Thanksgiving in Holland

Long time readers know know that we didn’t celebrate Thanksgiving last year. Booker was just a baby and she was so sick at the time… Sander and I weren’t concerned about anything else but the wellbeing of our small pup.

I’m so far away from home, in a country that doesn’t celebrate Thanksgiving so I knew at some point I had to do something. Thanksgiving is a time to be grateful for life and everything in it. Family, friends, everyone who makes my day brighter.

So this year we were a little more prepared! This was my first Thanksgiving preparing and cooking for the family. I wanted it to be stress free and simple. What does that mean? It means less is more. Our menu consisted of very simple items, cooked and prepared.

The turkey meat was slathered in butter and put straight into the oven. No muss, no fuss. There are so many ways of preparing a turkey but this year I only wanted a turkey that was edible and delicious. The butter kept it moist and tender, which worked out better than I had expected.

I didn’t want to worry or stress about what flavors everyone liked so I left that up to them. I didn’t add salt or pepper and somehow the food turned out so good! We had traditional turkey, green beans, mashed potatoes with gravy, sweet potato fries, and white rice. There was so much food that we were all able to take seconds!

We had the dinner at Sander’s parent’s house because our flat would have been too small. Their oven is a beast compared to ours as well. It was kind of them to let me take over the kitchen.

Dessert was homemade apple pie with homemade whipped cream! Sander’s mom was so nice enough to make us her delicious pie from scratch. The entire house smelled so delicious when I arrived and I’ll admit my mouth was watering!

As for the homemade whipped cream… I’m taking Dutch language lessons from a wonderful neighbor and she offered to show me how she makes it at home! I was so grateful because the flavor was fantastic, like nothing I’ve ever had before! But that’s for next time!

If I can help it, I want next year to be at our place. There were a few more people I really wished I could have invited. Yet, these they were in my thoughts and as we remembered what we were thankful for, I thought of these folks. Individuals who care about me and have changed my life! Some are old friends and some are new, but they are a huge part of what I am and who I will become. And Thanksgiving is the perfect time to be thankful for these people!

How did you celebrate with your family this Thanksgiving? If you don’t celebrate, what are you looking forward to for this holiday season?