Being away from friends and family is tough sometimes, but it’s the worst over holidays. To try to compensate, we decided to use the sweet donation from the Morgan family (my aunt Virginia, uncle Dave, and cousins Carly and Jack) and treat ourselves to a special Thanksgiving dinner at the fancy Marriott hotel. We planned ahead by booking a reservation and they served us a scrumptious set meal. The appetizers weren’t very traditional, but delicious all the same: a cream of zucchini soup, fresh bread with olive tapenade, and some incredible smoked duck breast with a fruit sauce.

Luckily it was all pretty small because the main course was a large plate of our old favorites packed together: three turkey breasts, stuffing, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, gravy, and a bit cranberry sauce. We were pretty impressed with how spot-on the food was. For dessert they brought pumpkin pie cheesecake with a little blueberry sauce.

We were completely stuffed, and it was great. Afterwards we digested our feast with the help of some mint tea and a waterpipe in the relaxed ambience of the outdoor tea garden. The evening couldn’t substitute for being home (or a week’s worth of leftovers), but it was pretty special.