This year for Thanksgiving we went to my in-law's house and had a lovely, traditional Thanksgiving. It was a great day and a melancholy one too - I missed being with my family a lot and thought of them often throughout the day. Just silly little things like how I LOVE Stove-Top stuffing and so my Mom always makes sure we have it for Thanksgiving dinner. How my sister loves mashed potatoes and thinking about the year she inadvertently catapulted a spoonful on the ground after some over-zealous scooping and too much leverage. The year we mashed potatoes from Yukon Golds instead of Russets which turned into essentially wallpaper glue - of course the entire family thought they new how to fix them and one by one took over for 5 minute intervals only to leave the potato "glue" worse off than they had found it. Oops. I have such wonderful memories of holiday's with my big, silly family.

This year was lovely too, just different than being with one's own family. I was in charge of dessert for which I decided to change things up and do a Pumpkin Mousse Parfait. Still very Thanksgiving-ish given the pumpkin and whipped cream but this dessert was cool and light, yet flavorful at the same time. I really enjoyed it and I think everyone else did as well. It was a nice change of pace. This could be made for any fall dinner party.

PUMPKIN MOUSSE PARFAIT RECIPE
(Ina Garten)

1/4 c. dark rum
1 packet (2 teaspoons) unflavored gelatin powder
1 (15-ounce can) pumpkin (not pie filling)
1/2 c. granulated sugar
1/2 c. light brown sugar, lightly packed
2 extra-large egg yolks
2 tsp. grated orange zest
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1 1/2 c. cold heavy cream
1 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Sweetened whipped cream (You can follow this Ina Garten whipped cream or just whip up one cup of cold heavy cream. Either way, this is in addition to the heavy cream listed in the ingredient list above, you essentially new two batches of whipped cream - one to fold into the pumpkin and one to layer into the parfaits)

8 to 10 chopped ginger cookies (store bought is fine)

Crystallized ginger, for decoration, optional

Place the rum in a heat-proof bowl and sprinkle the gelatin over it. Set aside for 10 minutes for the gelatin to soften.

In a large bowl, whisk together the pumpkin, granulated sugar, brown sugar, egg yolks, orange zest, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Set the bowl of gelatin over a pan of simmering water and cook until the gelatin is clear. Immediately whisk the hot gelatin mixture into the pumpkin mixture. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, whip the heavy cream and vanilla until soft peaks form. Fold the whipped cream into the pumpkin mixture.

To assemble, spoon some of the pumpkin mixture into parfait glasses, add a layer of whipped cream, then some chopped cookies. Repeat, ending with a third layer of pumpkin. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight. To serve, decorate with whipped cream and slivered crystallized ginger.