All this talk about the classic green bean casserolle is making my mouth water! Because my wife is a bit of a purist when it comes to fresh food (if not organic food), we've never had such a thing in our house in 30+ years of marriage. Never had a can of vegetables (let alone canned fried onions!) in our cupboard -- just fresh produce and, very occasionally, a "brick" of frozen spinach or maybe peas. And never-never-never has a can of condensed soup ever been used as an ingredient!

I can't really complain, though -- the years of gourmet-quality cooking more than make up for the absense of an occasional "junk food" treat.

One element that is never missing from a holiday meal in our home (and in many New Orleans homes) is oyster dressing (i.e., stuffing). Sorry, no recipe -- since I usually deal with baked goods on turkey day and Christmas, I'm not in on the secrets of stuffing the bird. I know that the ingredients include stale French (white) bread, fresh oysters, and plenty of aromatic herbs/vegetables -- onions, celery, undoubtedly some garlic, maybe green bell peppers -- ??

Those around here who prefer not to use oysters generally make their dressing/stuffing from cornbread and sausage.

Those deep-fried turkeys are pretty popular hereabouts, too, just as in Texas. A few years ago, I had never heard of such a thing, but every year now it seems to become a bigger and bigger deal. You can buy the giant pot and peanut oil to do it yourself, or order (in advance) a turkey to be fried for you.

Creamed onions: my grandmother (and later my mother) would make 'em only once or twice a year, for big holiday dinners, and I *hated* them back then. I don't get to eat them any more often now, but now I like 'em.