Too much turkey ... not enough nap time

I hope everyone’s Thanksgiving was good. Ours was bittersweet as my husband prepares for a pending deployment, but for a day I was able to put my stress aside and concentrate on the fact that I would be cooking my first Thanksgiving.

As I said previously, we were having lunch at the DFAC (dining facility) so I would only have to worry about breakfast and dinner.

Sgt. Major (our 67-pound bulldog for new readers) woke me up at 6:30 a.m. wanting attention. I convinced him to snuggle with me for another half hour as I prepared myself to face the cold weather that had made an appearance the night before.



My FIL and I had a cup of hot tea as we waited for my husband to wake up, then another as we waited for the blueberry muffins to bake. I must interject here and say I LOVE fresh baked muffins. There is something so comforting as the smell of warm breads wafting through the kitchen and slowly moving to the rest of the house.

After breakfast, I baked a pumpkin pie, exchanging the fading smells of fresh bread with a growing scent of pumpkin and cinnamon. After a quick shower, I quickly got dressed for lunch at the DFAC.

(Now, I must interject again and say, my FIL has asked repeatedly why I did not bring a camera, but I regret to say I forgot.)

The DFAC itself was great. There were colored turkey decorations from the local schools and a Pilgrim-dressed greeter at the door. The list of food was amazing and certainly I don’t have enough room to list here. I will say that one of my favorite parts of holiday meals at the DFACs is that officers who have stayed in the area serve the meals in dress blues or class A uniforms. There was so much to choose from but I had: Steamship Round (roast), Baked Ham with Pineapple and Cloves, Mashed Potatoes, Macaroni and Cheese, German Style Tomato Salad, Corn on the Cob, Honey Butter Rolls and Chocolate Chip Cookies. It was a daunting menu, but I must say that it was good to the last bite.

Another thing about eating at the DFAC is that you see so many people. I chatted with a few friends and colleagues after finishing dinner, stopping for a cup of steaming Cinnamon Vanilla Nut Cappuccino before heading back out into the cold weather. It was sooo good!!!

After a short exploration of the installation, we head back to the house to put the Tur-Duc-Hen in the oven (that’s a hen stuffed in a duck, stuffed in a turkey- Yummy!). I also whip up the pecan pie and get that baking as the guys sit down to watch Bruce Willis in “Live Free or Die Hard”.

After the movie the guys settled in to see the remainder of the Dallas Cowboys game, I started on the side dishes for dinner. First the mashed sweet potatoes then the green bean casserole, something I’ve never had before but my husband requested as a favorite dish.



After stuffing ourself with dinner we helped ourselves to more pies then eventually fell into bed stuffed like a turkey. All in all, most of the dished I made were my own variations and I'm glad they turned out good. There were not disasters, but I am going to work on a few recipes to better them.



Until our next cup of tea ...