Lexington Co-Op Thanksgiving Extravaganza

I read somewhere the other day that the Co-op would have a holiday meal with all the trimmings, open to all on Saturday from 11am-2pm. I don't know if they feature food every Saturday but I've been there before to sample their tasty tidbits. There was so much delicious food today that I think I must review all items in list format.

1. Organic Mashed Yams: If I ever have kids, this is all that I will feed them.

2. Sparkling Pear, Apple and Cranberry Juices: Pear was lively, cranberry was insipid and I skipped the apple because I didn't want to appear greedy.

3. Cheese, glorious cheese: Three kinds of cheese to sample! There was a fine Lively Goat cheese, which I think is local. Also a triple cream cheese with champignon that was velvety and luscious. And would you believe that I mentioned Old Chatham Camembert last week and they must have read my blog because it was waiting there for me to try. I liked it, it had a texture like goat cheese except slightly less creamy and more dense. I especially liked the crackers, or, excuse me, flatbread, it was served with. Suzie's something or other with rosemary, delicious.

4. Organic, free-range, massaged and pampered turkey: It was good but I have to admit, I really don't taste a difference with the conventional turkey. Maybe my palette is dull.

5. Cranberry Sauce: I normally hate it when people mess with my cranberries. No Grand Marnier, no vanilla beans, no, no, no! This had apples or something in it and I did not hate it.

6. Two really good dips: Some buttery bleu cheese spread and asiago-artichoke dip. I paused to think about how much mayonnaise, sour cream and cheese lurked in the two but....I went to the gym right afterwards and purged it from my mind.

7. Pumpkin and Apple pies: Pumpkin was oh so boring, I couldn't discern the slightest hint of Ceylon cinnamom nor a whiff of Siamese cardamom. The apple was nice though, good crust too.

8. Green and Black Chocolate with Black Cherries: I don't love this brand of chocolate, mostly because it doesn't give easily. What do I mean by that? Hmmm, well, I like chocolate that immediately starts to warm and melt upon consuming. If all chocolate did that, I'd eat a lot more baking chocolate but, good thing for me, it's too hard, chalky, waxy or something. Anyway, I'm not sure if I'm making that point any clearer but the real story is that this chocolate was good. The dark chocolate was smooth and the tart, dried cherries made me feel like a Polish peasant, savoring their one piece of chocolate for the year.

Thank you Co-Op, I appreciate you. Next year though, please do not forget the mashed potatoes and stuffing. That's sacrilegious.