I have to admit that I regard Thanksgiving dinner as a penance. I had to make my first when I was in elementary school, and one year the missus had me make two of them -- on for her family, and one for her daughter's family. Thing is? I'm bored to the point of insanity by turkey. Frankly, I see the whole thing as an exercise in gravy delivery. I've been relieved the last few years when my sister took over the whole shebang, relegating me to gravy patrol and other minor chores.
But there is one dish that I'm obliged to make every year. I'm not sure what to call it -- it's basically escargot, only with mushrooms instead of snails. My sister had me make 'em for her wedding, and the caterers ate most of them while they were still in the kitchen.
Here's what I do.
Let a pound of butter soften until it can be easily stirred. I use a wooden spoon, because silverware tends to bend. (Unfortunately for the household, I'm a regular Uri Geller when it comes to table- and cookware.) Add two nice big bunches of chopped parsley, salt and pepper to taste, about six to eight cloves of finely minced garlic, and a bit less than half a lemon's worth of zest. Stir until everything is thoroughly incorporated. Then add as much lemon juice as the butter will hold -- I usually go for two or three lemons worth. There will be a puddle of garlicky lemon juice at the bottom of the bowl. The end result should be a sort of solid vinaigrette.
Then take a couple-three pounds of mushrooms (for purposes of economy I usually use cremini mushrooms), remove the stems (if they ain't woody, reserve them for use in gravy and stuffing), and fill the hollows with the seasoned butter. Put them butter-side up (think of them as little cups) into baking dishes and slide them into a 350 degree oven and bake them until the tops are browned and the seasoned butter is bubbling.
Note to the observant. After serving you will notice that there are nice brown mushroom juices on the bottom of the baking dishes. Only a fool would avoid sopping them up with a piece of bread. And I've been thinking that a nice sprinkling of breadcrumbs on top might not represent a serious tragedy.