Northshore magazine showcases the best that the North Shore of Boston, MA has to offer.
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105 is season, the kitchen staff at the 1606 Restaurant at Gloucester's Beauport Hotel col- laborates on a anksgiving menu. e chefs try to balance the classic and the contempo- rary, the standard and the sumptuous, to cre- ate a holiday meal that unites everyone. ere's always a crispy roasted turkey, but sometimes there's also lobster casserole. ere will be stuffing, but it may come with a quinoa, mushroom, and pomegranate dress- ing. e requisite butternut squash might show up in a risotto topped with herbed oil and microgreens. "It's traditional with a modern twist, so it gives it that wow factor," says chef John St. Onge, who has already started working with the pastry chef on a spiced butterscotch that just might be the perfect accompaniment to a pumpkin cheesecake. However, when St. Onge and his colleague Michael Canavan leave the hotel kitchen behind and start cooking up their own holiday meals, they no longer have to worry about crowds of demanding customers and can cre- ate the celebratory spread that is perfect for their own families and culinary tendencies. And this freedom leads to two very differ- ent—but very delicious—anksgiving feasts. T h e T R A D I T I O N A L I S T anksgiving has long been Canavan's favorite day of the year. He loves the food and the family and watching the football game with a beer in his hand. He loves the warm chaos that erupts in the kitchen as preparations for dinner ramp up. He even proposed to his wife on anksgiving, so now he has yet another reason to embrace the holiday. In fact, Canavan finds so much to love about anksgiving that he sees little point in changing anything about it. "I don't do a whole lot of twists on it. You don't mess with perfection," he says. "Everything about anksgiving is great." His menu reflects his love of straight- forward tradition: Roasted turkey, stuffing, carrots, mashed potatoes, and green beans are the star players. e carrots get glazed with a little bit of maple syrup to bring out the natural sugars. e mashed potatoes are loaded up with butter, cream, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Canavan likes to steam green beans and serve them with a crunchy topping of julienned leeks that have been dusted in flour and fried. For a classic roast turkey, Canavan seasons the bird liberally with salt and pepper, garlic and onion powders, and maybe a bit of adobo or Old Bay spice blend. He brushes oil on the exterior to help the skin achieve a deep golden color. e key to balancing moist meat and crispy skin, he advises, is to cover the turkey with foil until the last 30 to 35 minutes of cooking. Dessert is the one course in which Canavan goes a little rogue, skipping the iconic anks- giving pie in favor of pumpkin cheesecake and an Oreo trifle that incorporates layers of custard, whipped cream, chocolate pudding, and Oreo cookies. Working in the restaurant industry means that finding time for family on anksgiv- ing can be a challenge, but Canavan always strives to arrange his schedule so he can cook dinner. He chops potatoes, peels carrots, and prepares green beans the night before, but will not cook any food ahead of time, instead reveling in the craziness of cooking the mas- sive feast all at once. "at's part of what I love about it," he says. I N G R E D I E N T S 2 Medium size leeks 2 Tbsp. Flour 1 lb Fresh green beans ½ Squeezed lemon 2 Garlic cloves (grated) 3 Tbsp. Olive oil ⊲ Salt & pepper ⊲ Pinch of cayenne pepper D I R E C T I O N S 1. Blanche beans 5 minutes; set aside. 2. Thinly slice leeks, then lightly flour. Fry leeks until golden 3. Toss beans with fried leeks, add lemon juice, a pinch of cayenne and serve F R I E D L E E K S A N D G R E E N B E A N S