![](//photos1.blogger.com/hello/75/1425/385/2005_11270102.jpg) Belated Thanksgiving Dinner 2005
Dear readers, I hereby announce that I just had my belated Thanksgiving dinner, and I’m officially stuffed now. The reason why I still celebrate it alone here in Japan is explained in my 2004 Thanksgiving dinner entry, and the reason hasn’t changed.
![](//photos1.blogger.com/hello/75/1425/200/2005_11260070.0.jpg) ![](//photos1.blogger.com/hello/75/1425/200/2005_11270095.jpg) The menu this time was not too different from last year’s Thanksgiving dinner, but there were some improvements. I made the same stuffed chicken breast, but for the stuffing I used this recipe today, because I’d always wanted to try making rice-stuffed chicken. I knew that the Thai rice I can find here will never be like wild rice, but I was willing to risk it. What’s more, hazelnuts called for in the recipe sounded absolutely tempting.
![](//photos1.blogger.com/hello/75/1425/385/2005_11270104.jpg) All-in-one plate
As expected, the rice made the stuffing mushy, but it tasted pretty good because of the hazelnuts! I love hazelnuts in anything, but I wasn’t sure if they’d go with chicken. They did :) I’m so happy that I bought a small bag of hazelnuts at an imported food shop in Kobe (don’t ask me when). Maybe I shouldn’t have added a little honey to the cranberry sauce… It was just an idea that popped up in my mind at the last minute. With the nutty flavor from the stuffing, I guess the sauce didn’t really need to be sweetened.
Another change from last year was the vegetables. I cooked carrots and string beans, because last year the frozen green peas turned out terrible! Mashed potato was the same instant stuff as last year, but without gravy this time.
I also used a different cornbread recipe today. Actually I was going to add the leftover sour cream, too, but I forgot. :(
And the dessert! Yep, apple pie again, but this year, I made an apple crumble pie. (Maybe I made a mistake in conversion?? My crumbles obviously had too much butter and didn’t crumble at all, so I ended up adding some extra flour and eventually sugar, too. :P) I didn’t want this pie to occupy my oven for too long, so I pre-cooked the apple slices and used a pre-baked pie shell from the store. BTW, the ice cream I put on the warm apple pie had vanilla beans in it. Yay!
![](//photos1.blogger.com/hello/75/1425/385/2005_11270118.jpg)
I promise. I’ll get some exercise tonight….
* I uploaded some photos of autumn leaves here, if you want to take a look.
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14 comments:
Obachan;
What a fantastic looking Thanksgiving dinner. ....hope you were able to share it with someone!!!
Well, me too .. I'm always available to taste-test.
If you care to send me your address, I'll be happy to mail some wild rice to you.
rita.girl@earthlink.net
God bless, Christine in Los Angeles
Hi Obachan,
That Thanksgiving menu is positively mouth-watering. :)
Obachan,
That looks like a beautiful Thanksgiving dinner. I'm happy to send you some American items, too if you cannot find them in Japan. I don't mind! Email me...azian_kreazian@yahoo.com when you need something.
glutton rabbit
Oh, sure! Please come and celebrate it with me next time (including cooking, too.) :D
carlyn
Well, unfortunately there was no one to share the dinner with, so the calories and fat were all mine. Ha-ha-ha. I did go walking that night, though.
Christine in LA
Oh, how nice of you to give me such a kind offer. Okay, I guess there’s a way to order some imported foods online, so I’ll do some research on that, and if there was no way and if I’d desperately need something from the U.S., I would email you. Thanks.
Winslow
Wow, thanks. I might try a totally different combination next year, though.
Melissa
Boy I feel flattered. I’m making a progress? Maybe?
purplecupcake
Oh, thank you so much for your kind offer. I’ll keep that in mind, and as I replied to Christine, I’d email you if I desperately needed something.
Well, I was going to offer to send you wild rice, too, so now you have three possible American sources for impossible-to-find-in-Japan ingredients!
Interesting that you include cornbread in your 'traditional American Thanksgiving dinner'. My family never included it and I only started when I began cooking the feast, myself. I don't know why. What I really wanted to make and just never got around to it was Indian Pudding. That sounds like something that might have been served at a celebration earlier in US history, doesn't it? I didn't host the dinner this year, so all I made was pumpkin pie, grated apple pie and (to go with the leftovers) collard greens and cornbread. Collards are more a southern US tradition than anywhere else but I liked them when I tried them this way. :)
Hi Annie,
Thank you so much for your kind offer! I feel so secure now. :)
This Indian pudding sounds really interesting. Cornmeal, molasses, raisins, walnuts and ginger… a combination I’ve never tried before. I think I’m going to give it a try sometime.
I don’t think I’ve tried grated apple pie, either. Wouldn’t the grated apple turn out runny?
I miss collard greens… :)
HI,
I just wanted to let you know how much I enjoy your blog. I think it is very 'erai' of you to make such a fabulous Thanksgiving meal while in Japan! I never did that, regrettably. Your blog combines my two passions- cooking and Japan-and I look forward to checking it out daily.
Thanks!
Obachan, yes, the grated apple mixture was very juicy when it went into the oven (I admit I was a little worried) but it turned out just fine. I used my favorite granny smith apples, which made for a nice sour contrast when mixed with the sugar.
Tokyoastrogirl
Thank you for such a nice comment. There’s nothing ‘erai’ about making Thanksgiving meal in Japan, though… it just gives me a perfect excuse to make stuffed chicken breast and also to stuff myself with lots of food. That's all. ;)
Annie
Sounds really delish! Mmmmm….
The dishes look good, Obachan. Wish I could have a bite! :)
amber amethryne
Thank you. Hey, start saving money and come to Japan next year in November so that you can join my Thanksgiving dinner ;)
im glad to see you celebrate thanksgiving. I celebrate american thanksgiving too even though I live in canada now. Arent there any american expats around where you live? I invited other canadians to come celebrate with me because I dont know any americans here.
I'm glad that you had a good Thanksgiving with your Canadian friends.
I guess there are Americans around here who might be missing Thanksgiving, but if they want to eat my dinner or not is a different story. Besides, my place (both kitchen and living room) ends up in a total mess after I prepare a big dinner like this. ;P
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