Our Thanksgiving, whether it be on the East or West Coast has had an Italian twist ever since I can remember. Growing up there was always the traditional antipasto platter and trays of lasagna before the turkey. The dinner ended with the typical pumpkin pie, but a box of pastry from Paterson Pastry Shop was mandatory.
Menu planning can often be daunting during these hectic weeks, so get out the paper & pencil and sketch out your Thanksgiving Day meal. Why not give your holiday an Italian twist by including some of the recipes from La Bella Sorella listed below. There is something for everyone at your table; dairy free, gluten free, vegetarian – you name it!
Wishing all of my readers a wonderful holiday filled with family, friends and good health.
Thanksgiving Appetizers & Prosecco
Bruschetta with Butternut Squash
Farro with Roasted Butternut Squash
Mushrooms Roasted in Parchment
Cavatappi with Butternut Squash
Radicchio, Walnut & Apple Salad with Parmigiano
Olive Oil Biscotti Scented with Rosemary & Lemon
Christmas and Hanukkah specialties coming soon, to subscribe to La Bella Sorella fill in the space below.
Thank you for this post, Paula! Going to take my time looking through them….my mom always made a lasagna and salad to start. Hours later we had the traditional Thanksgiving meal. I baked the pies and always, always friends would stop by for coffee and dessert with a box from Paterson Pastry.
Thank you for this memory, wishing you and your beautiful family a happy and healthy Thanksgiving.
xox
It’s no coincidence that we traveled similar paths Chris, the more things change the more they stay the same. Wishing you and your family a Happy Thanksgiving, the opportunity to continue the tradition and make more memories for our children.
Everything looks spectacular Paula what a wonderful array of special dishes! Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours my friend.
Thank you so much Marie, we are deep into the pre prep for the big day as I am sure you are. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family, wishing you the very best.
Looks delicious! We always celebrated Thanksgiving Italiano too–antipasto, pasta, turkey, some pork dish, and always pumpkin, Apple and pecan pie! Fond memories…
Isn’t that absolutely the best way to celebrate? We are a melting pot and proud to take the traditions we learned forward. A very Happy Thanksgiving Jennie.
Everything looks so appetizing… sharing it with the ones you love makes it all the more special ♥
Paula, I would like to thank you for your support and friendship. Wishing you and yours a very Happy Thanksgiving ♥♥♥
Maria, I look forward to your posts in that they are the connective tissue from which we have forged a lovely friendship. Family and friendship are what this holiday is all about, wishing you and your family a wonderful holiday filled with good food, laughs, warmth and love.
Love all your recipes. I think I’ll make the butternut bruschetta this weekend. Growing up we always had Thanksgiving at my grandmother’s house and she made the best stuffing-we’ve always just called it “Italian stuffing”. I’ve tried many times to replicate it, but it’s never as delicious as hers. It has Italian sausage, some kind of nuts, and I think she mixed a lot of eggs into the bread. Maybe I’ll try it again this year!
I know the “Italian Stuffing” only too well as my Mom always prepared it and it did included eggs and sausage. We never actually had a recipe and my niece tried to replicate it a few times with some success but not nearly the same. I don’t think it is a coincidence that the stuffing of our parents and grandparents reflected the traditions of the old world with what they found here. Have a most wonderful Thanksgiving with friend and loved ones Janie. Thank you for your support and the friendship we have forged over our love of all things Italian.
Ah, thePaterson Pastry Sop. Growing up there, even our Eastern European household incorporated an Italian cookie tray in our important celebrations….including the reception at my parents house after the reception for our wedding!
Ellen, I can just see the lines at the Paterson Pastry Shop and those cookie trays lining the counters. That was certainly an iconic part of Paterson growing up and everyone, regardless of ethnic background or religion loved the place. Wishing you and yours a wonderful Thanksgiving and thank you for stopping by to comment.
Interesting group of delicious looking recipes to try! Not Italian but love the cuisine and grew up surrounded by Italians near Detroit. Then in AZ a coworker who was a close friend and also Italian told me about her dad’s Italian style stuffing. No recipe, just explained as similar to “traditional Thanksgiving stuffing” but with quite a bit of wild rice with the bread (I used about 1/3 rice-2/3 bread), Italian sausage, mushrooms and more Italian herbs added to the mix. I tried it and it WAS really super, no complaints and no leftovers. Maybe time to revisit that along with one of your recipes for a new twist this year. Happy Thanksgiving!
The Italian Stuffing always included sausage and depending upon your geographic location perhaps a bit of rice and bread. My Mom always used eggs, onions and celery as well. That stuffing was a meal on its own! I hope you do try one of the recipes I have posted and please let me know what you thought of it. Wishing you and your family a wonderful Thanksgiving. Thank you for taking the time to share your memories.
That Bruschetta with Butternut Squash is simply begging to be made this weekend! All our holidays started off with mamma’s lasagna and I can never truly replicate it but we never actually cooked a whole turkey. These are all mouthwatering choices Paula! Wishing you and yours the very best for Thanksgiving surrounded with dear friends, family and lots of yummy foods!
I just love that bruschetta, really a meal in and of itself. Thank you so much for your kind words and support Marisa. Although I realize that you Thanksgiving has past, cherish your family in the days ahead.
What a lovely collection of recipes ! Happy Thanksgiving to you too .
Grazie Frank, the very same to you and yours.
All of those choices seem delicious, but the ravioli with butternut squash is what I hunger for. I typically make it as a first course for Thanksgiving, and while I wish I were doing it this year, I have to admit, I’m cutting out the pasta course for several reasons. One, we are normally so stuffed to eat the rest of the food, two, how to juggle all the pots on the stove, and third, maybe most importantly – my energy level is waning as I get older. I need to make it easy for myself. Buon giorno di ringraziamento.
Linda, all of those reasons have run through my head often in the days leading up to Thanksgiving – especially the addition of the trays of ravioli and pots which need to be cleaned. That being said we have a long standing tradition in which my husband & daughter along with a family friend & his son prepare the pasta early Thanksgiving morning and no one wants to let it go. As much as I love having a crowd on Thanksgiving Day I always look forward to online shopping in my pjs on Friday. Buon Fest di Ringraziamento a voi.
I’m back to say I was premature in my comments. I decided to make the pasta dough and the ravioli filling the day before, then got everyone in the act (after prosecco and hors d’oeuvres) to roll out the dough and make the big, fat ravioloni. Each one was topped with a raw egg, then I dropped them into the boiling water and retrieved them to place in the pan with the butter and sage. We got it done, assembly line style (topped with parmigiano) while the turkey was resting and the side dishes were in the oven. So I guess I’m still having pasta first course next Thanksgiving too. It was worth it.
Linda, I noticed that on your IG feed and I must say, making the ravioloni was genius. The pasta course remains without the fuss of preparing so many ravioli; they look absolutely delicious, my mouth was watering. It’s all in the teamwork and such a lovely way to get the family engaged in the holiday preparations.