STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — This year’s Thanksgiving will be a feast like none other — with a lot less people, say chefs around the Island. So far orders have been in the four- to six-person range and holiday packages are tailored to the more modest gatherings.
That’s not such a bad deal, says chef Lou Marfoglio of Daddino’s Catering Hall in Seaview. Under normal circumstances when there are 20 or 30 guests coming to dinner, he’s up at 3 a.m. on Turkey Day.
Chef Lou Marfoglio will be catering small gatherings this Thanksgiving. (Courtesy of ChefLouisCatering.com)
He said, “It takes a lot of kitchen staff to have 75 birds sent out within a two hour span on Thanksgiving. And with the social distancing I can’t put 10 people in the kitchen anymore.” So one of the packages he’s offering is a five-pound turkey breast with a few sides.
“You put it in the oven at home so it gives the house a nice aroma. Separately we do fried turkey legs and wings," he said.
For the home cook, he warns not to overcook the bird. He said, “People fear there’s going to be pink inside, it could be cooked at the wrong temperature. Dark meat you can punish for a couple of hours. White meat, on the other hand, doesn’t cook at the same rate.”
Cook a few carrots with potatoes before mashing to add color and another veggie to whipped spuds. (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)
Frank Puleo of Framboise Catering in Tottenville is a font of great cooking information and known for his Thanksgiving spreads. He said, “Certainly, every family’s turkey dressing (or stuffing, as we called it growing up) varies based on their ethnicity or trusted family recipes but the turkey is basically the same.”
He added, “Maybe this is the year, you attempt the dangerous process of deep-frying it, but more likely than not, you’ll get up extra early that day to clean, stuff and slowly roast it. The only variations in the meals come in the side dishes being prepared.” That could be a sweet potato pie, a dense dish that freezes well. It could be cranberry chutney that can live peacefully in the back of a fridge for weeks.
“If you are an adventurous home cook and want to prepare something as unique and time-consuming as pumpkin ravioli — that is a great project to do now. They freeze beautifully,” said Puleo. He believes most people rush the gravy since they wait for the pan-drippings to start the process.
He said, “But that can all be done in advance by just roasting a few Inexpensive turkey wings and creating your gravy now. Add a few turkey legs to your stock." And you’ll have enough meat even to make turkey pot pies in advance of the Big Day. They freeze well and prove to young children that they don’t grow only from the frozen food section of the supermarket.
In polling people over the years, I have come to believe there are two necessities at a Staten Island Thanksgiving gathering, regardless of race, creed or political point of view: baked ziti or some kind of a lasagna.
Lasagna by Advance food editor Pamela Silvestri with sausage crumbles, ground meat sauteed with lots of garlic and a tomato sauce made from tomatoes in her summer garden. Instead of ricotta cheese we used Impastata (Impostata) which is a medium-dry version of ricotta cheese. You can make this by straining fresh ricotta cheese (the one in a tin!) overnight in a strainer at room temp. (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)Staff-Shot
Jeanne Ferrantino-Canlon offers a traditional lasagna in her repertoire — it’s really the star of the dinner show — even this year with a lean set of company around the table. Her husband, chef Eddie Canlon (another chef known for his Turkey Day meals) loves her Italian cooking, she says.
“I cook everything — stuffed mushrooms, stuffed artichokes, cranberries, mashed potatoes, fried chestnuts, pumpkin chocolate-chip walnut cake. And whatever time he comes home we eat,” said Jeanne. She also sends dinner to the neighbors “so all that goodness gets spread around.”
Ian Gluck and Tara-Jean Canlon at Thanksgiving last year. (Courtesy of Jeanne Ferrantino-Canlon)
Yeah, I love Thanksgiving and maybe it’s obvious how much I’m looking forward to it. It’s really a great holiday — no gift wrapping, elves on the shelves or running around the Mall. Alright, maybe there’s the other Staten Island holiday tradition with which to contend — standing in line at a bakery or socially distancing down the block in front of a Pastosa. But Thanksgiving just all about the cooking which is the most pleasant part of the day.
Our traditions include listening to “Alice’s Restaurant Massacree” on whatever radio station is broadcasting it.
And there’s the obligatory play and replay of the WKRP in Cincinnati turkey drop. After 12 years of this, our children are well-trained talk along the lines with DJ Dr. Johnny Fever and station manager Mr. Carlton.
Being true Staten Island children they are no strangers to turkeys randomly dropping by — or dropping from the sky. Familiar with our chickens and their fine water and food sources, the creatures sometimes invade our yard, occasionally two or three gaggles at a time — not pretty as they’re messy. And they now live by the dozen or so in the trees near the Revere Street ball field — cute when they were babies but now big, aggressive and lurk-y.
At least our older guy sees the “KRP" in it as he recently pointed to them and said, “As God is my witness, mom...I thought turkeys could fly.”
Turkeys feasting on the Revere Street field in West Brighton. (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)
Keep in touch.
Pamela Silvestri is Advance Food Editor. She can be reached at silvestri@siadvance.com.
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