Disclaimer

Disclaimer: The thoughts presented in this blog are solely my own and are in no way the thoughts or beliefs of the Peace Corps or the United States Government.

Monday, November 28, 2011

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving this year was beautiful.  That is the only word I can think of to describe it.  Sitting down to dinner, an American to my left and a Burkinabé to my right, one of my fellow stagières (Peace Corps Trainee) recounted the Pilgrim and Native American Thanksgiving story.  A grand feast prepared in celebration of a successful harvest à grace de (because of but with a more positive connotation) the collaboration of two differing cultures.  Being new Pilgrims, I was amazed by the traditional meal we were able to pull off.
·         3 Turkeys:  2 prepared in a large double oven, the other in an oven we made.  The strapping young lads of the group dug a large hole, lined it with rocks, layered the bottom with coals, and place the marmite (cauldron?) containing turkey on top. 
·         Stuffing:  Apparently you cannot find sage in this country; however, with apples, bread, squash, and vegetable stock, we made it work.  It was amazing!
·         Green bean casserole:  So this was the dish of which I was in charge.  I found a very large can of green beans (because they are not in season right now) as well as a can of mushrooms.  I made some gravy from a packet and reduced it with the mushrooms.   I also fried some onions with an egg wash so it was pretty much legit French's green bean casserole. 
·         Fruit salad:  Ok, this part is not so traditional but we just couldn't pass up fresh pineapple, mangoes, and watermelon.
·         Mac-n-Cheese:  We spent way too much money on real cheese in Ouagadougou but it was totally worth it.  
·         Apple pie and Pumpkin pie:  everything from scratch...  real pumpkin and real apples...  I was so impressed. 
·         Sangria:  again, something that just happens in a tropical setting.
·         Cranberry sauce:  failed attempt... it wouldn't set in the heat but it’s the thought that counts. 
·         Mashed potatoes:  we even found real milk straight from the dairy.
·         Mashed sweet potatoes:  with pineapple.  So good. 
·         Cookies:  our boss makes fantastic chocolate chip cookies with a few extra tropical ingredients like coconut.
After a couple weeks of village starvation, most of us had a hard time digesting all of that meal.  

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