Thanksgiving Menu | Thanksgiving Recipes | Thanksgiving Traditions

Thanksgiving might be my favorite holiday - an abundance of food, large communal table dining, autumn flavors and recipes... how could it not be?! We all have Thanksgiving traditions that are near to our heart. For most of my life that has meant waking up early to watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade while we help my mom bake her famous pies, stuffing ourselves at a mid-day feast, taking a long post-meal walk with aunts and cousins while the guys watch football, then heading to the Plaza to watch the turning on of the holiday lights.

In the past couple of years those traditions have changed from year-to-year as our family adjusts to its new format - my sister and I are both married and have multiple Thanksgivings to attend, so our time at home is shared between two feasts. This year will be especially different, as Mike and I will be in Massachusetts (our new home) and I'll be 38 weeks pregnant - unable to travel back home!

We plan on having an intimate dinner for two - keeping what traditions of the day intact we can. I will still wake up early to watch the parade, and will be making some sort of pie... probably pecan. Instead of roasting an entire Turkey (like I did last year when I hosted Thanksgiving at our Fairway, Ks. home), I'll roast a stuffed turkey breast for us to share. I'm sure we will take Mr. Darcy on a long walk, then go to The Colonial Inn to see the holiday decorations that night. Or... maybe we'll scrap all of the traditions and head to a cozy cabin someplace in the mountains!

Whatever your Thanksgiving plans, here are the recipes that have been a part of my family's traditions. What are the traditions you look forward to each year?

For more tips, here is a link to my post : How to Plan your Thanksgiving like a Caterer