Barbara Lynch's New England Thanksgiving Dinner

By Food & Wine
Updated May 24, 2017
Maura McEvoy
Boston chef Barbara Lynch prepares a New England-inspired Thanksgiving feast, including an incredible wild mushroom stuffing.
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Baby Artichokes Stuffed with Crab Salad

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Barbara Lynch simmers baby artichokes in an aromatic white wine broth, then stuffs them with a juicy crab salad for a light starter that honors her husband Charlie’s family tradition: “His mother made artichokes for every festive occasion. She’s no longer around, so I always try to make one dish with artichokes in it for him.”

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Chilled Celery Soup with Nantucket Bay Scallops

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Overhauling her mother’s celery sticks with cream cheese, Lynch finishes this cool, silky soup—flavored with parsley and crème fraîche—by adding a luxurious touch: a generous mound of tender bay scallops, which she gets from a friend who lives on Nantucket.

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Roasted Stuffed Turkey with Giblet Gravy

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Lynch’s advice for a perfect bird: “Buy a turkey from somebody you trust. And keep going back to the same source...I'm a true believer that you shouldn’t mess around too much with the turkey. I don’t brine it, I don't fry it. If you buy a good turkey, you don’t need to add much to it.”

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Wild Mushroom Whole Wheat Stuffing with Tarragon

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In this bread stuffing, Lynch relies on thick-sliced bacon and a mix of wild mushrooms to provide the robust, earthy flavors she thinks belong in every stuffing.

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Haricots Verts and Chestnuts with Date Vinaigrette

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At No. 9 Park, Lynch serves a haricots verts salad with a hazelnut vinaigrette. Here, she adds fresh chestnuts to give the dish a meaty fall flavor. Finely chopped dates in the cider vinegar dressing lend a lovely, subtle sweetness.

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Pearl Onions au Gratin

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Inspired by the pickled pearl onions that became a family tradition (“Mom just served them straight out of the jar and threw a toothpick at them”), Lynch bakes fresh pearl onions in a mixture of cream, garlic, shallots and bacon, then tops it all with a crispy panko crust.

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Roasted Squash with Maple Syrup and Sage Cream

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Lynch isn’t choosy about which squash to include in this deeply flavored dish, which gets finished with a sage-infused cream sauce—she goes with whichever varieties look best at the farmers’ market—but butternut and delicata are among her favorites.

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Cranberry-Grapefruit Conserve

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“It’s so easy to make your own cranberry sauce, why wouldn’t you?” Boston chef Lynch says of this bitter-tart conserve, which she also jars and gives as a gift. She suggests adjusting the recipe to taste by varying the amount of cranberries, grapefruit and sugar.

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Harvest Mousse with Spiced Almond Tuiles

Credit: Maura McEvoy
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This fluffy mousse, served here with Spiced Almond Tuiles, could just as easily be made with fresh or canned pumpkin. Serve the leftover candied squash as a topping for vanilla ice cream.

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