Thursday 13: 13 things I'm looking forward to eating today

appy Thanksgiving, everyone! I know, this post should be filled with 13 quotes of gratitude, or 13 reasons I'm glad I married my husband six years ago today (there are more than 13, for sure) or some other deep and meaningful post, but nope. You get to hear what I'm excited to eat today. This is my favorite food day of the year. Period. Yum.

Tomorrow I'll make a stab at deep and meaningful, I promise.

Thirteen sounds like a lot of items to eat, but as I got rolling with it, it does appear that indeed, we will have at least 13 items at our ample buffet...

1. Turkey. I roasted three turkeys last week for a YoungLives dinner, so I'm feeling really ready to roast again! I experimented with a very simple roasting technique (450 for the first hour, 350 for the next three or so hours, cover as needed) and stuffed it with garlic, lemon and sage. And butter. That's it. It was amazing, and I think we'll give that a go again today.
2. Turkey loaf. This one is an old family favorite, from our more vegetarian days. Even though we all love turkey, we really can't envision the holidays without both on our plates. How odd, I know. But very "us."
3. Stuffing. We'll roll pretty simply with this one. Sourdough, cornbread, herbs. No nuts, no fruit, no meat. Definitely no meat. I am forever scarred by the Thanksgiving where a meat stuffing made an appearance. That's all I'm going to say about that.
4. Mashed potatoes. Did you know cream cheese is the secret to truly creamy mashed potatoes? I know, The Pioneer Woman does it too, but I swear I was doing it first.
5. Gravy. Simply and pure, like all good gravy should be.
6. Cranberry sauce. There was a small misunderstanding on the cranberry sauce procurement, so the grocery stores had better be open for cranberries in our early morning run!
7. Brussels sprouts. I'm feeling a little gratin coming on for the Brussels this year. A little cream, a little cheese, and there won't be any complaining about the Brussels, I am sure.
8. Yams. These puppies will get roasted in rosemary. I know, not really the sweet style, but, again, this is how we roll around here...
9. Corn casserole. Look at all these veggies! A girlfriend made this for the dinner last week, and I loved it--I don't have the recipe posted yet, but I will. It's a variation on this one, though.
10. Pumpkin pie. Simple, basic, and essential to this day.
11. Rolls with butter. Lovely bakery in town made a contribution (well, we paid them, but...) to our dinner of beautiful rolls. I think this is the one meal of the year when I feel that bread with my meal is critical.
12. Sparkling cider. Not a drinking clan, this is our beverage of choice. We have an assortment of the sparkly stuff.
13. Leftovers. Doh. Right after The Muppet's and some early Black Friday shopping (some stores are open at 9 p.m.? That sure beats early Friday in my book.) I anticipate some fridge raiding.

I hope whatever's on your table this Thanksgiving, it's right up your alley! I am off to roast the bird!

For more Thursday 13s, go here.

Thursday Thirteen #1: Favorite foods/ingredients

I have always liked the lists of questions, or "memes," that many bloggers utilize to help readers get to know them, facilitate discussion and elicit response, or just for kicks. So look for that kind of thing every now and again, mixed in with the food...

But a fun little exercise that has made its way around the blogosphere for some time is a concept called Thursday Thirteen. It's so fab, it has its own website; check it out.

Here's my first attempt, and of course, it's all about food.

My 13 favorite foods/ingredients (not in order of preference):
1. Figs. Fresh, please. Dried figs don't even really count as figs to me.
2. Hazelnuts. Toasted and included in, oh, just about anything from salads to ice cream. (Gianduja, the "official" term for the marriage of chocolate and hazelnut (Nutella!), is so close to paradise it's crazy.) I do love most nuts, but hazelnuts top them all.
3. Custard (bet you didn't see that one coming!) in just about any form.
4. Pesto (or just basil, but there is a certain harmony to pesto that is hard to beat).
5. Peanut sauce. Thai, generally, but recently had a Chinese version that was very yummy too. I can eat this on almost anything, but sobe noodles is probably my first choice.
6. Avocadoes. Either as is or as guacamole. Not picky. Just hand me a saltshaker and I'm good to go.
7. Eggs. Especially poached or deviled or as egg salad.
8. Arugula. My greens of choice every time. So fun and peppery!
9. Cheese. Wish I could pick one kind, but can't... everything from chevre to brie to parmigiano-reggiano to good old sharp cheddar and of course, blue cheese. And just about everything stinky inbetween!
10. Tzatziki, or raita, depending on which country you're talking about (Greece or India). But the cucumber-yogurt-with-a-bit-of-garlic combo hits the spot. It has to be done right. Sometimes it's too sour creamy, sometimes too garlicky, sometimes too watery. But there's a version at Trader Joe's that is very more-ish and inspires me when I make it at home.
11. Butternut squash. I used to hate this vegetable as a child, but something odd happened to my tastebuds in the last decade and now I love it. Roasted with a little olive oil and some salt and pepper, and I'm set.
12. Blueberries. Best berry, best fruit, even fun to pick. Big and blue and fresh, I've been known to plow my way through many a pound during the too-short blueberry season. Not a delicate image, I know, me plowing my way through blueberries... but this is how emphatic I am about them as a great fruit!
13. Last but not least, this isn't an actual food, but a food combination: salty and sweet. Popcorn and Junior Mints, salty peanuts on Frosted Flakes, sea salt on chocolate... always been a little too happy about that combination.

So what about you? What are your 13 favorite foods? I am positive I've forgotten at least another 13, but there's always next Thursday!