An American Thanksgiving in Germany

November 30, 2013

While everyone back home gathered around a turkey last Thursday, a group of twelve Americans, Germans, and a French girl celebrated a great American Thanksgiving over a week ago. Wednesday was Buß- und Bettag, a religious and state holiday in Saxony, so we all had the day off. Nothing was opened so it was the perfect time to prepare a feast and enjoy. We also watched A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (It was my first time seeing it!) and Remember the Titans in German so that football would be a part of the festivities.

American food is difficult for me to describe. I refuse to claim McDonald’s as typical especially since I haven’t eaten it in years, rather I take great pleasure in dipping my spoon into the American melting pot and tasting cuisines from all over the world, slightly adapted for the American palate. While the following ingredients are certainly not confined to the United States, the Americas are abounding in sweet potatoes, corn meal, cranberries, squashes, Libby’s canned pumpkin, brown sugar, molasses, and vanilla extract. None of these ingredients are easy to find in Germany, and once found they are not cheap.

Although I love to make things from scratch, Libby’s canned pumpkin is a wonderful thing. However, it was not available so I had to make pumpkin purée in order to make pumpkin bread. Although good, it wasn’t as delicious as when my Aunt makes it. I blame it on the different pumpkins available here. When making my Aunt Mary’s addictive Corn Bread Stuffing, I also made my own corn bread and biscuits. And of course no Thanksgiving meal is complete without cranberry sauce so fresh cranberries were cooked in sugar and orange juice until they popped into a bright red sauce. I also contributed an apple pie that looked more like a tart. We don’t have a pie pan and Chris (the American who hosted the event and was in charge of Turkey, more stuffing, mash potatoes, gravy, and a green bean casserole) let me borrow a tart dish. I work with the tools available to me.

I don’t think I’ve ever fully explained the craftiness required to cook in our kitchen. My apartment came partly furnished. Partly is particularly noticeable in the kitchen. Early on I bought a bowl for fruit, a loaf pan, a range of Tupperware containers, and a strainer. (A grater was soon added to my collection. No one has enough time to “grate” with a paring knife.)

My fruit bowl soon developed the ability to turn into a mixing bowl, and my loaf pan into a baking dish for delicious fish and baked chicken. The wire rack shelf in the oven now doubles as a cooling rack. We have only one measuring devise. I can easily use it to find 300 g of sugar or estimate 120 g of flour, but what about pumpkin purée? Setting the oven temperature is another concern. It’s not as simple as turning the dial to the correct temperature. The type of heat must also be chosen. Cooking and baking is thus a guessing game; everything is estimated and approximated. The constant uncertainty makes anything that turns out a cause for celebration!

On Tuesday the Christmas Markets opened! I went briefly with Judith, a friend from choir, and her friends to see the giant Christmas tree light up and hear the band of children play Christmas songs. After an hour or so, we left the festivities for our now weekly language exchange. She helps me with German, I help her with English, and we both get to know each other in the process. It is a wonderful time!

In the last few weeks, opportunities to improve my German have increased dramatically. I have two German language classes on Thursdays, I meet with Judith on Tuesdays, and I will hopefully have a set weekly time with my new Sprachtandum partner shortly. The Sprachtandem program is through the local university and is essentially a formal version of what Judith and I are doing.

Oh! I almost forgot to share the biggest news from the last week. On Tuesday, the same day the Christmas markets opened, we finally got Internet in our apartment! The next morning I woke up sick. I don’t think the two are related; however, it is nice to have a connection to the outside world while I confine myself to my room. I hope I feel better soon, though, the Christmas Markets are not to be missed!