Thanksgiving in Photos

I don't know if I've written on here that I just finished a photography class through UVU.  I LOVED it!  I learned so much and the class motivated me to practice and try out new techniques.  

Our Thanksgiving meal was perfect for me to shoot only in manual and to explore my camera and my creativity!  

My Aunt Kathy outdid herself and served us a meal straight out of Williams Sonoma magazine!

To start:  a mild pesto brie. (among other cheeses)

Oh and not pictured: Gravlax! (cured salmon, caught by Uncle Ken in Alaska)

Salad: Pecan pear with blue cheese and balsamic 

They were so nice to have Martinelli's for us, and plenty of other specialty drinks in the kitchen for us non-wine drinkers :)

Moist turkey baked to perfection:

This is my favorite shot of the night:   

And THIS was my favorite dish:  This recipe really was out of Williams-Sonoma:  Brown sugared yams with Granny Smith apple and roasted pecan and almond.  Really REALLY amazing!  (Don't worry, I got the recipe...)

Green beans al-dente with bacon bits and a light honey glaze:

Kathy kept pecans as the common thread between all the dishes. You better believe we learned how to roast pecans to perfection!

Stuffing with re-hydrated fig and cranberry, and pecans of course!

My next favorite photo of the meal:

We really splurged and got Ruby her first on-brand baby food.  Flavor: Turkey, rice and vegetables!  She liked it just fine, but we'll stick to straight veggies for a while...

  For dessert: 

Pumpkin cheesecake with dulce de leche gelato

and

Lemon Lime Meringue.  

Blow torched for beauty :) 

Fabulous food and fabulous company!

We ended the night with some "Gangnam" fun!  

(pictured left to right:  Aunt Kathy, BestaGirl, Uncle Ken, Mom, Bry)