A stack of winter squash makes a
Thanksgiving centerpiece that keeps for
weeks—and then can be eaten! Photo
courtesy HGTV. Here are more of their
centerpiece ideas.

Some people like a Thanksgiving centerpiece of flowers in seasonal colors, perhaps with some autumn leaves. We’ve been known to create cornucopias full of fruit and an elaborate bread basket decorated with cranberries, lady apples and garlands like [in the words of our father] a “Thanksgiving Christmas tree.”

One year, we held a pumpkin decorating contest, where guests brought their gourds from home, already designed. The winning pumpkin had the place of honor at the dining table, with others decorating the foyer and other areas of the home. The winner was a gorgeous pair of pumpkins seen on HGTV.com: a large pumpkin sprayed in copper metallic paint with pretty black hard candy decorations glued down the folds, and plain smaller pumpkins in silver metallic paint.

More ideas (see photos) here:

• A short glass vase layered with different whole nuts, with florists’ moss between the layers, topped with feathers.
• A vase of apples, attached to sticks to resemble a bouquet of roses.
• A glass vase or clear salad bowl filled with pomegranates, lady apples, clementines, fresh green leaves and metallic-sprayed pine cones.
• A stack of three heirloom winter squash—like flatter pumpkins but in different colors (remove the stems from the bottom two.

• A narrow, rectangular tray of candles in different heights and widths.
• A narrow, rectangulartray of colorful miniature gourds.
• A narrow, rectangular tray of lady apples.

But if there will be a lot of kids in attendance, the people’s choice award would go to a large chocolate turkey.

CHOCOLATE TURKEY CENTERPIECE

The handsome gobbler in the photo is a three-pound milk chocolate turkey from Moonstruck Chocolates. Nine inches tall (you can place it on a base for more height), its intricate details are personally hand-decorated by Moonstruck chocolatier Julian Rose.

It also makes a heck of an impressive hostess gift.

After dinner, you can appoint someone to “carve” the turkey (break it into pieces with a clean hammer). If everyone is too stuffed to eat it, you pack pieces into plastic sandwich bags to take home.

Three pounds of chocolate tom turkey. Photo courtesy Moonstruck Chocolate.

The turkey $100, which includes shipping, at MoonstruckChocolate.com.