Fake It, Don’t Make It – Where to Buy Local, Already-Made Holiday Foods this Season

olympia pie
Whether you love pumpkin, pecan, or fruit pies, Wagner's European Bakery has all the Thanksgiving favorites.
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By Megan Conklin

duncan sponsorI am thirty-nine years old and I have never cooked a Thanksgiving turkey. I blame this in part on my birth order. I am the second from the youngest child in my family and, by definition, this means I do not host extended family gatherings and am asked only to bring a green salad or vegetable dish to all holiday events. Now, I fancy myself to be a pretty decent cook. I certainly cook every day for my own family of six. Yet, the “real” holiday cooking, in my little village at least, falls to my older sisters and mother most of the time. My lack of expertise in the holiday cooking realm just means that I am an expert at sourcing and purchasing local, handmade foods to bring as my potluck contribution to gatherings – the more homemade it looks, the better. So here you have it: How to buy a delicious, home cooked (just not by you) Thanksgiving meal without ever leaving downtown Olympia. (Except for a quick trip up San Francisco Street hill to the bakery.)

The Bird

thanksgiving food
A precooked, smoked turkey from Dickerson’s BBQ makes your Thanksgiving feast both simple and delicious.

The requisite fowl on a platter is a non-negotiable. And the smell of roasting turkey wafting through the air is Thanksgiving itself. If you are not into the whole getting up early to shoot, pluck, stuff, and roast your own – just give Bayview Catering a call. They will cook a plump and succulent turkey just for you. In fact, they will cook your whole dinner, including mashed potatoes, cranberries, green beans, rolls, and stuffing for you if you place an order by November 21.

Another option for a pre-cooked bird is Southbay Dickerson’s BBQ. Dickerson’s will smoke a 12-14 pound turkey, cool it, seal it in an oven safe bag, and all you will have to do is pop it in the oven for about an hour or until it is falling apart warm and tender and ready to be, well, gobbled.

The Accoutrements

The side dishes that go with Thanksgiving dinner are oftentimes yummier than the turkey itself. One perennial favorite is the rolls. Rolls are key to the Thanksgiving dinner spread, as well as next-day leftovers events. Think mini turkey/cranberry sandwich on a roll the day after. The San Francisco Street Bakery has scrumptious rolls.  Any of their wildly popular breads, from the aromatic rosemary garlic to the luscious and nutty walnut levain, can be ordered in roll form for Thanksgiving – just give them a 24 hour heads up. Wagner’s European Bakery and Cafe also prepares a plethora of rolls especially for Thanksgiving Day. They bake up some of the traditional favorites such as butter flake, parker house, and clover leaf, as well as their “napkin rolls” which are rolled to look like table napkins.

san francisco street bakery
Select any bread from The San Francisco Street Bakery’s and they will turn it into Thanksgiving rolls for your table.

Stuffing, or dressing, depending of your penchant for cramming one food product inside another, is probably my favorite part of the Thanksgiving meal. For a hybrid fake it-make it scenario, buy the herby and delicious premade stuffing mix at The San Francisco Street Bakery and stuff it in your bird before cooking.

If you are like me, no Thanksgiving meal is complete without the jellied cranberries from a can – complete with the imprints of the can on the jelled fruit. But, if you prefer to get really fancy with your cranberries, you can buy the delicious whole berries down at the Olympia Farmers Market, or from Ralph’s Thriftway. Ralph’s has berries straight from Grayland, Washington, or the “cranberry coast” as some like to call it.

A quick trip back to Southbay Dickerson’s BBQ will net you a quart jar of their famous gravy.  When I spoke to owner Eric Dickerson, he mentioned that this year they plan to expand their Thanksgiving offerings with the addition of a true holiday favorite, the green bean casserole. Call ahead to order your premade casserole.

The Desserts

olympia pie
Whether you love pumpkin, pecan, or fruit pies, Wagner’s European Bakery has all the Thanksgiving favorites.

All of the aforementioned bakeries offer a variety of decadent, handmade desserts befitting a Thanksgiving table. Traditional favorites such as pumpkin and pecan pie can be purchased at Wagner’s and San Francisco Street Bakery. Try quick fan favorite, Mom’s Baked Goods, as well.  And Olympia’s favorite French style bakery, The Bread Peddler, is offering unique autumn sweets such as local blue Hubbard squash pie (made with squash grown in the Lattin Cider Mill garden) and pumpkin ginger loaf with pure maple icing.

Pumpkin muffins and coffeecakes from Wagner’s or a simultaneously moist and dense bread pudding from The Bread Peddler make for lovely hostess gifts. An easy, morning- after-Thanksgiving type breakfast treat is always appreciated.

So go ahead and fake your way through the Thanksgiving meal this year. Taking a trip through downtown to support local shops and eateries is both virtuous and fun – and it might just be the most relaxing and delicious holiday yet.

 

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