A French Thanksgiving meal (if there ever was such a thing.)

After a week at school, I thought it would be nice to cook a Thanksgiving meal for my host family. As I've already mentioned, they mean a lot to me, and I really wanted to render thanks to them for being so hospitable and caring for me. And it was fun cooking. There is something therapeutic about cooking a meal that I'm sure every mom, every chef, every true food-lover savors. Cooking in France and elsewhere comes from the heart. It's something that you're doing to give of yourself to please other people. I think it's a selfless act to prepare a meal for another, because you think of others before yourself and aim to create something delicious and filling for family and friends. That means something special here in France, because the goal is to have a high quality of life and family meals are such an integral part of life. Whenever people gather together for a meal, it's huge. For me, cooking a Thanksgiving meal meant sharing my American traditions in cuisine and feeding a group of seven this evening.

I went with Nathy to the supermarket to purchase the goods for our meal. The only thing that really lacked was French fried onions (ironic, isn't it?) for the green-bean casserole. Instead, we substituted dried onion pieces that you find on the herbal aisle. We returned and I prepared to cook a meal for a French family. The chicken (instead of a turkey) was already in the oven cooking-- (I received help from Nathy on this part.) Next, I started making the stuffing with bread pieces, onions, celery, eggs, and herbs (a recipe I got from a friend). I put this dish in the oven, and then prepared a green bean casserole with all the necessary parts. After this, I peeled the potatoes to get ready to become mashed potatoes.

In the living room, we had an aperitif. For me, it was two drinks of white wine mixed with a fruit liqueur. While watching the soap opera, "Plus belle la vie," I was a little light-headed and felt slightly disoriented. Went back into the kitchen fine, set the table for seven, and voila. We ate together happily and with a humorous discussion. Nathy and some of the others especially liked the stuffing mixed with green bean casserole, topped off with sauce from the chicken. It was a delightful meal, and I received some nice compliments from my family. Such a great feeling to have pleased the kids and the adults. And to prepare Thanksgiving for a family, I felt honored to share an American tradition with my family-away-from-home.