I'm an advocate for non-traditional Thanksgiving. Thai Thanksgiving comes to mind. But that gets vetoed by my better half and my equally-traditional sister-in-law. Whatever way you go, you can get the good stuff close to home.
- Start traditional. Maple Lawn Farms grows turkeys on Rte 216 in Fulton. They sell from the farm, and Mom's Organic Market in Jessup sells them along with two other varieties. I haven't eaten one yet, but I hear they're very good.
- Spice up your table. Zip up the stuffing with sausage from Boarman's in Highland or Laurel Meat Market. Grab some vegetables at Gorman Produce Farm in Laurel (as long as you go Thurs-Sunday). Maybe try a shrimp plate or oysters from Frank's Seafood in Jessup.
- Prepare for baking. Ann's House of Nuts in Columbia sells all kinds of items to bake into sweets. They also sell in-shell nuts if you want a bowl on nuts on your fireplace.
- Pick up dessert. French pastries and fruit tarts at Bonaparte Bread in Savage. Cupcakes, cookies and tarts at Touche Touchet in Columbia.
- Grab a few specialties to amuse your guests. Pistachio nougat at Caezar's International Market in Elkridge. Orange blossom water for a special lemonade. Old Bay chocolate crabs at Sweet Cascades in Ellicott City. Or bacon chocolate at im Wine where they'll help you pick out the grape, then sell you bacon candy bars.
- Plan to get out of the house. For the kids, a new indoor miniature golf course has opened in Jessup. For a break in the leftovers, grab tacos. It's a light lunch and a beef or pork alternative to turkey sandwiches -- at R&R Taqueria in Elkridge or Lily's Mexican Market in Columbia.
- Snap up a quick lunch on Black Friday. At the mall, I'd get Yogiberry or maybe cross the road for Chinese at Red Pearl or sushi at Sushi Sono. From the Target, consider a post-shopping lunch at Royal Taj.
And if your family is open-minded, consider just spicing up your entire meat. That Thai Thanksgiving would come from the H Mart. Or you could go Mexican. Lily's Mexican Market sells spices to rub on the turkey. Mexican chorizo for the sausage. Maybe cactus for a side dish? I can't serve that here, but there's always hope for you!
You still couldn't resist putting in some non-traditional additions, eh :-)
ReplyDeleteThanks again for reminding people that there are locally-owned operations (usually with locally-produced items) who will provide almost everything you need for the Big Meal. Support local businesses whenever possible. Even if some things are a bit more expensive, they are often fresher. Give them a try! Why pad the pockets of some distant CEO when local folks need the help and have GREAT stuff?
I've lived in Fulton about 14 years. Every year I take off work the day before Thanksgiving, get up at the crack of dawn, go to Maplelawn farm and buy my pre ordered 16-18 pound turkey. There's always a line. Most years it's very muddy so I wear my oldest boots. Parking is challenging but you walk by mooing cows and a barn with live turkeys.
ReplyDeleteThey actually process the turkeys in the same building you buy them. Strategically placed walls and large hanging translucent plastic strips hide the inner workings. The turkey are just sitting on a conveyor with tags announcing the weight. Before you get to the turkey room you pick a tag with the weight of the turkey you preordered written on it. You hand the tag to one of the workers and they pull a suitable turkey off the belt. You usually get a couple of choices.
I always get some extra turkey parts for making stock that day. I use it in my dressing, gravy and any other dish that needs good stock. The turkey parts are in bags in boxes on the floor or counters. Some years they have whole turkeys that are damaged or just have the breasts removed that they sell at parts prices. Usually I just get bags of wings, tails and/or necks. The price for parts is dirt
cheap. The farm usually has some kids that will help you haul your turkey stuff to your car. I always decline and haul 30 plus pounds of turkey stuff past the live turkeys, the mooing cows and up to my car. I always bring some boxes to put my haul into so that any leaks don't cause a mess.
When my kids were younger, they would come with me and we spend some extra time talking to the cows and turkeys. Now I just go by myself and soak in the experience. I love living in HoCo.
I bought a Maple Lawn Farms turkey last year. It was the best turkey I've ever eaten. Love it there!
ReplyDeleteWe tried the old bay chocolate crabs a few months ago as a dessert for a 'strange food'-themed dinner. They were actually pretty good.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the local vendor suggestions!
If people are interested in buying a turkey this year please contact us at www.maplelawn.com
ReplyDeleteBon Fresco Serves Mapple Lawn Turkey now its really good.
ReplyDelete@HowICook.....I love living in HoCo too. How lucky are we to have so many choices for farm fresh foods in our own county.
ReplyDeleteI hope more people will support HoCo farms so they can to thrive and grow - instead of buying farm products from neighboring counties or states.
Buying local HoCo is not only healthy for our bodies but it keeps our $ in our county to support the other things i love - open spaces, good schools and libraries. Plus, it reduces our carbon footprint.
It's a win-win situation!
Now, time to order my Maplelawn turkey.