We are not having any school this week, with the exception of Alexander who has two days of it at the college, so all we are doing is preparing for Thanksgiving. This year, we are sort of hosting. We are doing most of the cooking, and our friends are providing a house that is both larger and cleaner than ours. Another family, and perhaps another friend, will be joining us there. One nice thing about this is that I am not in a frenzy of house cleaning. Also, the other families are providing the hors-d'ouevres, some of the side dishes, and the drinks. And, they are taking care of the dishes! One family was asking what to bring and I suggested that if they preferred a sweeter cranberry sauce to my sharp/spicy relish, that they could bring that, but I don't know if they will. I also don't know if anyone has decided to make dressing/stuffing yet, so it's not on our menu plan. I decided to drop those, since they are the least favorite Thanksgiving dishes of our family. Everyone likes them, but not as much as they like the other things, so we always have quite a bit of it left over. Rich asked if I was interested in still making the wild rice dressing, but as it required my buying wild rice at a somewhat expensive price for something that might leave us with more leftovers than not, I decided against it. If I find some wild rice in the house, I might make a small amount for him this weekend, since he really does like it. I figure the mashed potatoes and turnips will provide enough of a starchy base for our casserole with what we have left over of those, and if not, I'll make some plain rice to add to the mix. I'm cheating a little with my one pie per person ratio this year. I'm making about 13 mini pies for most of the kids to meet the head count. That still means 11 full or larger size pies. And the kids will be able to have slices of the other pies, too, but this way, I won't break my record. It will be 24 pies plus Alexander's gingerbread and our friend's ice cream, so that's 26 desserts for 23 - 24 people. I can live with that.

Yasmina's name day is this week, but I'm not sure how we will mark it. Rich wants to make it to the Thanksgiving mass at church this week, but that is also still up in the air, as it depends on how much we have accomplished in the kitchen. Actually, I may suggest that he take some of the younger kids, or all of the kids, so either I can have real help in the kitchen, or no distractions. Anyway, we have a couple repeats this week, but mostly my goal is to cook just enough so we eat it all and don't take up any more space in the fridge than necessary, now that we are down to one fridge. Lunches are all leftovers this week - clear it out!

Below, I include our daily Bible readings which we use to read through the entire Bible each year. We read through all of the Old Testament and New Testament, reading the Psalms and Proverbs twice. Remember that the Psalms are according to eastern numbering in our daily Bible reading, also I Kings is the original designation, it is I Samuel in western Bibles (II Kings is II Samuel in the west, III Kings is I Kings, and IV Kings is II Kings, I Ezra is also called I Esdras in other translations, II Ezra is often translated as Ezra or II Esdras, though this is complicated by it sometimes being I Esdras being Ezra in modern language and II Esdras being Nehemiah, and in that case, there is a III Esdras, it really depends on which translation you read).

• Sunday Habbakkuk 1-3, Psalms 93:16–23, Proverbs 20:11–15, I Timothy 1
  Breakfast: Almond Butter Toast, Sliced Apples, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Leftovers
• Monday Zephaniah 1-3, Psalms 94, Proverbs 20:16–20, I Timothy 2
  Breakfast: Oatmeal with Brown Sugar, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Roasted Chicken Thighs and Legs Rubbed with Ancho, Cumin, and Oregano, Garlic-Cilantro Rice with Lime Juice, Sauteed Poblanos, Corn and Onions
• Tuesday Haggai 1-2, Psalms 95, Proverbs 20:21–25, I Timothy 3
  Breakfast: Almond Butter Toast, Bananas, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Pasta Bolognese, Garlic Bread, Salad
• Wednesday - Feast of Saint Catherine of Alexandria Zechariah 1-5, Psalms 96, Proverbs 21:1–5, I Timothy 4
  Breakfast: Toast with Labneh, Za'atar, Chopped Tomatoes and Olive Oil, Sliced Apples, Mint Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Quick Sesame Noodles with Cabbage and Onions, Mixed Greens with Sesame Ginger Dressing
• Thursday Zechariah 6-9, Psalms 97-98, Proverbs 21:6–10, I Timothy 5
  Breakfast: Pepper & Sausage Brunch Strata (using roasted pepper and onion sausage and shredded Italian cheeses), Fruit Plate, Hot Chocolate for a Crowd and Coffee
  Dinner: Herb Roasted Turkey, Bourbon Gravy, Ham (made by our friends), Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Shredded Brussels Sprouts with Toasted Pecans, Slow Cooked Creamed Turnips, Corn & Pepper Pudding, Salad (made by our friends), Sweet Potatoes with Marshmallow Topping (made by our friends), Non-COWS Green Bean Casserole (made by our friends), Pumpkin & Sweet Potato Rolls (I'm mixing them this year), Cranberry Horseradish Relish, Cranberry Cherry Pies, Chocolate Pecan Pies with Bourbon, Pumpkin Pies, Apple Pies with Almond Crumble, Nantucket Cranberry Pies, Gingerbread with Chantilly Cream, Homemade Ice Cream (made by our friends)
• Friday Zechariah 10-14, Psalms 99-100, Proverbs 21:11-15, I Timothy 6
  Breakfast: Pie, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Leftovers
• Saturday Malachi 1-3, Psalms 101:1-15, Proverbs 21:16–20, II Timothy 1
  Breakfast: More Pie and Gingerbread, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Leftover Casserole, Salad

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up.

Labels: Church Year, Family, Homemaking, Menu Plans, Name Day, St. Catherine of Alexandria, Tales from the Kitchen, Thanksgiving