Most Thanksgiving dinner tables become too filled with food to hold large floral arrangements. If you receive large arrangements, place them on the coffee table or other central place where everyone can enjoy them. But if you’d like some decor on your table, opt for one of the following quick-and-easy ideas:
Cranberry-colored candles—either in candlesticks or pillars on the table.
Small cylindrical glass vases (think large tumblers—and you can use tumblers) filled with fresh cranberries and water, with one colorful Gerber daisy standing in each. Choose a contrasting seasonal color like orange.After the festivities are over, disperse the floral tumblers to add seasonal decor to small areas of the home—bathrooms and bedrooms, for example.
Savor the aroma of a great cup of tea. Photo
courtesy DenbyUSA.com.
Tea is a relaxing social tradition, where friends get together to talk and enjoy each other’s company. Why not invite friends over for tea during Thanksgiving weekend? Many people are in town to see their families, and tea is an easy way to bring people together.
Here are some ideas from THE NIBBLE and The Fitzgerald Hotel Group’s “Fitz to a Tea” November tea service.
Pumpkin Tea. Serve a “Pumpkin Tea” consisting of pumpkin bread, pumpkin cake, pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, pumpkin pie, pumpkin muffins and pumpkin scones. Have a some cranberry scones or muffins for those who don’t like pumpkin. Serve your favorite black tea, or try the Pumpkin Spice Tea from BigelowTea.com (KOF-K kosher) and Zhena Gypsy Tea (gypsytea.com, organic, Fair Trade and KSA kosher). Dragonwater.com has a caffeine-free (rooibos) pumpkin tea.
Thankful To A Tea. No matter how busy we are, we all can lend a hand—and we all could use one. In the spirit of Thanksgiving, host a “Wish List Tea.” All the participants submit in advance one reasonable request they hope someone else in the group can fulfill. It can be a night of babysitting, a used bicycle, the loan or donation of a black cocktail dress or size 9 red pumps, someone to explain home equity loans, etc.Teas the season to be thankful…and to relax with friends over a good cup of tea.
Along with all of the wine recommendations below, here’s our favorite holiday apéritif, a version of a Kir Royale (Champagne with framboise—raspberry liqueur).
Instead, serve Cranberry Royales as an apéritif this holiday season, a combination of cranberry liqueur and any sparkling wine.
1. First pour the cranberry liqueur into a Champagne flute—an inch or more, depending on how sweet you like your cocktails.
2. Then fill the flute with sparkling wine.
3. Don’t stir, or else give half a gentle stir with a swizzle stick (stirring destroys the bubbles).
You can make your own cranberry liqueur with two weeks’ lead time: There are many recipes online. You’ll have it in time for Christmas!
Find more cocktail ideas in our Cocktails & Spirits Section.
Serve Cranberry Royales before Thanksgiving
dinner. Photo courtesy SXC.
Lots of food needs lots of wine. Photo
courtesy iGourmet.com.
Red wine, white wine, rosé, bubbly…which wine should you serve with your turkey? No matter what the book says (a fruity red), your guests may not “read the book.”
Since some people are inveterate white wine drinkers, the best option is to offer both red and white with the turkey. We’ve provided some suggestions from THE NIBBLE and the National Turkey Federation:
In addition to the familiar names below, three transplants from the Alsace region of France—Gewürtztraminer, Pinot Blanc and Riesling, are widely grown in the U.S. and vinified for American palates. They’re reasonably priced, too. Your wine store clerk can guide you to great choices.
Suggestion: Why not serve several different wines and turn your Thanksgiving into a mini wine tasting, with votes on which wine goes best? Since guests often ask what they can bring, can assign a different wine to different guest.
WHITE WINES WITH TURKEY
Chardonnay. A perennial crowd favorite; just don’t try to pair a highly-oaked Chardonnay with turkey. Ask the wine store clerk for a non-oaked or lightly-oaked wine.
Gewürtztraminer. One of our favorites, this fruity, spicy wine complements smoked turkey and other bold flavors.
Pinot Blanc. This lesser-known but charming dry white wine has broad appeal.
Riesling. Not the classic sweeter-style Alsatian or German Rieslings that pair so well with foie gras, American Rieslings are dry-vinified.
Sparkling Wines. These range from pricier Champagnes to inexpensive Cavas from Spain. Either way, most people love a glass of bubbly. You can serve a glass as an apéritif as well as at the table.
RED WINES WITH TURKEY
For roast turkey (or chicken), you want a red that doesn’t overwhelm the turkey—one without heavy tannins.
Beaujolais. This French wine is a favorite among those who like lots of jammy fruit. While regular Beaujolais ages in barrels before its release, 10 days or so before every Thanksgiving, Beaujolais Nouveau—the unaged, fresh wine—arrives in the United States. It’s very light and fruity. Read more about it.
Pinot Noir. Our personal favorite and the top choice for Thanksgiving wines, based on a survey by readers of Wine Spectator. This medium-bodied wine pairs well with white meat, dark meat, and all of the dishes.
Zinfandel. Many wine connoisseurs serve this wine with their turkey—an American grape for the quintessential American holiday. It’s the most full-bodied and richest of the wines on our list.
