Happy Harvest

WHYY celebrates Thanksgiving with programs on TV12 and 91FM
By Mary Eileen O'Connor

The centerpiece of every Thanksgiving celebration is food, and this year, there is no excuse for serving dry turkey, lumpy mashed potatoes or the same-old side dish.

On Saturday, November 23, WHYY presents a cornucopia of recipes, tips and tricks from some of America’s best chefs on TV12. Once the bird is in the oven, gather your family around the radio on Thanksgiving Day and listen to the songs and stories of the season on WHYY 91FM (90.9):

Saturday, November 23

On TV12, New Jewish Cuisine chef Jeffery Nathan prepares potato bisque with pastrami cracklings, sweet potato/apple casserole and roast turkey with mushroom stuffing. 1 p.m.

The America’s Test Kitchen team tastes fresh and frozen turkeys, tests instant-read thermometers and demonstrates how to make "The Perfect Roast Turkey." 1:30 p.m.

Johnny Carrabba and Damian Mandola of Cucina Amore put an Italian twist on Thanksgiving dinner with recipes for braised fennel (finocchio), southern baked yams, cornbread dressing and turkey, and pecan pie. 2 p.m.

In a special Jacques Pépin Celebrates, the master chef gathers his family and friends around the table for turkey with all the trimmings, including buttery bread-and-mushroom stuffing, a gratin of butternut squash, spicy cherry-ginger chutney and two sensational autumn desserts. 2:30 p.m.

Ciao Italia host Mary Ann Esposito visits her friend, Lee Esposito (no relation), at Esposito’s Meat Market in South Philadelphia to pick up a turkey breast, which she stuffs with chestnuts, Parmesan cheese, prosciutto and fresh breadcrumbs. 4 p.m.

The chefs of the CIA share their secrets for spicy cider brined turkey, apples and sausage stuffing, and pumpkin cheesecake. In "Turkey Truths," the chef-instructors answer commonly asked questions about roasting a turkey. 4:30 p.m.

Thursday, November 28

On 91FM, American Routes host Nick Spitzer visits with some great "Families of Music," including mountain guitarist Doc Watson and his grandson Richard, and the Marsalis brothers, who pay tribute to their father, jazz patriarch Ellis Marsalis. 10 a.m.

Join Sound & Spirit host Ellen Kushner as she celebrates the harvest with music from the fields of Africa and the mountains of Ladakh and Provence, explores Sukkot festivities in ancient Israel and examines what harvests, good and bad, mean to the American farmer. 2 p.m.

Is it possible to re-create the original Thanksgiving story but with a new twist? Can First Nation Peoples and non-natives get a second chance to share resources and make a nation together? The poignant program The Gathering: A Modern Thanksgiving Story addresses some of these questions. 6 p.m.