a thankful thanksgiving
In my weekly menu newsletter, I gave thanks to all my clients, friends and families who have made Dawn’s Dinners such a huge success. I mentioned the military and our government for keeping us safe and free. But, in the vein of food, I thought I would take this opportunity to thank those thankless food items that make our lives so much better.
The Fruit. For the bright and the dull, the sweet, the sour and the savory, the round and the obscure, the sugar filled, the soft, the hard and those with pits, the seeded and the aromatic. To the fruit that keeps us regular, to those that keep us healthy. I am thankful for the plentiful fruit that we have access to here in Santa Clarita, the fruit that shows up in our stores but is grown so far away. I appreciate the locally grown fruit too, the ones that our own farmers haul to the market, piece by piece by piece.
The Vegetables. Celery, Carrots, Artichokes, Asparagus, Green Beans, Broccoli, Cauliflower, Eggplant, Lettuce, Mushrooms, Kale, Cucumbers, Squash, Peas, Peppers, and Corn. Do I need to say more? I am thankful for the vitamins that these provide, their versatility and convenience, the fact that these vegetables fill us and sustain us and that they can be substituted and combined. I appreciate the diversity in colors, shapes and sizes and that vegetables are universally understood.
Dairy. From the farms to the trucks to the packagers to the stores and finally to the consumers, dairy products fill our bodies with protein, fat, carbohydrates, and vitamins. With cream, butter, milk, casein, cheese, whey and yogurt, I am grateful that these items exist to keep our bones strong, to nourish our young, to dampen cereal, to cream soups and potatoes, to moisten ingredients in recipes, to match meat in a sandwich, to snack or dine with, to help make rich as in a sauce, or simply for the taste of it. I am thankful for those dairy farmers who are still around and the creameries that make artisan cheese. I am grateful for the “anti cheese” or the non-dairy that my brain disdains but my lactose-intolerant body prefers.
Proteins in the form of chicken, lamb, beef, pork, duck, duck, goose, fish, and turkey, to name a few. I am thankful that I live in such a century that I do not have to hunt and fish, slaughter, skin, pluck, or drain any animal that I do not wish to. I appreciate the shiny counters above clean and clear glass encasing gorgeous specimens of meat and fish that give me inspiration for dishes and meals to serve my family and through my business. I am grateful for the selection and quantity available to me. I am grateful for these animals whose meat we enjoy.
I am thankful for carbohydrates including beans, grains, potatoes and rice. To the fillers of our culinary being, I salute you. For Thanksgiving would hardly exist with out sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, rice, bread, and pie crust. I am grateful to the corn and wheat farmers who labor to make the flours, meals, sugars, syrups and oils that make cooking and baking accessible to us all.
I am sure that there are other items that I have forgotten to thank like coffee and chocolate. To any food product that may not fit into a paragraph above, I apologize and appreciate your contribution to my thighs and waist line. The byproducts are working their magic on me – Fat, L-Triptophan and Caffeine. For these, I am not so thankful.
Happy Thanksgiving from my house to yours!
Dawn
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This is so great, how creative! And perfect coming from you.
Thanks Julie! I didn’t think anyone saw this post.