- Jun 12, 2014
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Founding Member
Nothing says “Thanksgiving“ like unbuckling your belt, opening your pants, and sitting down for a little dessert after downing those two heaping plates of turkey and dressing with giblet gravy, sweet potato casserole (if it’s got marshmallows it’s called “soufflé“ down south), green beans, yeast rolls, etc. The question is, what is your go-to? Traditional or something you might not necessarily associate with the holiday?
As a man who’s lived his entire life in the Panhandle and who’s roots are in LA (Lower Alabama for you feather legs) and Southeast Georgia, traditional is the way we roll at the holiday table. Likewise with our desserts. Whether it’s just the immediate family (five of us) or the extended version (20-25), there’ll always be pies. Pumpkin, Sweet potato, and old fashioned coconut custard. These are what my aunts and grandma always made. Rarely a cake. I guess the pies, usually made in sets of two, were quicker to turn out after spending a couple of days with the turkey, maybe a ham, the dressing, and the smorgasbord of casseroles, vegetables, and other support dishes.
Pumpkin, Sweet Potato, and Coconut are all fantastic. The first two are pretty synonymous with Thanksgiving and Fall in general and are the piece de resistance for the day’s meals. If I had to pick only one to eat, it’d be pumpkin. Aunt Snooks (my granddaddy’s older sister) made one with condensed milk that was out of this world and it’s the recipe we use to this day. Just something about the fall spices in a perfectly textured filling with a browned, flaky crust and I’m two slices away from a sugar coma.
So pumpkin does it for me. What do you like to top off the meal? More traditional or something not necessarily associated? Is your favorite influenced by where you’re from, where you are now, how your family dines? I’m always interested in learning more about different traditions.
As a man who’s lived his entire life in the Panhandle and who’s roots are in LA (Lower Alabama for you feather legs) and Southeast Georgia, traditional is the way we roll at the holiday table. Likewise with our desserts. Whether it’s just the immediate family (five of us) or the extended version (20-25), there’ll always be pies. Pumpkin, Sweet potato, and old fashioned coconut custard. These are what my aunts and grandma always made. Rarely a cake. I guess the pies, usually made in sets of two, were quicker to turn out after spending a couple of days with the turkey, maybe a ham, the dressing, and the smorgasbord of casseroles, vegetables, and other support dishes.
Pumpkin, Sweet Potato, and Coconut are all fantastic. The first two are pretty synonymous with Thanksgiving and Fall in general and are the piece de resistance for the day’s meals. If I had to pick only one to eat, it’d be pumpkin. Aunt Snooks (my granddaddy’s older sister) made one with condensed milk that was out of this world and it’s the recipe we use to this day. Just something about the fall spices in a perfectly textured filling with a browned, flaky crust and I’m two slices away from a sugar coma.
So pumpkin does it for me. What do you like to top off the meal? More traditional or something not necessarily associated? Is your favorite influenced by where you’re from, where you are now, how your family dines? I’m always interested in learning more about different traditions.
