After several days of Thanksgiving planning, prepping and cooking, I woke up today energized and eager to dive into the day’s tasks. I’m not sure why I love Thanksgiving so much. Perhaps it’s because I’ll have 18 of my close friends arriving at my house this evening to celebrate. With Spotify streaming, drinks flowing, and a plethora of yummy bites around, it’s almost guaranteed to be a fun, memorable evening. Or perhaps it’s because Thanksgiving is the one day of the year that really celebrates food. People coming together to give thanks over a table full of food. My menu below is definitely not traditional; however, many of the dishes are derivatives of Thanksgiving classics. I hope you all have a safe and happy Thanksgiving 🙂
A quick note on the photography in this post. All of the images were taken with my iPhone. Some altered in Instagram. I’ve been posting these photos all week on Twitter using the hashtag #KKTday2011 (short for Kitchen Konfidence Thanksgiving). I urge you to go check out the other photos! I will continue to post for most of today, so please come say hello. Continue reading for my Thanksgiving 2011 menu.
Appetizers:
Baked Brie with Fig Butter and Toasted Pecans
Kimchi and Bacon Deviled Eggs
Seasonal Produce Selection
Signature Cocktails:
Meyer-Citron Drops [Meyer Lemon Syrup, Buddha Hand Citron Infused Vodka, Meyer Lemon Juice]
Ginger Snap [Spiced Ginger Syrup, Muddled Mint, Vodka, Clementine Juice, Orange Bitters]
First Course:
Spicy Pumpkin Soup with Toasted Cumin Crema
Harvest Salad with Shaved Apples and Fennel
Second Course:
Roast Turkey with Truffle Butter
Gravy
Italian Chard Stuffing
Stuffed Savoy Cabbage with Rosemary Brown Butter
Zinfandel Cranberries
Brussels Sprouts and Caramelized Shallot Gratin
Sweet Potato Crunch
Sweet Potato Mash
Lyn’s Hot Buns
Palate Cleanser:
Dessert:
Crack Pie
Coconut Custard Pie
Persimmon Fool Pudding with Fresh Whipped Cream
That’s all for this year. I hope you enjoyed 🙂 Once again, happy Thanksgiving!!
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Gerry @Foodness Gracious says
Hey Brandon, I have been following your tweets all week and I hope you had some help prepping this ginormous feast, if not your one awesome cook (even with help!) Congratulations on your menu and I’m sure it will be appreciated by your friends, if not, no invite next year right?
Have a great day and bask in your huge edible glory!!!
Brandon Matzek says
Thanks Gerry! I had some help on two of the days 🙂 Hope you had a great Thanksgiving!
Quickel says
Happy Turkey Day bro! I’m with you – Thanksgiving is my favorite! Making dinner for the fam, but celebrating a day late. Two days – two turkey dinners!
I need to ask…what the heck is “crack pie”? Is this a recipe I missed???
Hope you had a great time!
Brandon Matzek says
Thanks Mike 🙂 Crack Pie is a treat from the Momofuku Milk bar in in NYC. If you google Crack Pie, I use the LA Times recipe. It’s hard to explain. Just decadent and delicious. And addicting 🙂 Happy belated Thanksgiving!
Elizabeth Kerridge says
Wow Brandon! Sounds incredible and I’m sure it was a huge success! I can’t wait to try some of these myself. Happy Thanksgiving Brandon!
Brandon Matzek says
Thanks Elizabeth 🙂 Happy belated Thanksgiving!!
Averie @ Love Veggies and Yoga says
I have been following your IG feed for the past 36 and have been stunned and amazed by how much you’ve made and accomplished, but also by how BEAUTIFUL it all looks. Normally I need an hour to make it and 3 hours to photograph it 🙂 Clearly you are a pro!
Happy Thanksgiving, Brandon!
Brandon Matzek says
Thanks Averie 🙂 It was quite the undertaking, but I really enjoyed everything this year! When the sun went down, I actually pulled out my umbrella lighting in the kitchen. To take pictures with my iPhone. HA!
Kevin says
I was there and can speak from first hand. Everything was as delicious as it looked….if not more, :b……(drool) Personal favorites: Deviled eggs with kimchi, baked brie, Sweet potato crunch, brussel sprout gratin, Zin cranberry sauce, and the Meyer Lemon Sorbet. Happy Thanksgiving (gobble gobble)
Brandon Matzek says
Haha thanks Kevin! Always a pleasure having you there 🙂 I think I need to make more of those Kimchi Deviled Eggs soon. So good!
Ann P says
WOW. You have a group of very lucky friends who got to eat all this! Everything looks amazing, and your menu sounds fantastic. Also, what is crack pie!? That has really stoked my curiosity. Is it as addicting as crack…?
Brandon Matzek says
Hehe well I’ve never had crack before; however, the pie is definitely addicting! HA! Sweet (but not crazy sweet) and gooey. I’ve found myself having cravings the weeks after having a slice.
cooking rookie says
wow, what an amazing menu! Love the soup and the brussels sprouts gratin. Do you also plan to publish the persimmon pudding recipe? And what’s a crack pie ;-)?
Brandon Matzek says
See my comments above for the Crack Pie. I wasn’t planning on publishing the pudding recipe; however, it really is so darn tasty. I might just have to!
Thanks :)!
Kelsey says
Quite a menu! How was working with the persimmons for the first time? (wink)
Brandon Matzek says
Thanks Kelsey! I love working with persimmons 🙂
Clare says
What the heck is that fruit under the Persimmon in the top image? I have never seen such a thing!
The food looks amazing, makes me wish we had Thanksgiving in Australia.
Brandon Matzek says
Hi Clare, it is a buddha hand citron. It’s like a lemon but it doesn’t have any flesh or juice inside. It’s all peel and pith. But the pith isn’t really bitter and the fragrance is AMAZING. Works very will for vodka infusions.
sippitysup says
I am very impressed that you included a signature cocktail GREG
Brandon Matzek says
Thanks Greg 🙂 I always try to have a signature cocktail at my parties. It’s a great way to kick things off!