This Menu and the accompanying recipes are from the November 1983 Gourmet Magazine article titled *Cuisine Courante - An Alternative Thanksgiving*. Here is the introduction:

Quote -

YES — we know turkey is traditional. And if Mom had ever tried to serve anything else (with the possible exception of country ham) we’d have shrieked.

Times have changed, however, and eating habits with them. Turkey for the holidays is no longer everyone’s idea of bliss. Whole-grain breads and fresh fruits and vegetables galore have moved from laid-back communes into the national mainstream. So, for those who’d like a non-poultry Thanksgiving this year, we offer an alternative menu: succulent cod with a leek, brown rice, and oyster stuffing, lots of vegetables in various permutations, and a dessert of baked apples with cranberries ( a little tradition ins a healthy thing), walnuts, and a silky maple syrup suace.

Just don’t tell Mom.

- End Quote

In the same issue was another menu, * A Southwestern Thanksgiving Dinner*, articles on Nut Pies, Guatemalan Country Cooking, a Scandinavian Thanksgiving in North Dakota, and Gourmet Christmas Gifts… along with numerous recipes including Baked Pear Pudding, Melted Camembert and Pear Sandwiches, and Sauteed Pears with Currant Sauce.

As usual, Gourmet Magazine is awash with run-on sentences. I’ll try to break them up for clarity!

So… without further ado, enjoy an alternative Thanksgiving!

Tink

*When I dream, I cook and bake like an artist!*

Pumpkin Filled Corn Crepes

INGREDIENTS
one quarter cup minced shallots
1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/3 cups canned pumpkin purée
two thirds cup cottage cheese
one quarter cup minced scallions
six tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan
18 corn crepes (recipe follows)
melted unsalted butter for brushing the crepes

INSTRUCTIONS
In a heavy skillet:
cook the shallots in the butter over moderate heat, stirring, until they are softened,
add the pumpkin purée and cook the mixture stirring for one minute

In a food processor w/a steel blade or in a blender:
purée the mixture with the cottage cheese
transfer the purée to a bowl
add the scallions, three tablespoons of the Parmesan, and salt and pepper to taste

Spread one rounded tablespoon of the filling on each crepe and fold the crepe in quarters to form a wedge

Arrange the crepes, overlapping slightly, on a buttered ovenproof platter. Brush them with the melted butter and sprinkle them with the remaining three tablespoons Parmesan

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F

Bake the crepes in the middle oven for eight to 10 minutes or until the Parmesan is melted

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Corn Crepes

INGREDIENTS
1 cup cooked corn
three large eggs
three quarter cup milk
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup yellow cornmeal (preferably stoneground)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter - melted and cooled
1 teaspoon salt
Tabasco to taste
1/4 cup minced scallions
melted unsalted butter for brushing the pan

INSTRUCTIONS
In blender or food processor w/steel blade:
blend the corn, the eggs, the milk, the flour, the cornmeal, the butter, and the salt for 30 seconds

Turn off the motor and scrape down the sides with a rubber spatula
blend the batter for 30 seconds more

Transfer the batter to a bowl.

Stir in:
Tabasco
scallions

Let the batter stand, covered with plastic wrap, for one hour

Heat a six to 7 inch crepe pan (preferably iron) over moderate heat until it is hot:
Brush it lightly with the melted butter. Heat the butter until it is hot but not smoking

Stir the batter well. Fill a 1/4 cup measure 3/4 full with batter and pour the batter into the pan.

Tilt and rotate the pan quickly so that the batter covers the bottom with a thin layer and return any excess batter to the bowl

Return the pan to the heat, loosen the edge of the crepe from the pan with a metal spatula and cook the crepe until the underside is browned lightly

Turn the crepe and cook it until the underside is browned lightly

Transfer the crepe to a plate or a sheet of wax paper

Make crepes with the remaining batter in the same manner.
Brush the pan lightly with the melted butter as necessary

Stacked the crepes and keep them covered.

The crepes may be frozen, stacked and wrapped in plastic wrap

This recipe makes about 18 crepes

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Baked Stuffed Cod With Leeks

INGREDIENTS

For the stuffing:
the white part of 1 pound leeks, halved lengthwise, washed well, and sliced thin crosswise
1/2 stick (one quarter cup) unsalted butter
2 cups cooked brown rice
12 oysters shucked, drained, and chopped
1 large egg yolk beaten lightly
2 tablespoons dry whole-grain breadcrumbs
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley leaves
1 teaspoon grated lemon rind

For the fish:
2 large leeks, roots trimmed
a 6 to 7 pound cod - haddock and gill bones removed, the fish cleaned, split along the stomach to within 2 inches of the tail, with backbone removed
vegetable oil for brushing the fish

INSTRUCTIONS

For the stuffing

In a heavy skillet:
cook the leeks in butter, covered, over moderately low heat
stir occasionally for five minutes or until it is soft
transfer it to a bowl

add:
rice
oysters
egg yolk
breadcrumbs
parsley
lemon rind
salt and pepper to taste
Combine the stuffing well.

For the fish

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F

In a large saucepan of boiling salted water:
boil the whole two leeks for five minutes
transfer them carefully with a slotted spoon to a colander
refresh them under running cold water

Remove the leeks’ leaves in one piece, one at a time
slit the lower part of each leaf lengthwise along the stalk

Rinse the leaves under running cold water
lay them flat on paper towels
pat them dry

Fold and crimp together two large pieces of foil to form a piece large enough to enclose the cod.

Brush the foil well with the oil

Put the cod in the center of the foil and brush the skin on both sides with the oil

Season the inside of the cod well with salt and pepper, spread the stuffing in it, and reform the fish

Beginning in the large end of the cod:
lay the leak leaves one at a time, overlapping slightly over the fish and tuck the ends under

Crimp the edges of the foil together to enclose the cod completely.

With a ruler measure the thickness of the cod at its thickest point

Slide the cod diagonally onto a large baking sheet and bake it in the middle of a preheated hot oven 425°F for 10 minutes per inch of thickness

Open the foil carefully, cut the cod crosswise, following the lines of the leak leaves, into 1 inch slices, and transfer the slices with a spatula to a heated platter

Serves six

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Steamed Broccoli With Wheat Germ And Lemon

INGREDIENTS
2 pounds broccoli - separated into flowerets with stalks cut crosswise into 1/4″ slices
1/4 cup butter unsalted
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons plain wheat germ

INSTRUCTIONS

In a vegetable steamer set over boiling water:
steam the broccoli, covered, for five to seven minutes or until it is just tender but still crisp

Melt butter and combine with lemon juice

Transfer it to a heated platter and drizzle it with the butter mixture

Season the broccoli with salt and pepper and sprinkle it with the wheat germ

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Buttered Carrot And Turnip Dice

INGREDIENTS
3/4 pound rutabagas peeled and cut into 1/3″ dice
3/4 pound carrots cut into 1/3″ dice
3/4 pound turnips peeled and cut into 1/3″ dice
1/4 cup unsalted butter

INSTRUCTIONS

In a kettle of boiling salted water:
boil the rutabagas for two minutes
add the carrots and boil the mixture for three minutes
add the turnips boiled vegetables for three to five minutes or until they are just tender and drain them

In a large heavy skillet:
heat the vegetables in the butter over moderately low heat stirring for three to five minutes or until they are heated through

Season well with salt and pepper and transfer them to a heated serving dish

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Baked Apples With Cranberries And Walnuts

INGREDIENTS
2/3 cup cranberries picked over and chopped
2/3 cup walnuts toasted lightly and chopped
6 tablespoons unsalted butter softened
2 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
6 baking apples - halved lengthwise, cored with a melon ball cutter leaving 1/2″ cavity and rubbed with  lemon half
1 1/2 cups maple custard syrup (recipe follows)

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F

In a small bowl combine and mix well:
cranberries
walnuts
4 tablespoons butter
maple syrup
sugar

Divide the mixture among the cavities in the apple halves and arrange the apples in a baking pan just large enough to hold them in one layer

Dot the apples with the remaining two tablespoons butter
Add 1 cup boiling water carefully to the pan
Bake the apples, covered with foil in the middle of the oven for 35 to 40 minutes, or until they are just tender

Serve the apples warm or let them cool to room temperature in the cooking liquid

Transfer the apples to serving plates and serve them with the maple custard sauce

**********************

Maple Custard Sauce

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup maple syrup
3 large egg yolks
1 cup half-and-half
1 teaspoon vanilla

INSTRUCTIONS

In a saucepan:
reduce the maple syrup over moderate heat to about one third cup
let it cool for 10 minutes

In a bowl:
whisk the egg yolks
add the syrup in a stream, whisking
whisk the mixture until it is combined well

Add the half-and-half scalded, in a stream, stirring

Transfer the custard to a heavy saucepan

Cook the custard over moderately low heat:
stir until it thickens (candy thermometer registers 180 degrees F)
Do not let it boil

Remove the pan from the heat
stir in the vanilla

Strain the sauce through a fine sieve into a metal bowl set in a bowl of ice
let it cool, stirring occasionally
chill it, covered, for a least one hour or up to two days