Ah, Thanksgiving, the day of cooks. Thanksgiving is the only holiday where the whole thing can take place within the embrace of your kitchen. It’s the day of the year our kitchen comes closest to overflowing. I made a promise to Jeri after our marriage to happily combine our two families together for Thanksgiving at our house. The promise was we would make enough of everything to send everyone home with as many leftovers as if they had cooked Thanksgiving dinner themselves. So even though we are only cooking for about 18, I do like to cook three turkeys. Well, maybe two and a half. I cook the breast separately for the third and use the rest to make stock for my gravy (see One for the Road p. 62).

Three is just the right number of turkeys for this catalog as we are featuring three great seasonings for turkey. The very traditional Poultry Seasoning that is the perfect blend of herbs for turkey, stuffing and gravy. The traditional since 1975 to the Penzey family’s Thanksgiving turkey, Bicentennial Rub—a colonial style blend of great flavor and color that to our family is Thanksgiving. And the not so traditional, but exciting and bursting with flavor Bangkok Blend to bring a sense of variety to your holiday table. Pick one, or with three birds try them all. Your guests will be glad you did.

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What’s new this time is that we are introducing an exciting new gift concept for the coming holiday season. We call it the Mini, and even though it fits in your hand and costs right next to nothing, the flavors it packs are beyond imagination. Our amazing Garlic, incredible Freshly Ground Pepper, the brand new Penzeys Cinnamon, and the always delicious, always free from salt—but you would never know it—Mural of Flavor. These are four jars that define the best in flavor; four jars that define the Penzeys experience. This is a gift that will both instantly, and dramatically, improve the cooking of anyone you give it to, while at the same time remarkably appearing small enough that no one feels awkward accepting it. Great limited time introductory price. Buy a stack, hand them out freely.

And enjoy this Thanksgiving. At some point make sure you take a moment at the table to sit back, look up, and enjoy all that your efforts have brought. Yes, the convenience and cost savings of being able to make good, tasty treats in your home whenever you want is a big part of what cooking is all about, but there really is more. Look around the table, see the people in your life, see the joy in them being together. Watch as the gravy disappears. I have found that each time you cook life gets better, richer, more magical. Cook one time and you will get thanks. Cook for a lifetime and you will have so much to give thanks for. Ah, Thanksgiving, the day of cooks.

Bill