Thoughts on Thanksgiving
from the Nov. 3, 2007 Food for Thought Podcast … give this Thanksgiving history and menu episode a listen, it has some very interesting Thanksgiving history.
Most people don’t know that our contemporary customs at Thanksgiving, namely the serving of turkeys, were shaped and popularized by a magazine editor, Sarah Josepha Hale, in the mid-1800s. Whatever meaning we attribute to this Thanksgiving holiday is most certainly not lost (in fact, it is enhanced) by creating food-based rituals that affirm rather than take life, that demonstrate compassion and empathy rather than selfishness and gluttony, that celebrate the fact that no one need be sacrificed in order that we should eat. In today’s episode, I offer a number of different menus for a beautiful holiday feast that delights the senses and reflects our values.
But thank God, turkeys can’t talk. They can only gobble. And they are a bird. A very nervous bird. You’d be nervous too if you knew that one day someone was going to cut off your head, and fill your butt cavity with stuffing.
Turkeys bound for Farm Sanctuary would be the animal equivalent to Michelle Obama’s organic vegetables–an important reminder that food comes to our plate at a cost, one that–with the football and wine and what not–we often fail to recognize.
(a letter to the editor) With our community’s emphasis on buying locally-produced items, it’s easy to forget that there are other ethical issues regarding holiday purchases. If there will be a turkey on your table this Thanksgiving, you can be almost certain that he or she suffered a miserable life and death for your brief pleasure. There are no laws for the humane treatment of turkeys on farms or in the slaughterhouse. (Neither chickens nor turkeys are included in the Humane Slaughter Act.)
And some ideas for menus …
Going Vegetarian for Thanksgiving
Vegan Thanksgiving Recipes 2009 – A Feast by Robin Robertson
