We had the most wonderful Thanksgiving.  Everything was amazing.  People got along.  We discussed a lot of Charlie Sheen.  Oh, and we drank an amazing amount of eggnog.  We survived (with my cold, my survival was in question there for a bit), and wonder of wonders, as of 9:20 Friday morning, all of the dishes are done!  I even have turkey stock cooling already.

So, a rundown.

Soup we had a soup course for the first time this year, mom made a delicious lobster bisque.  I like this tradition!

Turkey I brined the bird overnight, stuffed a compound butter under the skin all over, and shoved an onion and an apple up the birds tush.  Then I baked it at 350F for 3.5 hours.  It was perfect.  Moist, flavorful, delicious.  I was wishing I made a bigger bird it was so good!

Mashed Potatoes Mom found a recipe for make ahead mashed potatoes, and I have to admit I was a bit wary, but they were delicious!  Creamy, soft, not heavy at all.  Very impressive.

Stuffing We had two stuffings, both made by my mom (is she amazing or what?)  Oyster stuffing, with the words biggest oysters ever yum! I didn’t get a chance to try the cornbread stuffing, but it looked and smelled delicious.

Sweet Potatoes Crash Hot Sweet Potatoes, inspired by The Pioneer Woman.  They weren’t pretty, but were mighty tasty.  Those leftovers will be served as tonight’s side dish.

Ratatouille My sister was in charge of veggies this year, and her ratatouille was delicious.  It was also beautiful until I scooped it out of the carefully layered pyrex pan to put it into a serving bowl.  My bad.  Ratatouille may be the perfect thanksgiving veggie.  It’s colorful, satisfying, and way lighter than a casserole.

Carrots Just to add some variety (and even more color to our rainbow table), my brother in law made creamy carrots from the Julie Child school of thought.  I know it’s hard to improve on simple carrots, but the addition of a ton of butter and heavy cream took these carrots from pedestrian to out of this world amazing.  Those left overs are all mine.  I packaged them up first and hid them in the back of my fridge.  My lunch today is just going to be creamy carrots.

Cranberry Sauce I kept it simple and just followed the recipe on the bag, adding a bit of orange juice, a cinnamon stick, and a pinch of aleppo pepper.  So good.  I wish I had some of the rolls left over to spread this on for breakfast!

Rolls Oh, cannot forget these!  My sister made crescent rolls, from scratch.  Sure beats the hell out of anything from Pillsbury!

I feel like I’m missing something from my rundown, because my table was groaning under the weight of all the food.  It was all so good.

Wish you were here!

Well, I’m off to start tonight’s pot roast and get my Challah going.  Shabbat waits for no-one this time of year!

I didn’t meal plan for two weeks because we were on vacation for a good part of them, but now the world is back to normal, and so I meal plan again!

Monday: Homemade chicken pot pie (the chicken is leftover from Shabbat and the veggies are cleaning out the gleanings from my crisper drawer), and melon

Tuesday: Leftover smoked brisket from Sunday night, pasta salad, zucchini bread

Wednesday: Omelets with cheese, veggies, and possibly whatever other leftovers we have around the house

Thursday: DH and kids will either have pizza or Mac n Cheese as I will be having dinner out and a night at a hotel with my mom before she does the 3-Day 60 mile Komen Walk to raise money for Breast Cancer Research.

Shabbat: I haven’t decided what I’m serving this week as both my mom and sister will be gone at the walk.  We may have take-out actually.

Sunday: Pasta with leftover lemon-oregano chicken from Shabbat, kale, onions and cream sauce

Monday: Lasagna, garlic bread, salad

Tuesday: Hamburgers and a variety of salads (bean, potato, green, etc) depending on my mood

Wednesday: Leftovers

Thursday: Grilled steaks, corn on the cob, caprese salad

Shabbat: Not my week to cook, I just bake the challah!

Monday: Sushi! 

Tuesday: Leftover chicken from the 4th, sauteed kale with garlic and tomatoes, mashed potatoes

Wednesday: I somehow doubt I’ll get to SnB (even though I really miss it), so let’s plan Breakfast for Dinner!  Pancakes, scrambled eggs, fruit salad

Thursday: Leftover brisket from the 4th (if there is any left), spinach salad, biscuits.  If the brisket is all gone by Thursday we’ll have fish instead.

Shabbat: Fresh homemade challah, gazpacho, roasted chicken with lemon, roasted veggies, double baked potatoes, pie

Sunday: Smoked brisket and chicken, coleslaw, potato salad, corn on the cob

Monday: Mac n Cheese (I wasn’t feeling well)

Tuesday: Chicken tacos, salsa, guacamole, rice, beans

Wednesday: I’m supposed to go to SnB, but somehow I doubt I’ll be able to get a night off, so let’s plan a dinner this week! Salad with grilled salmon

Thursday: Indian curry with veggies, garbanzo beans, and shrimp over brown rice

Shabbat: Not my week to cook!  All I’m responsible for is the challah. 

Saturday: Leftovers!

Sunday: 4th of July Fiesta at our house!  Smoked brisket and chicken (now that we have good recipes), chips and dips, coleslaw, potato salad, bean salad, spinach dip with Hawaiian bread, lemonade, sun tea, hard lemonade, and whatever our guests bring too!

Or letting go of perfectionism.

My cousin has a travel delay, and poor guy, he is stuck here in one of the “flyover” states until tomorrow.  So, we chatted through Facebook (isn’t technology grand) and he’s going to come on down for dinner tonight.

Historically, this would send me into a tizzy.  My house isn’t spotless.  My 2 year old has scabs on her face from a run-in (fall-in?) with our concrete patio on Father’s day, and I wouldn’t have any idea what I was making for dinner for my family, much less for my cousin and my folks who also are really looking forward to seeing him.

Today, that’s not how things are going though!  My house isn’t spotless, but it is clean enough.  I need to sweep up some cheerios from morning snack, and put away the cheerios and raisins which are still on the counter in the kitchen, but that’s it cleanup wise.  My house doesn’t NEED to be spotless.  Clean enough is totally clean enough!

I know what I’m making for dinner thanks to FlyLady and ChiveTalker.  I just need to run out to the store, which was already on the agenda today, and pick up a little more stuff to fill the meal out.  Two fish fillets won’t feed 5 adults and 2 toddlers, no matter how much rice goes with the curry. 

So, basically, I’m not flipping out and running around like a chicken without a head.  I’m letting my children watch Dinosaur Train while they play.  I’m enjoying my coffee.  Heck, I’m writing a post on my blog.

You know what, letting go of perfectionism is a really good thing for my sanity!

Monday: Sauteed chicken thighs in creamy leek sauce, brown rice, and collard greens

Tuesday: Whole wheat pasta, shrimp in garlic butter, sauteed bok choy

Wednesday: As always, the plan is SnB, the back-up plan is take out! I think I may also make a fruit cobbler

Thursday: Fish curry with pineapple, pea pods, and whatever is left in the crisper

Shabbat: Not my week to cook!    As the “Fiesta Shabbat” went over so well for my sister’s birthday, I think that plan is being revamped for this week with some minor alterations.  I love Mexican food, so no complaints here!

I’m uninspired this week for some reason, so we’re going with all the old standbys.

Monday: DH has requested lasagna, so lasagna he shall have, along with a garden fresh salad

Tuesday: BBQ chicken, basmati rice with raisins, garden salad again

Wednesday: Hopefully for the first time in 3 weeks, I’ll be able to get to SnB and have a night off!  Otherwise, we’ll have takeout sushi

Thursday: Breakfast for dinner. Hole-in-ones (sliced rye bread with fried eggs in the middle), fruit salad, hash browns

Shabbat: Challah, roast beast (we’ll see what’s on sale this week), “creamed” spinach, pasta, and another veggie for those odd ducks who don’t like spinach.

I fell off the wagon and missed 2 weeks of meal planning, but I’m picking right back up where I left off!  No whining here!

Sunday: Grilled steaks, salad fresh from the garden (letttuce and spinach from my garden, bought tomatoes), brown rice, tabhoulli

Monday: Whole wheat spaghetti with meatballs (actually leftovers)

Tuesday: Chicken curry with cauliflour, green beans, and whatever other veggies I have in the crisper, brown rice

Wednesday: Supposedly my night off, so either I’ll be at SnB or we’ll order in

Thursday: Brisket, mashed potatoes, garden salad (I’m going to modify the recipe slightly as I don’t use packaged onion soup mix, but you get the idea).

Shabbat: It’s my wonderful sister’s birthday this week and she asked for a Fiesta Party, so we’ll be making motzi over flour tortillas.  No need to bake challah this week!

Sunday: leftovers, beer, and cookies

Monday: Prime Rib, before it gets all freezer burned because we accidentally broke the wrapping today,Gr asparagus, and potatoes

Tuesday: Cheese blintzes for Shavuot, cherry and blueberry toppings, sour cream, salad, and cheesecake

Wednesday: SnB night, the family will have leftovers

Thursday: Grilled whitefish over rice with veggie skewers

Shabbat: Mom’s turn this week, all I’m responsible for is the challah