Dec

2

Thanksgiving Day

Filed Under Travel 

Being away from the U.S. this Thanksgiving, I decided to keep the spirit of Thanksgiving by cooking a turkey, ala Philippine style. I went to a grocery store and bought a 15 lb turkey for 1500 pesos or roughly $27 dollars, which is a lot of money to most Filipinos. This is a big bird to most Filipinos who are used to the small, but tasty native chickens.

At the grocery store, I was surprised to see a Butterball turkey, a brand I recognized. I bought it on a Tuesday and kept it in the refrigerator to thaw out for two days. The biggest challenge was where to find the turkey stuffing. I usually just get stuffing out of the box. So, off to the internet I went to do some research.

I did a google search and found out there are hundreds of recipes for a turkey stuffing. Well, I continued on my search and found a real basic stuffing recipe with simple ingredients that is available in the Philippines. Now, some of my Filipino friends never had eaten a roasted turkey before.

The good news is, this was not the first time I had roasted turkey. I had done it at least 4-5 times over Thanksgiving over the years. The challenge was, the stuffing. I never made turkey stuffing from scratch ever in my life.

So, I felt under the gun. The pressure was on. I had to deliver. The expectation was too much. So, back to the stuffing. The ingredients on the internet said celery, onions, garlic, butter, eggs, croutons or bread, salt, pepper, carrots, and chicken broth. So, I bought them. I did my best to mix them.

Thanksgiving Day. After 4 1/2 hours in the oven, the turkey was done. Nice and brown. Smells good, too. I sliced the turkey and started passing it out to everyone. Then, I urged everyone to try the stuffing and waited for their response. After a little bit of hesitation, I was relieved to hear that they love it. They really, really love it. The turkey was a success.

So, that was my Thanksgiving experience this year 2003, ala Philippine style. The bad news is, several of my friends want the recipe of the stuffing so they can prepare turkey for their respected families for Christimas and for any other occasions. I said great! Now, if I can only remember the right mix.

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