Many Things To Be Thankful For

The air outside was crisp and chill, but within our small Portland apartment nothing but warmth was felt this Thanksgiving day. Usually, I mostly dread the coming of this holiday - spending long, awkward hours with blood-family that I normally wouldn't grace with more than a handful of minutes of my time over the phone, the day is often spent being ridiculed or interrogated about vegetarianism, being teased with hunks of roast bird, being chided for taking smaller portions than the rest of my veritably-gluttonous relatives, staring at a television screen which portrays some mindless display of consumerism or aggressive sport, stuffing my face with processed and fatty junk side dishes - to fill a vast void created by my boredom - that I don't even savor and that I know will give me terrible indigestion and constipation because the main ingredient in several of them is either brown sugar or cheese-whiz... The whole thing really disgusts me. My husband, I'm quite positive, will agree that this type of Thanksgiving is exactly the opposite of how we would prefer to "give our thanks."

But this year, being newly married and having lived almost one year in our home, Austin and I made the wonderfully exciting decision to have our own Thanksgiving - a more eco-friendly, local and non-traditional version than our parents' that is based on our liberal values and health-conscious dietary tastes, in which we could create our own traditions, here at our home, with our preferred family of friends. We invited another couple over (they are unmarried) for a potluck-style vegan spread. The day was perfect - informal, festive, fun and delicious! We started everything around noon. I had tossed a few hand-selected dried leaves on the coffee table and plugged in the white stringlights over our kitchen doorway for decoration - nothing too fancy - and set out some wasabi soy-nuts for snack. The guests arrived and brought with them some fine fine (pricey and high quality) Stumptown coffee, because they're employees and can get the stuff for free or discounted, which they ground and brewed immediately. We drank and chatted and were merry in the kitchen for several hours. When we were all sufficiently caffeine-buzzed, we decided to get booze-buzzed by making my new favourite drink called a Bourbon Furnace. It's so simple to make but it's amazingly cozy and yummy on a chilly Fall day. Here's the recipe:

Heat 1 jug (approx. 1 qt.) organic apple cider in a pot on the stove, bringing to a steady gentle simmer. Steep 1 homemade (or store-bought) sachet of mulling spices (cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, anise star, nutmeg, allspice - I bought mine in pre-mixed bulk at Limbo) in the simmering cider for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and add a generous pour of Bourbon Whiskey to taste (probably 1-3 shots). Serve hot in a mug or mason jar. Garnish with a little lemon and a cinnamon stick (optional).

So while sipping our beverages and continuing conversation in our intimate little kitchen, we heated up the dinner fare, which included Spicy Thai Green Beans (not vegan due to shrimp sauce), Cooked Kale in Garlic Tahini Sauce, Roasted Veggies and Sticky Rice, Dinner Rolls, and as the main course, Pumpkin Tofu Manicotti. The Manicotti, which I prepared, hmph ha, was a sensation! So moist and flavourful, and surprisingly cheesy even though it contained not a hint of cheese (especially no Cheese-Whiz)! I'm going to add this recipe to my regular repertoire. It can be found here at a blog called Vegan Visitor. All of the food was amazing, and very healthy. Even though it was a hodge-podge of items that weren't planned in accordance with one another, the menu was surprisingly cohesive. And let it be mentioned that it all left the palette very content!

After filling our bellies not too full with good-tasting-but-good-for-you food, what better way to enjoy the company of friends than to play some games, as we did? A few mildly competitive rounds of Wii Boom Blox and a delightfully competitive game of Apples to Apples were just the ticket for the day, coupled with several glasses of the famous Bourbon Furnace.

And through it all, the deeply warm feeling of contentment and appreciation for my lot in life kept showing itself in a broad smile across my face. I have so much to be thankful for - a long detailed list that I will spare you of dear readers. But of those I'm most thankful - a loving and nurturing husband and friend, good health and great food to enjoy, as well as a tranquil and comfortable home - these things are exceptionally wonderful when I can celebrate them my own way rather than having to conform to someone else's traditions or lifestyle. And if you look at it that way, this is exactly what Thanksgiving is all about...sort of. The pilgrims came to America because they wanted to be free of the oppressive and confromist bonds of their mother country, England. They wanted to do things their own way, to rebell agianst the outdated and overbearing ideas of their parent government and church (even though it meant oppressing another group in turn, shame shame on them!, but that's not what I'm focusing on here). So, my Thanksgiving this year was not exactly a rebellion, persay, but in some form it was an expression of the freedom I've attained in growing up and away from parents to pioneer my own way of life with my awesome husband!