As some of you may recall, last year on Thanksgiving I became an official volunteer. They do the same thing every year. All the new trainees became volunteers and after the ceremony, they have a traditional American Thanksgiving dinner with turkeys that the Peace Corps has flown in from America. It's buffet style, but being in Macedonia there are no lines. So everyone is pushing and cutting in to get food. This year myself and a few other volunteers did not want to spend the 6 hours on a bus to go and fight a baba (grandmother) over a turkey leg so we decided to have our own smaller Thanksgiving a little closer to home. We decided to have it in Ohrid, because the volunteer there has a nice big place that would hold everyone (aka no one slept on the floor). But the one thing about Peace Corps volunteer housing is that not everyone has a full stove/oven. Must of us, myself included, have what we call "easy bake ovens". They are small enough to sit on top of a counter and have an oven big enough to put one thing inside and it has 2 burners on the top. That was what we had to use to cook our Thanksgiving dinner. I am lucky enough to have a crock-pot (the $l00 crock pot that my mom sent me -- $20 for the crock pot and $80 for shipping -- Thanks Mom!!!) so I decided that instead of taking up the whole oven that I would try and cook the "turkey" in the crock-pot.
Task #1- Finding a turkey in either Resen or Bitola that would fit into the 4qt crock-pot.
Not an easy task.
I went to my grocery store, where they did have turkeys in the frozen section Go Resen!!, and to the big grocery store in Bitola and I measured, yes you heard me right, .........measured, with a measuring tape each turkey looking to see if I could find one small enough to fit in the crock-pot. No luck. So instead I settled on a chicken. I see no difference in chicken and turkey and since there were only four of us going to this small Thanksgiving and one is a vegetarian, I saw no point in trying to cook a 12 lb turkey for only three people.
Task #2- Getting the chicken and the crock-pot to Ohrid.
Again NOT an easy task.
As you all know, my only form of transportation over here is by bus. So I packed up the chicken, put it in the crock-pot, put the crock-pot in a bag, packed up my other cooking materials in a plastic bag, packed up my backpack and had my purse and walked to the bus station. When I arrived, there was no bus......it was a combi (aka van). If you read the previous story, about my trip to Sofia, you already know that I do not have very good luck with combis. And this one, like the last one was full. I got the last seat. I had to put all of my things (this includes the crock-pot and the chicken) in the front next to the driver where the passenger seat would be. I was sitting two rows back and was by the window, because the lady already sitting there would not move over and let me have the aisle so I could hold on to all my things. As we are driving though Resen, my backpack falls to the floor. The lady sitting the front row was nice enough to pick it up and put it in front of her, next to the driver. The trip to Ohrid, which normally, by bus, takes an hour and a half, took us 45 minutes!!! Also, this trip is not straight, it is up the mountain, down the mountain, twisting and turning on winding roads. During the ride, my heart and stomach where in my throat because I was terrified that the crock-pot was going to tip over and the chicken fall out and start rolling all around the combi. The people on the combi already thought I was the crazy American when they saw me trying to get all my bags on the combi. The last thing I needed was the chicken to start rolling around on the floor. Forty-five minutes later we arrived in Ohrid. I looked as if I had aged and had gained about 10 white hairs. An "only in the Peace Corps" experience.
Task #3- Cooking the chicken, aka Fred.
The easiest task and this is coming from someone who has never cooked a whole chicken before and someone who has never cooked Thanksgiving dinner before.
Thanksgiving morning. Getting Fred all ready for his day in the sauna (aka crock-pot).
All "spiced" up and no where to go.
We did Thanksgiving pot luck style, but I did the main Thanksgiving parts -- meat (Fred), stuffing (vegetarian stuffing muffins, which were delicious if I do say so myself), Nana's deviled eggs as an appetizer, gravy (curtsy of Fred). Dina made green beans and a salad, Phebe made a cheesecake, and Christine made mac and cheese.
Phebe and I cooking in the kitchen.
My stuffing muffins ready to go in the oven.
Looking good Fred!!!!!
Our Thanksgiving feast!!!! Not bad for only having an easy bake oven and a crock-pot.
The girls ready to dig in.
I can truly say that it was the most memorable Thanksgiving I have ever had and one that I am glad I will not have to repeat next year. From now on the crock-pot is staying OFF the bus!!!!!
Task #1- Finding a turkey in either Resen or Bitola that would fit into the 4qt crock-pot.
Not an easy task.
I went to my grocery store, where they did have turkeys in the frozen section Go Resen!!, and to the big grocery store in Bitola and I measured, yes you heard me right, .........measured, with a measuring tape each turkey looking to see if I could find one small enough to fit in the crock-pot. No luck. So instead I settled on a chicken. I see no difference in chicken and turkey and since there were only four of us going to this small Thanksgiving and one is a vegetarian, I saw no point in trying to cook a 12 lb turkey for only three people.
Task #2- Getting the chicken and the crock-pot to Ohrid.
Again NOT an easy task.
As you all know, my only form of transportation over here is by bus. So I packed up the chicken, put it in the crock-pot, put the crock-pot in a bag, packed up my other cooking materials in a plastic bag, packed up my backpack and had my purse and walked to the bus station. When I arrived, there was no bus......it was a combi (aka van). If you read the previous story, about my trip to Sofia, you already know that I do not have very good luck with combis. And this one, like the last one was full. I got the last seat. I had to put all of my things (this includes the crock-pot and the chicken) in the front next to the driver where the passenger seat would be. I was sitting two rows back and was by the window, because the lady already sitting there would not move over and let me have the aisle so I could hold on to all my things. As we are driving though Resen, my backpack falls to the floor. The lady sitting the front row was nice enough to pick it up and put it in front of her, next to the driver. The trip to Ohrid, which normally, by bus, takes an hour and a half, took us 45 minutes!!! Also, this trip is not straight, it is up the mountain, down the mountain, twisting and turning on winding roads. During the ride, my heart and stomach where in my throat because I was terrified that the crock-pot was going to tip over and the chicken fall out and start rolling all around the combi. The people on the combi already thought I was the crazy American when they saw me trying to get all my bags on the combi. The last thing I needed was the chicken to start rolling around on the floor. Forty-five minutes later we arrived in Ohrid. I looked as if I had aged and had gained about 10 white hairs. An "only in the Peace Corps" experience.
Task #3- Cooking the chicken, aka Fred.
The easiest task and this is coming from someone who has never cooked a whole chicken before and someone who has never cooked Thanksgiving dinner before.
We did Thanksgiving pot luck style, but I did the main Thanksgiving parts -- meat (Fred), stuffing (vegetarian stuffing muffins, which were delicious if I do say so myself), Nana's deviled eggs as an appetizer, gravy (curtsy of Fred). Dina made green beans and a salad, Phebe made a cheesecake, and Christine made mac and cheese.
I can truly say that it was the most memorable Thanksgiving I have ever had and one that I am glad I will not have to repeat next year. From now on the crock-pot is staying OFF the bus!!!!!
Happy Holidays!!!!!!!
