Thanksgiving - German Style

I made it through my first Thanksgiving away from home! It was definitely a challenge. The organization was left up to about 7 of us...all who were new to the concept. Everyone knows that Thanksgiving responsibilites are most often reserved for grandparents and other relatives experienced with cooking. So without any other obstacles, it still would have been quite a challenge. Then, one must consider that it is almost impossible to find many American specialty foods in Germany. The turkeys, which we only found because someone from a previous year tipped us off, cost 100 euro - for three. Even if you find the American food, it's severely overpriced. We were definitely working with a short ingredient list. Then, our resources were also extremely limited. Not financial resources, but more along the lines of 'kitchen resources.' After all was said and done, I think we used 7 differnet ovens in several different buildings simultaneously. Then, the turkeys were sent on a taxi, while we went on the subway with pies and such. We arrived an hour later than the planned start time, but it had not yet begun.

Six or seven round tables filled the room with a buffet table running along the side of the room. It was a big event. We pulled it off...almost perfectly. All of the work put into it (approx. time of cooking - 9am-5pm) makes the end result so much more satisfying.

Thanksgiving will never be the same for me. I will be able to appreciate it in the States so much more thoroughly! One thing I cannot forget to point out: I am so thankful for this craziness/stress involved in cooking. Without it, I would have ended up missing my family the entire day. Contrarily, I was busy enough to enjoy myself and not get sad. Thanksgiving is day for family, so of course my family was on my mind...but that's nothing new.