Thanksgivukkah

This is a once in 79,000 years event.  Chanukkah started the night before Thanksgiving.  Jews talk about holidays falling "early" or "late", but humans will have evolved into the next species by the time this happens again.

We didn't do a full feast for Chanukkah on Wednesday, just a fancier normal dinner.  This goes into my preference for only celebrating one holiday at a time.  I don't do anything Thanksgiving-like until the Halloween decorations come down, or put up winter decorations until after Thanksgiving.  Had to do the Chanukkah at the same time this year, but I don't have that much stuff.  Took all of five minutes.

Line pans with foil!

Techie Smurf lives in this magical world where kitchens and pots clean themselves.  While they went bird-watching, I scrubbed the counters and stove.  I like to have most of the cleaning done before the guests arrive, since it's only going to make it that much harder after they leave.  He had left burnt pomegranate molasses and sausage drippings all over the burners.  By the time they returned, the kitchen looked normal (clean) and ready for the next round of cooking.  We had already prepped the casseroles, the turkey was in the oven, and we had the whole afternoon to relax.

Roommate Smurf bought a Tofurkey feast.  Then she handed it to me to prepare because she can't cook.  I followed the instructions for the glaze she wanted, but it ended up tasting like soy sauce.  Not much you can do with a log of tofu.

And I finished NaNoWriMo with 60,053 words.  I hope I can find the interest to complete the book without a looming deadline.  They can be annoying, but they do help you to finish what you started.

Chanukkah
Roast Leg of Lamb with Pomegranate Glaze
Steamed Broccoli
Potato Latkes with Applesauce

Thanksgiving
Pepitas for pre-meal snacking
Roast Turkey
Gravy (jar)
Cranberry Sauce
Green Bean Casserole
Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Marshmallow topping
Bean and Sausage Cassoulet
White Rolls (brought by a guest)
Pumpkin Chiffon Pie
Pecan Pie and Dutch Apple Pie (brought by Roommate Smurf's dad)
Champagne (because, why not?)