Despite COVID, we were able to have a very happy Thanksgiving in Canada.
In a previous article I had mentioned that out of our 5 children, we were able to have one of them with their family come for a traditional Newfoundland Jiggs dinner.
It was great to be able to get together with them however we definitely missed the others.
The weather was mild and it was a nice sunny day.
How was your Thanksgiving?
Did you have your big meal on Sunday or Monday?
We had ours on Sunday around 1:00 pm as we usually do, then we all grab a turkey sandwich later in the evening for supper.
Monday we got together again and had turkey hash (leftovers fried together and served with turkey, dressing, and gravy.
We love this just as much as the original dinner.
As for the nutritional information for diabetics, our daughter calculates each part of the dinner she gives to Alex. She knows that 1\2 c of potatoes is 15g and she calculates the dressing, gravy, and pie and calculates his insulin from that.
Table of Contents
Newfoundland Jiggs Dinner
I usually cook a Jiggs dinner only four times a year, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years’, and Easter. So that means that is really looked forward to by the whole family.
This year for Thanksgiving I knew we would eat our Jiggs dinner on Sunday so I began the preparations on Friday.
This just helps me not be quite so rushed on the actual day of the Jiggs dinner.
Sometimes I get the grandkids to help tear up the bread for the dressing but this year I was on my own.
Dressing
On Saturday I tore up the bread for dressing and made the cranberry sauce and after supper, I added the leaf to the table and set the table ahead of time because I knew how busy I would be the next day.
I got up early and finished making the dressing.
This is the recipe for the dressing as taught to me by my husband and mother-in-law.
5 loaves bread, tore up
about 1/2 to 3/4 cup summer savoury
melted butter enough that dressing will form into balls and not fall apart
3 onions chopped
Mix everything with hands mainly because it is easier that way when there is so much to mix.
I enlisted my husband’s help to stuff all this dressing into the bird. He packs it in pretty hard and yes it all fit.
Then we tie up the legs and sew him closed to keep the dressing in while it cooks.
Then into the pan, it goes, we cover it with foil because our big turkey pan doesn`t have a lid then into the oven for the next several hours.
We now get to relax with a cup of coffee until it is time for me to start…
The Rest of the Meal
A few hours later I put the salt beef on to boil. After it boils for about a half-hour or so I drain it then fill the pot with water and bring it to boil again.
Once it is boiling I add the turnip and cabbage and a pudding bag filled about half full of split yellow peas and tied tight. The potatoes and carrots are added about a half-hour later.
While that is cooking I heat some green peas and brussels sprouts.
Once cooked everything is placed in serving bowls or in a tray to keep warm. The turkey is uncovered and browned.
My husband will carve the turkey while I mash the turnip and finish making the peas pudding from the cooked split peas.
I make the gravy from the pan drippings and vegetable water combined.
Of course, we had pumpkin and apple pies with whipped cream or ice-cream for dessert so everyone could choose their favourite.
Pumpkin Pie
I began by making the pies on Friday, I made both apple pie (with apples from our tree) and pumpkin pie.
8 – inch single pie crust
2 eggs
2/3 cups sugar
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp cloves
1 1/2 cups canned or cooked pumpkin
1 cup evaporated milk or light cream
- Heat oven to 425 F.
- Prepare pastry.
- In a large bowl, beat eggs slightly.
- Add remaining ingredients; blend well.
- Pour into pastry-lined pan
- Bake at 425 F for 15 minutes
- Reduce oven temp to 350 F and continue baking for 35 minutes or until the knife inserted near the center comes out clean.
- Cool and serve plain or with whipped cream.
NOTE: Makes 1 pie. Easily double to make 2 pies.
Nutritional information: based on a serving being 1/8 of pie, calories – 138, total carbohydrate – 23.9 g, dietary fibre – 1.5 g, Protein – 14.1 g
Conclusion
Happy Thanksgiving in Canada was a huge success for us this year. 
You now have the recipes to make your own traditional Newfoundland Jiggs dinner.
Yes, that is my family and my cooking in the photos.
For the rest of this week, I will be using the rest of the leftovers for various dishes such as hot turkey sandwiches, turkey pot pie, turkey soup,
Any leftover dressing will get frozen and used for Newfoundland fries with fish, sometime in the weeks ahead.
Nothing gets wasted and we always need enough leftovers to make all our favourite other meals.
What did you do for Thanksgiving?
What do you do with your leftover turkey?
Share your ideas in the comment section below.
Take care.
I am not in any way a medical practitioner, please do not rely on the information on our website as an alternative to medical advice from your doctor or another healthcare provider. We only share our experiences.