Pumpkin Tiramisu

Although my mom cooked our Thanksgiving lunch/dinner, I made dessert. Of course I had to make something pumpkin, because there’s some law somewhere that states that at least one Thanksgiving meal item must contain pumpkin, and since nothing my mom made contained pumpkin, the responsibility fell to me.

I was thinking about making pumpkin pie, but pumpkin cheesecake (actually, a kabocha squash cheesecake) is on the menu for our big gather in Saturday, so I didn’t want to eat the same (or similar) dessert twice in three days. At first I was planning on making pumpkin soufflés with bourbon whipped cream, but after running across a recipe for pumpkin zuccotto, I got an idea: pumpkin tiramisu.

Thanksgiving

This year, Thanksgiving is entirely in my hands. There will be 16 of us in total, so it's going to be quite an undertaking. Luckily, I'm a serious Type A personality, so I wrote up a detailed game plan for tackling the many things I'm making.

Actually, I'm not technically cooking on Thanksgiving - we're having our big gathering on Saturday because not everyone is able to be here on Thursday. My mom will be cooking dinner for 4 on Thursday (although I am, of course, making dessert), and we're pretending like Saturday is Thanksgiving, except we're not really pretending because the whole family will be here, so isn't that really Thanksgiving? I think it is.

Anyway, in case you haven't finalized your Thanksgiving menu yet, here are some things I've made over the past year and a half that would be at home on the Thanksgiving table; the ones that are starred are items I made for last year's Thanksgiving dinner:

Thai curried butternut squash soup
Spiced parsnip and apple soup
Orange cauliflower and Fuji apple soup with sage cream and aged cheddar tuiles*
Honey glazed Bartlett pear, gorgonzola, and walnut salad*
Maple, coriander, and pomegranate glazed acorn squash*
Macadamia lime green beans
Roasted brussels sprouts with soy-sriracha dressing and spiced puffed rice*
Roasted brussels sprouts with pomegranate and hazelnuts*
Spiked apple cider cupcakes
Pumpkin cupcakes with maple-ginger frosting

OK, back I go to finalizing my plan and writing up detailed shopping lists - prep starts tonight!

Thai Curried Butternut Squash Soup

My mom’s birthday was this past Sunday, so, of course, I was compelled to make her a great dinner. I admit that sometimes I get a little carried away and make elaborate four-course meals that take hours to make, but this time, I decided to make simple comfort foods that my mom loves, albeit refined versions of them.

First up: a butternut squash soup with a Thai inflection. 

VOTE!

I don't care who you vote for (although I'd love it if you voted for the guy I'm supporting) - just make sure you get out and vote today.

Every vote counts. Don't be like my co-worker, who, despite having the day off, said she isn't going to vote because NY is a blue state and her vote won't make a difference. If everyone said that, then maybe NY wouldn't come out blue tonight. Don't be apathetic - take a cue from this couple, who flew halfway around the world to vote because their absentee ballots didn't come through in time. If they can do it, you can stand in line for 2 hours to vote.

And, if that's not enough motivation, there's more: you can score free treats if you vote. Krispy Kreme is giving out free red white and blue star-shaped donuts, Ben & Jerry's is giving out free scoops, and Starbucks (ick) is giving out free tall brewed coffee to people who can prove they voted today (although the other day they changed their policy and are giving it to everyone, not just voters).

Now get out there and vote!