Thanksgiving celebration 2014 - with the punch recipe at the end

Peggy and Sylvia

Photo credits:  Peggy F, Sylvia and Jessica

Many thanks to Peggy, Sylvia and Jessica for capturing so many happy faces from this wonderful celebration.  Sorry that some wonderful shots do not appear - we are not able to post photos of children. 

A beautiful Fall day for AWG's annual celebration of Thanksgiving.  We have much to give thanks for:

Mary-Catherine and Robin C - on clean-up

A big thank you to everyone who came and brought delicious dishes to accompany our traditional turkey.  And of course for all the set-up (beautiful tables) and to those who cleaned up - a very big thank you.







And please put your hands together for Cerese, who did all the work in managing the event with her customary flair and aplomb - thank you from everyone, Cerese.  It is a lot of hard work.

Cerese

A big thank you to Sylvia, who, as a resident of Castries, arranged once again for us to use this wonderful venue for our lunch.




Thank you also to the Garden Group, who made the Thanksgiving decor at a session at Pam's.  And to Maggie, for putting together spectacular raffle baskets and gifts.  Funds raised go to FAWCO. 

Denise and Robyn prep the aperitif outside

Sue, Jan and Bruno

Peggy and Robin Joye

Susan R, Linda, Maquita and Julie

Mary-Catherine and Michel

Rachel and Sara and friends

The delicate task of turkey carving

Pastor John - Robin's husband

Christophe and Linda

President Jessica and VP Cerese, and Maggie in the background

Elegant tables ......

.... beautifully decorated

Desserts - an AWG specialty

It's raffle time - Christophe and Maggie

Rosie and one of the Thanksgiving baskets

Jan wears a fabulous raffle prize - a Patagonia jacket - the perfect colour for her

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO EVERYONE IN AWG

A message from our dedicated FAWCO Rep, Maggie:

There is a beautiful photo of raffle prizes in the album PegF sent around.  Could you add that photo to the ones on Scriveners?  And perhaps one with FAWCO books (and Linda)?  I particularly appreciate the photo of Jan wearing the Patagonia fleece, since it was a very generous donation by the Patagonia shop in Montpellier.  The retail price is 100 euros.  And I am SO glad it was Jan who won it.

Jessica has sent through the following pictures:

Noel and Rachel

Julie, Jan and Peggy F

Chris and Susan

Jan and Gretchen

Anne

Ron and Maquita

Jean-Phi and Noel

Jessica and Cerese - singing from the same hymn sheet

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And here, from Denise, and by popular demand, is the Thanksgiving punch recipe:

Editor's note:  if you would like to print this recipe, send an email to:  awg.scriveners@gmail.com

© Petrina Tinslay Rosé Sangria with Cranberries and Apples Contributed by Jose Garces ACTIVE: 20 MIN TOTAL TIME: 1 HR 30 MIN Plus overnight macerating SERVINGS: 12 MAKE-AHEAD This strong but not overly sweet sangria is nicely spiced with cinnamon, anise and cloves and it has just enough crushed red pepper to give it a tiny kick.  More Sangria Recipes Related Recipes Apples Cranberries More ∨ 1 cup water 1 cup sugar 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper 1 large cinnamon stick 4 allspice berries 3 whole cloves 1 star anise pod 2 cups cranberries 2 Granny Smith apples, diced One 750-milliliter bottle Spanish rosé 1/3 cup ruby port 1/3 cup Cointreau 1/3 cup cranberry juice Ice cubes, for serving In a saucepan, mix the water, sugar, crushed red pepper, cinnamon, allspice, cloves and star anise. Simmer the syrup over moderately low heat for 15 minutes. Strain into a bowl and add the cranberries and apples. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Strain the fruit, reserving the spiced syrup. In a large pitcher, mix the rosé with the port, Cointreau, cranberry juice, fruit and 3/4 cup of the spiced syrup. Refrigerate until chilled, about 1 hour. Serve over ice. Make Ahead The sangria can be refrigerated for up to 6 hours. From A Chef’s All-American Thanksgiving, The Best Sangria Recipes Published November 2008 Denise notes:  this is the "official" recipe, which I then modifed to take into account the ingredients I could find and my personal taste.  I made the sirup as described, but did not macerate any fruit in it.  I used a French rose wine, tawny port, Triple Sec in place of the Cointreau and rather more cranberry juice as well as some apple juice to replace the apples.  If I were to make it again, I'd make it a little bit less sweet.