In a year dominated by disease (mine), death (our beloved dog Jasper), and dysfunction (use your imagination), there still was much for my family to be thankful for.  And so I managed to pull it together for Thanksgiving, although apparently no one is going to give a me a gold star for my efforts (my family did say thanks, though).

I got a new wreath to add to my collection of Thanksgiving turkeys:

A few days before Thanksgiving I went to a flower arranging workshop at a local nursery with a few business associates, which helped get me in the Thanksgiving mood:

This was my creation from the workshop:

Inspired by the workshop, I created a pumpkin centerpiece for the table, using coleus from my garden and other plant materials:

I made marbleized mini pumpkins for the table too, intended to coordinate with the colors of the centerpiece:

I knew that everyone was expecting the usual turkey and carb-laden side dishes, so I looked for a new appetizer to make.  Having seen how popular Easter and Halloween deviled eggs are, I thought that Thanksgiving deviled eggs might be something to try.  I looked around the interwebs, and found a bunch of turkey deviled eggs:

Nah.

What I came up with was a creamy labneh dip.  I am currently obsessed with labneh, this brand in particular, which can be found in Middle Eastern grocery stores:

The dip is great with pita chips or even bagel chips.  I added it to a sort of mezze platter, and it went over well.  It’s really delicious and just different enough to be interesting.

The only ‘tude appropriate at Thanksgiving is gratitude