Happy Thanksgiving!

Again, THREE BIG CHEERS for another amazing adventure into unknown culinary territory for our polucky Thanksgiving menu.  So far we've had 2 'traditional' (if unconventional) Thanksgiving holidays here in the Southern Hemisphere which at the time, we welcomed.  The first year here....it was great to have familiar food for once.  The next year we hosted a house-full of foreigners and it was fun to show them share with them some new things.  But since deciding to branch out, covered the middle-east (amazing), Cuba (holy smokes), and tonight, we went back to America but....travelled deep into the bayou with a full-on Creole menu.  Three American families and 5 chefs with ZERO Creole cooking or even TASTING experience put an unbelievable spread.  Who knows what jambalaya is supposed to taste like?  If we even came close I'll say I"m ready for the 'real' thing if anyone wants to show me b/c what came to our table was so amazing.

Our Kariba/Kafue crawfish did not come through, but in the end this was fine.  I am half glad it didn't b/c as much as I wanted to EAT crawfish I really did not want to FIX the crawfish. Here it really is louisiana crawfish --it's an invasive species and there is no market for it... the crawfish are having the time of their lives on a never-ending zambian safari.  I am assuming the crawfish originally came as part of a fisheries development project?  Officially sanctioned or not, I'd say it was a total bust. I'll see if I can find out more.

Instead we enjoyed: Joburg Jambalaya (w/ chicken, haddock and boerwors), creole-rubbed-village-chicken, and cajun calamari poppers...the kids had what I thought was a gigantic platter of panko-friend chicken (it looked giant but 6 kids scarfed it down in about 3 mintues), an anaemic watermelon, a bag of granny smith apples, green herb salad, sweet tea...and dessert - a pear pumpkin tarte, a Chipata sweet potato pie and creme caramel.

Next year?  Mediterranian? Chinese? Hawaiian? I already can't wait. 

Sadly, so very sadly, we are soon saying goodbye to our bestest LSK friends and the bestest family who have been with us for these Thanksgiving cooking adventures -  maybe we'll have to have Thanksgiving in Uganda and share our Thanksgiving feast on the shores of LakeVictoria next year.

Road Trip!

PS Thanksgiving Thursdays mean...strangely the kids have school and their normal school day.... the kids finished their homework and swam for an hour before dinner.... and will be up and off to school at 7.....but the best part....Someone will sneak into the kitchen at 8am and finish up ALL THE DISHES.  Sweeeeeet.

This has nothing to do with our thanksgiving dinner.  But I suppose it does have everything to do with being thankful, living life and just accepting that sometimes things happen for just no reason.  Good things, bad things, good reasons, bad reasons, and no reason at all.  Sometimes we ask WHY -- like: why in the WORLD are there 4 men on 4 horses coming down the walk on Independence Avenue?!? Sometimes we get answers. Sometimes we just should sit back see what comes our way.

Howdy, Madam.