As usual this year, I am making cranberry chutney as well as a basic cranberry sauce with orange zest to take to the Thanksgiving feast. And green beans, perhaps with some toasted pecans or caramelized lemons (or both?). And rolls — not that anyone needs or even wants more carbs, but these are yet another Thanksgiving tradition (and there are so many).
Really, one day is not enough to appreciate all the side dishes of Thanksgiving tradition, and one doesn’t always have leftovers, so I decided to make a meal of some classic sides before Thanksgiving. When you’re just making a couple of dishes, of course it’s much simpler, and this meal was so good I may do another variation or two of side dishes after the big feast.
Roasted brussels sprouts were on my menu
I made a wild rice-brown rice pilaf with onions and mushrooms, topped with toasted pecans — the cranberry chutney on the side (I’d made extra) really perked up this dish. And I had just bought a bag of nice little brussels sprouts from the farmers’ market, so those were roasted, with a little pomegranate vinegar on top.
And of course, there were baked sweet potatoes.
Maybe it wasn’t the most beautiful or original supper plate we ever had, but it was very satisfying to give full attention to some of Thanksgiving’s less glamorous sidekicks!
toby's kitchen notes 
Right now, it sounds like a perfect meal to me. And who says these dishes are less glamorous? For that matter, since when is a turkey glamorous? I mean, what do we call someone who is acting like an idiot? Do we say, “oh, you are such a pilaf!” — ???
Happy Thanksgiving, Toby!
Oh, Anna, that is hilarious! You are a true pilaf (I mean that in the best sense of the word.) A glamorous one, too.
Great Ideas, Toby! I just found a recipe for Pomegranate molasses that I used for a salad dressing. It’s easy, but it takes a while to reduce down.
Happy Thanksgiving!