We wanted to do something a little different for Thanksgiving this year, but weren’t quite sure what to make. The first idea that popped into our heads was to have a cheese course, either to start or as dessert. That got us thinking that it might be fun to do a French-themed Thanksgiving (Frenchgiving, if you will). Tony asked Kim to make her cassoulet, which seemed different enough yet comforting enough to be a perfect dinner. That was about as far as our planning had gotten before we left for a trip to upstate New York the weekend before last.

We tossed some ideas around on Friday but didn’t land on anything. We finally figured everything out when we hit the farmers’ market in Hudson, NY (our favorite town to visit upstate) and saw all the great fruit and produce: we would do a mostly French inspired, mostly locally sourced Thanksgiving. (Our friend Mary Ellen coined the term “Frocal”, which we liked a lot.)

So our Frocal Thanksgiving will feature: an assortment of cheeses from Dutch Girl Cheese in Leonardsville, NY; Roasted Parsnip and Pear Soup, a recipe from epicurious made using local pears and parsnips; Melissa D’Arabian’s for Weekday Cassoulet, an all-time French classic made with local carrots and thyme; and finally, Country Apple Galette, a recipe from Jacques Pépin made with local apples.

Our dear friends Tom and Sharon will be joining us for dinner. We’re having champagne with the cheese dish, but Sharon will be surprising us with the wine pairings. We can’t wait to see what she brings and to tell you all about how dinner turned out!