What Are Your Thanksgiving Traditions?: Bonna L. Nelson

What Are Your Thanksgiving Traditions?

by Bonna L. Nelson

Let our hearts be full of both, thanks and giving! Happy Thanksgiving!

It all started with a discussion about sauerkraut. My friend Genny and I were discussing with excitement our plans for Thanksgiving. Who was coming to dinner? What were we serving?

The traditions and nostalgia help make Thanksgiving one of my favorite holidays. By early November, I begin to have thoughts about past Thanksgivings, family and friends reunited, family and friends no longer with us. The aromas and tastes of our family’s favorite dishes begin to fill my mind. As hosts for our family’s Thanksgiving dinner, we start sending email, text and phone reminders on November 1. Then, I start planning the menu and the shopping list. I

have help. I keep a copy of the menu from year to year and just make minor modifications.

As do many families, ours has certain expectations for the dinner traditions of Thanksgivings past and are seldom thrilled about any changes. This is where the sauerkraut comes in. Genny, from the Philadelphia area and with parents from the United Kingdom, had never heard of serving sauerkraut for Thanksgiving dinner. With our German roots, my family couldn’t imagine Thanksgiving without it!

According to Molly Wizenberg at bonappetit.com, “Growing up, I had no idea that sauerkraut is not, to most Americans, a traditional Thanksgiving dish…In 1863, when Abraham Lincoln declared Thanksgiving a national holiday, about a quarter of Baltimore’s population was German. Sauerkraut was a given on their celebratory table, and so it became a common part of Thanksgiving meals across the city.”

She goes on to say that when, as

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an adult, she served sauerkraut on the fourth Thursday of November, some of her guests were puzzled. Her research revealed that the Baltimore tradition began with its German immigrant families. The German tradition became a “Baltimore thing” that her husband’s Irish Chesapeake Bay-area family also adopted.

With both my maternal and paternal grandparents being Baltimore City folks of primarily German immigrant heritage, it comes as no surprise to me that sauerkraut was always on their Thanksgiving menu. My parents carried on the tradition, as do some of my siblings.

I have learned that sauerkraut, which means sour cabbage in German, is made by fermenting finely cut raw cabbage. It is one of the most popular German dishes. But fermented cabbage didn’t originate in Germany. It is mentioned in Roman writings, was used during the building of the Great Wall of China, is popular across Europe, has been a traditional dish since ancient times in Russia and now is even found in American ballparks and other dining spots as a topping for hot dogs.

There are many ways to prepare sauerkraut. My family’s recipes vary, too. I developed mine over the

years based on my desire for both a sweet and tangy kraut.

I use jarred sauerkraut poured over a browned ham slice, cut in quarters and all placed in an oiled crock pot. Next, I add brown sugar, cinnamon, chopped apples, chopped onion and caraway seeds. The real secret is to simmer the mixture for a day or two so that the cabbage softens and the flavors blend. For the sake of my husband, John, I put the crockpot in the garage. He is not a fan of the pungent smell, but I crave it! (Molly Wizenberg’s family cooks their sauerkraut in gin and adds butter before serving.)

Nestled in a little pile between the turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy and cranberry sauce, sauerkraut provides a wonderful flavor that blends well with our traditional meal. We round out our menu with green bean casserole, sweet potatoes and a variety of pies and ice cream for dessert.

Genny suggested that I ask a few friends about their “Turkey Day” traditions and share them with readers. I started with Genny. She was surprised by my sauerkraut dish, and I was surprised by her mention of creamed baby onions, a traditional dish from her family, and cornbread stuffing with cranberries.

Her husband, Tom, shared his family’s unique tradition. Tom makes a sweet cranberry jelly in an antique ceramic mold shaped like a rabbit (he doesn’t know why a rabbit-shaped mold is used for Thanksgiving) and passed down in his family at least as far back as his grandparents. The cranberry jelly recipe is from the back of a bag of store-bought cranberries, and the pectin in the berries’ skin causes the jelling that holds the rabbit shape.

Genny also offered her family’s favorite dessert, which was new to me: “Pie-in-the-Sky,” pie crust filled with cheesecake and topped with pumpkin pie filling. The rest of their menu calls for the basics we all know and love ~ turkey, stuffing, mashed and sweet potatoes, gravy, etc.

Fran and her husband, Dick, friends from Bethesda, MD, brine and smoke their turkey with aromatic and tasty results, which I love. It has a tangy yet sweet flavor that reminds me of my sauerkraut. Fran makes a crunchy yet soft sweet corn casserole that her family and mine also enjoy.

My friend Rita, of Irish heritage, said that her father boiled pearl onions in milk, and that was the only new-to-me dish that she serves at her family’s dinner. Robbie, of British and Scottish lineage, includes creamed onions, steamed turnips and fresh fruit for dessert. I might add the creamed onions to my feast this year since several friends mentioned it, but I’m not a fan of turnips. Might Genny, Tom, Rita and Robbie try sauerkraut?

How about you? How do you celebrate Thanksgiving?

In addition to food traditions, like many families, we donate to food drives before the holiday. We prepare several dishes a few days