A Rafter of Turkeys - Happy Thanksgiving

charlie the attack turkey 20061122

 A group of turkeys is called a rafter because they like to roost in building rafters if they can find them. Otherwise, they will fly up into tree branches at night to sleep in safety.

Wild turkeys are native to North America. The Spanish brought them to Europe in 1519, so REVENA would not have had turkey on her dinner table. She would have chicken, partridge, geese, duck, and pheasant.

What might be the menu of one of REVENA's holiday meals? 

Menu items: pickled vegetables, cabbage chowder, creamed fish, roasted venison, mushroom pasties, mutton stew, haddock in brown ale, cherry, plum, and pear compote, custard tarts and pudding, and mulled wine. And bread.

You can find the recipes for these medieval foods on The British Museum's blog or check out Castle Life - Medieval Food & Cooking.

Here are the members of my rafter from oldest to most recent. This year's version is at the bottom.

turkey soylent green 20071122

turkey tail_thumb 20091123

turkey color 20091125

turkey relax 20101125

turkey glove 20131127

turkey nekked 20131128

turkey race 20171023

turkey parade rest inflated 20171122

turkey run forrest run 20171123

turkey dressed for the kill 20171123

turkey visitor 20180320

turkey collage 20181122

turkey cock of the walk 20191128

turkey zendangle 20201126

turkey purple nurple 20211124

Favorite Childhood Feel-Good Foods

 

I associate specific foods with certain people. All of my comfort foods come matrilineally. 

My Uroma (we’re Austrian on my mother’s side) lived in a communal farmhouse called Kaserermühl along the Mühlbach (mühl means mill.) She was born in 1891. When I stayed with her, she had the baker deliver Salzstangerl for me for breakfast. Uroma made the best broths, clear and rich with flavor.

My Oma and I went to the butcher often because back then you bought your food fresh for the day’s meals. He always had Leberkäse, still warm from the oven between two slices of fresh bread, ready for me for our visits. On really special occasions, we went to the Konditorei in Hallein for a Heiße Liebe (Hot Love), warm raspberry sauce over vanilla ice cream.

My mother bequeathed me Zúckerbrot, bread, butter, and sugar, a combination that is better than any drug to calm and soothe. She gave us Schmandi, eggs, milk, and a little flour cooked in butter and topped with sugar. I have yet to find it on the internets. The closest I have gotten so far is the Kaiserschmarrn, but that’s way more work than our humble fare.

I’ve given my daughter Sick Peoples’ Soup, basically a chicken broth egg drop soup with cream of wheat that I made her the many times she wasn’t feeling well. 

My grandson requests a plain toasted bagel topped with whipped cream cheese and cut into 6ths. According to him, this is perfection.

What do you consider the perfect feel-good food?