It’s the day before Thanksgiving and the family is whole once more. My son is home from college and the four of us are together as a unit. Such a great feeling for this sentimental mom.

Our family has developed distinct holiday traditions over the years; a hybrid blending of must haves to make the day complete. My family of origin produced a big mid-day meal for 30 friends and relatives every year. After dinner we played cards, made leaf houses in the yard, and ate a second dinner in the evening.

My husband’s family tended to have intimate dinners for the immediate family and the day included golf or football with friends, dinner in the early afternoon, and sandwiches late. My mom cooked for three days and roasted the turkey until it was almost jerky (bless her heart!) whereas my father-in-law served smoked or barbecued turkey.

So what do Ed and me and the kids do these days? We aren’t married to any one way of being. We have spent Thanksgiving in Palm Desert with his mom. Dinner was at the country club and quite wonderful. It was nice to get dressed up and not cook for a change.

We have roasted turkey in a Bodega Bay rental house with my sister and her family, getting out of the hot tub just long enough to baste the bird. We also love to have friends over to our home to share the meal with us. Tomorrow morning we will hit the American River Bike Trail for a twenty-mile ride and then return to make Thanksgiving dinner for eight.

I prepare Thanksgiving dinner in four to five hours. I don’t work for days in advance, but I don’t buy the meal either. I streamlined my mom’s and my father-in-law’s dinners and morphed them into something that works for me. I brine and roast a smallish turkey un-stuffed, which roasts fairly quickly. We have a fresh green salad and sautéed fresh green beans from the Farmers’ Market instead of mashed rutabagas and creamed onions. We have the traditional stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy. I buy some things, like the dinner rolls that are my daughter’s favorite. I may make rolls also; but I don’t feel guilty if I don’t. I only allow myself to experiment on one dish a year. My family insists that Thanksgiving is no time to try something new. No one has forgotten the time we went to a dinner and they served mashed celery root instead of potatoes. The hostess might as well served rattlesnake for the main dish.

One holiday tradition that we cannot live without is actually a meal made from leftovers. I always make a version of Dave’s Turkey Hash. Here’s how it works. Cube about two cups of leftover turkey and place it in a large sauté pan. Add one cup leftover simple stuffing (no oysters or fruit), one cup mashed potatoes, and one cup gravy. Add a couple of shakes of cayenne pepper. Stir together, heat, and adjust ingredients. If it is too loose add a little more stuffing. If it is too tight add a little gravy. You will be amazed at how good it tastes on the Friday night after Thanksgiving. Notice that I am not touting the health benefits; this is comfort food at its finest.

During this upcoming holiday season, seafood is a nice alternative to traditional beef and poultry. Pretty, tasty, and easy to prepare, Shrimp Creole is a great go-to recipe when you are looking for an impressive entree.

Have a wonderful thanksgiving. Try to shop locally when you can and remember we now have two year-round Farmers’ Markets, both in Auburn and the Fountains in Roseville, to make shopping locally a little bit easier. See www.foothillfarmersmarket.

com for details and directions.

Carol Arnold is the marketing manager of the Foothill Farmers’ Market Association.

Shrimp Creole

1 1/2 pounds fresh salad shrimp

1 1/4 cup clam juice or other rich fish stock

1/2 stick butter

2 garlic cloves, halved

1/2 onion, finely chopped

1 bell pepper, finely chopped

1/2 cup mushrooms, coarsely chopped

1/2 cup celery, finely chopped

2 teaspoons sweet paprika

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon tomato paste

2 tablespoons sour cream

1/4 teaspoon Tabasco, or to taste

Rice ring accompaniment

1/2 cup minced parsley for garnish

In a large heavy skillet melt 2 tablespoons of the butter over moderately low heat and in it cook the garlic, stirring, until it is pale golden. Discard the garlic, add the shrimp with its juices and cook for one minute. Transfer the shrimp mixture to a bowl with a slotted spoon. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter to the skillet and in it cook the onion, the bell peppers, the mushrooms, and the celery, stirring for 5 minutes. Add the paprika and the flour and cook the mixture over moderately low heat, stirring, for 3 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and the fish stock and bring the mixture to a boil. Add the shrimp and any remaining liquid from the bowl and simmer the mixture, stirring occasionally for 3 minutes. Stir in the sour cream and the Tabasco, bring the mixture just to a simmer, stirring, and season it with salt and pepper.

For the rice ring, make 3 to 4 cups of cooked rice, converted is best. Butter a 1 1/2 quart ring mold (a bundt cake pan works well for this) generously, pack it firmly and evenly with the rice while the rice is still hot. Invert a heated platter over the mold and invert the rice ring onto it.

Gently spoon the creole into the center of the rice ring, drizzle around the edges of the serving platter. Sprinkle with chopped parsley. Makes 4 -6 servings.