Though I am American, because I live in Italy I don't celebrate Thanksgiving, at least not on Thursday -- since Italians don't celebrate the holiday, we simply cannot take the time off to prepare during the week.

But we will join some American friends on Saturday, and it therefore seems like a good idea to eat more lightly for a few days in preparation.

You might winder at the juxtaposition between eating lightly and serving pasta: It's all about portion size. The standard Italian pasta serving is 80 grams (dry weight), which is a little less than 3 ounces -- enough to fill, but not to overflowing, a deep dish pasta bowl. Follow the pasta with a quarter pound of the main course and a vegetable, and the meal won't be heavy. So:

Spaghetti Cacio e Pepe, a Roman classic. Followed by:

Triglie alla Livornese, reef mullet in a zesty tomato sauce. Very good, and if you don't have reef mullet other flavorful fish will work fine. Accompanied by: Spinaci rifatti, recooked spinach, which is a winter standby in much of Italy. And crusty bread to mop up the drippings. To finish up?

Fresh fruit. The oranges were especially good this week.

And to drink? White wine, and I might be tempted by a Gavi.

Orata is sea bream (I have also seen it translated as sea bass), and a fine fish it is. Excellent roasted over the coals, and also quite good baked. Or done Al Cartoccio (baked in a packet with other ingredients).

In short, delightful eating, and if you're preparing for Thanksgiving next week, as an additional bonus it is, like most fish, low in fat and light on the digestion. Perfect!

A couple of recipes:
Orata al Cartoccio, Roasted in Paper
Orata Al Forno Con Gli Aromi, Roasted with Herbs
Baked Royal Dorade (Its French name)

How To Select A Fresh Fish and Estimate Its Cooking Time
How To Serve a Whole Fish at Table

If you're thinking about boning your Bird this year come Thanksgiving, and have never boned a bird before, I heartily recommend that you bone one now: Not because the process is tremendously difficult, but rather to get a feel for what you're doing.

Not a turkey, unless you've got lots of company coming, but simply a chicken, which you could either then stuff with your favorite turkey stuffing (don't have one? You'll find many ideas here), or -- if you want something different -- a traditional firm Italian stuffing that extends the bird, as it were, increasing the number of servings, and therefore (possibly) the number of guests you can feed: In my experience people repeatedly come back for more of a good stuffed bird. You might try, for example, the stuffed chicken pictured here, which Elisabetta and I prepared to illustrate the technique.

I'm sorry this is late. It has been quite gray recently, and though there hasn't been much cold this week, gray day after gray day is saddening. It's a good thing that squash is orange, because orange brightens up any day, and an orange colored risotto made with squash is sure to bring a smile. Followed by:

Polpette di Carne Fritta, Fried Meatballs, which are an excellent way of using up the meat that is a byproduct of making stock or broth at home. Incidentally, I think home-made broth is much better than the commercial stuff, and consider boiled meats (with sauces such as mustard, mostarda, and mayonnaise) a fine winter meal; during this part of the year we have boiled dinner about once a week. I would serve the meatballs with a tossed salad, or perhaps finely sliced green cabbage seasoned with olive oil, salt, vinegar, and a hint of pepper.

Dessert? Charlotte alla Milanese, a simple apple pudding.

Buon Appetito!