Thanksgiving is a uniquely American holiday. Somewhere in the backs of our minds, we know it’s about long-ago celebration between the newly arrived pilgrims and the Native Americans, but in today’s culture that idea has taken a back burner to family, football, and of course, the food. Whether you like turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, stuffing, sweet potatoes, rolls or pumpkin pie, that’s what Thanksgiving is about, Charlie Brown. The Thanksgiving meal is one that stands out because it requires us to spend nearly all day in the kitchen. It is rare, in America, to spend an entire day in the kitchen. As a young college student studying in Russia, I was astounded to watch my host mother spend hours either shopping at the outdoor markets or stirring a cabbage soup on the stove. Slapping a bag of chicken nuggets on a tray and popping them in the oven was not an option — not part of the culture.
-
More