A pocket full of Thanksgiving... and maybe giblets...

Thanksgiving is coming! The Pocket Cook Book (Elizabeth Woody with Gertrude Lynn and Peg Heffernan, originally published in 1942, but mine is the 1960 edition) has a few recommendations.

First, here's a recipe for Thanksgiving day proper. Maybe you're tired of using the same old stuffing/ dressing year after year. If you need something new, try good old-fashioned Bacon and Oatmeal Stuffing.

This kind of sounds like it could be a 1980s recipe-- some weird little scheme to "negate" the saturated fat and cholesterol in the bacon by serving it up in a mound of oats. (I guess it would have been oat bran if this were really from the '80s, though. We all know oat bran was magic.)

If you're more worried about using up the leftovers, here's a way to disguise the leftover turkey.

I guess Devilled Mock Drumsticks are meant to make the leftover turkey seem more like leftover chicken? But hey, they are deep fried, so that will make them go down easier. (I'm not sure how many people would bother with the wooden skewers and paper frills, though.)

And if you're never sure what to do with the giblets, turn them into Giblet Scrapple Squares!

If you make the mold ahead of time, you could fry up slices for breakfast to quell any turkey cravings until the big dinner. Or maybe they could be a unique side dish. Or, if you're like me and not so good on follow-through, you could just say you have plans for the giblets, put them in the fridge, forget about them until you start to wonder what stinks, and then throw them out. It's a lot less work.

Whatever your holiday plans, I hope they don't stink like rotten giblets!