We have so much to be thankful for in 2021. Scientists have developed a successful vaccine and the Biden Administration has made it freely available for all citizens.

Of course COVID-19 remains a threat as new variants appear throughout the world, but this year I was able to  gather with my “boosted” family for a shared meal of Thanksgiving.

COVID-19 is still  threat and we take the precautions of masking up when we go grocery shopping. My nephew took it one step further.

The Turkey

Cooking a ridiculously large bird is always a challenge, but we manage. We drape it with bacon which coats it with fat as it cooks and offsets any health benefit from eating low fat poultry. As a side benefit the bacon can be peeled off the skin after the roasting is complete. It will be cooked to perfection.

Blue Jays

Once the bird is in the oven, there is some down time before preparation of side dishes. Ironically as we cook one bird for our meal, we headed outside to feed peanuts to a different species.

My son has been feeding Blue Jays for some time and they have quickly adapted to his presence. The Jays are in the Corvid family and are smart birds. They swoop down to pick up the peanuts and may go to lengths to hide them from the other Jays. Sometimes they weigh them, looking for the biggest nut. It was great fun watching them.

The Feast

When is a turkey fully cooked? Always a bit of a guess since different parts are at different temperatures.

Making home style gravy is actually quite easy, Simply screw off the jar lid and dump.

My sister and wife do an excellent job with carving the bird. I was whipping up some mashed potatoes with the kitchen aid mixer I found at the Green Center. That beast does a wonderful job.

My daughter prepared some stuffed mushrooms . It was busy around that kitchen island, and that is what i missed last year when we all lived under lockdown.

Family

I am also thankful for family. I didn’t see much of them last year which made this reunion even more precious. Here are some family photos from Thanksgiving. I’m missing one of my brother-in-law Brad. That was out of focus. My son Josh had a cold and was not able to attend.