A Puerto Rican-American Thanksgiving

For the past 2 Thanksgivings, I was in Argentina. While the first year I did host a little potluck, it was far too hot in my AC-less apartment to eat traditional foods. This year, I moved into a new apartment with Pedro only a few days before Thanksgiving. I was still determined to make this dinner happen. Here’s our little thanksgiving story.

A Little Festival of Nations, if you will

Pedro is Puerto Rican. Puerto Ricans celebrate all American holidays (as well as some of their own) but seeing as they live on a tropical island, the food they make is a bit different. Pedro and I decided we would have a mash up of cultures, mixing in a little bit of America, Puerto Rico, and even a bit of Argentina.

The Menu

Pavochón (Puerto Rican)
Stuffing (American)
Corn (Both)
Mashed Potatoes (Both)
Carrots and Brocolli (Mostly just for me)
Pumpkin Pie (American)
Tembleque (Puerto Rican)
Malbec Wine (Argentina)

Boys try so hard…

Pedro works long hours, so it was difficult for us to coordinate our Thanksgiving shopping trip. In the end, he was too tired to go on our agreed upon night, so he took on the shopping by himself the next day. It didn’t occur to me that a Puerto Rican boy might not know how to properly shop for Thanksgiving groceries

I had written the list for myself, so things like “pilsbury rolls or generic equivalent” and “Malbec wine” painted a very specific picture in my mind. However, the image did not transfer to Pedro. When I came home, I discovered these “rolls” were what he had purchased:

What the hell is that? I also discovered that he had bought Yellow Tail Malbec. Normally, I wouldn’t snub my nose quite so severely at this budget wine, but seriously,Malbec wine should come from Argentina, not Australia!

This lead to a 10:30pm trip to the grocery store the night before Thanksgiving so I could remedy these issues.

Girls vs. Boys.

Sweating and Stuffing

Since Pedro was taking care of the Pavochón (turkey prepared and spiced like Lechón, a traditional Puerto Rican pork dish) he was also enlisted to make the stuffing. In all honesty, I should have expected he would need help with something that doesn’t really exist in Puerto Rico. However, on Thanksgiving morning, my main objective was burning as many calories as possible.

I holed myself up in my office and did an Insanity workout for a little under an hour. When I went to the kitchen to refill my water, I found Pedro, saying he had just texted me (from the next room) and needed my help with the stuffing. I insisted I still had more working out to do. He insisted the turkey needed to be stuffed right then. The compromise? Working out in the kitchen.

Workout mat rolled up next to the fridge.

So in between grabbing toast out of the toaster and stirring melting butter, I was doing high knees, jumping jacks, tricep dips, and a wide variety of other exercises. As Pedro chopped and asked for reassurance that he was doing things correctly, I huffed through my answers as I did some extra butt kicks. He rolled his eyes at my refusal to stand still – but in the end, the stuffing was made and I got the extra workout in that I wanted!

We actually pulled it off

Seeing as we were winging this dinner for the most part, we were both very impressed with the results. Everything turned out perfectly. The Pavochón was tender and juicy. The mashed potatoes were the perfect consistency with just the right amount of salt and butter. The stuffing that we had invented that morning was delicious. Plus, it all went down wonderfully with a tall class of Septima Malbec from Mendoza, Argentina.

Even our international desserts turned out beautifully.

Two whole pumpkin pies and 6 minis!

Tembleque – Puerto Rican coconut pudding

Eating is wonderful

It was so great to spend a simple American holiday back in the US in a new apartment. Plus, we had no one to impress. My older brother swung by for a plate and two friend stopped by later for a snack, but it was mostly just for us. The best part is we have tons of leftovers, which is perfect for someone like me, who avoids cooking at all costs. Happy Post Thanksgiving to me!