditional dinner on the calendar, so I like to subvert it just a little, figuring out how to take an unchanging menu and reimagine it every time without losing its comforting essence.
I realize it may not be like this for everyone. Cooking Thanksgiving can be stressful. Expectations run high, turkeys burn, pies bubble over. But I believe that if you engineer your day so you can cook with those you love and find happiness doing it, no one will notice if the white meat’s a little dry. (That’s what gravy is for.)
When my dad died in 2017, a few weeks before Thanksgiving, we skipped the big feast, sharing bagels and lox instead. It was too soon to do it without him. This year we’re finding our rhythm again, and I’ll host at my place for the first time. I’ll be making the dishes you see here, the food we love. There’ll be far too much of it, but that’s O.K. Thanksgiving, of course, is all about the food.
In this flavorful recipe, a whole roasted turkey is seasoned like a Provençal leg of lamb, with rosemary, anchovies and plenty of garlic. Cutting tiny slits into the turkey’s legs helps distribute the garlic-anchovy paste, which perfumes the meat. You’ll need to start marinating the turkey at least a day ahead, although, if you have the space in your refrigerator and the time, starting two or three days ahead is even better. Chilling the turkey uncovered helps dry out the skin, yielding a particularly crisp and golden bird.
Recipe: Brioche Chestnut Stuffing
Stuffing with made from eggy brioche and roasted chestnuts is a Thanksgiving classic. This one, seasoned with celery, onion and sage, and a little diced fennel for sweetness and depth, sticks relatively close to tradition. Use it to stuff a turkey, if you like, but it’s even better baked separately in a shallow casserole dish, so the top can get nice and crisp. If you’d like to bake it ahead, you can do so up to 6 hours in advance. Just before serving, reheat it in a 350-degree oven.
Recipe: Roasted Duck Fat Potatoes
Duck fat adds incredible richness to roasted potatoes, which are layered here with fresh thyme and whole garlic cloves. If you are making this for Thanksgiving, throw the pan on the rack under the turkey when you first start roasting your bird, then reheat the potatoes at 350 degrees while your turkey rests.
These silky mashed sweet potatoes are spiced with cloves, nutmeg and a little black pepper, brightened with lemon zest, and spiked with bourbon (or orange juice, if you’d prefer). Puréeing them in a food processor yields the smoothest, airiest texture, but for something a little more rustic, you could mash them by hand. Whichever you choose, these reheat well, either in a microwave or in a pot over low heat.
Recipe: Cranberry-Pomegranate Relish
This twist on the classic orange-and-walnut-studded cranberry relish has pomegranate and pistachios, which fleck the intense red berries with bits of green. You can make the cranberry mixture a day ahead, but don’t add the nuts and pomegranate seeds until just before serving to preserve the crunch.
The fried shallots on top of this dish make it seem a little like a baked green-bean casserole, but with broccoli as the starring vegetable. Olives and thinly sliced garlic give it verve, contrasting nicely with the sweetness of the shallots. You can cook the broccoli and fry the shallots a day ahead. Store the broccoli in the refrigerator, bringing to room temperature before serving; keep the fried shallots in a paper towel-lined container or a jar with an airtight lid. If they wilt, you can crisp them back up by popping them briefly in the oven. Be sure to save the shallot-flavored oil to use for sautéeing the garlic and olives right before serving.
Peppery, crisp arugula stands up nicely to the punch of this garlicky, anchovy-filled dressing. You can adjust the dressing’s pungency by adding more or fewer anchovies. The dressing will keep for a few days in the fridge, but the oil will solidify, so remember to take it out at least an hour before serving, and shake it really well.
Recipe: Spiced Pumpkin Pie
Most pumpkin pies rely entirely on ground spices for their heady flavor. In this one, whole spices (star anise, clove, cinnamon and black peppercorns) are infused into cream, which gives it a more interesting, nuanced character, while a hit of ground ginger added at the end makes it particularly intense. You can make the filling and par-bake the crust the day before, but this pie is best assembled and baked on the day you plan to serve it. If you can, use a high-fat, European-style butter for the crust. It really makes a difference.
Recipe: Ginger Ice Cream
Fresh ginger root and candied ginger give this silky, custard-based ice cream an intense spice flavor. Don’t overlook the clove, which adds a deep, woodsy note. You can make this ice cream up to a week ahead, but after that it will start to develop ice crystals.