Turkey. Mashed potatoes. Stuffing. Cranberry sauce. Rice and beans? Apple pie. These are just a few of the Thanksgiving foods eaten by the students at Wayne Hills.

Thanksgiving is the one day of the year filled with the same food that people all across the United States share and while many tables may look the same, there are definitely some exceptions. The students at Wayne Hills have a diverse range of foods made at Thanksgiving, from Asian turkey to gluten-free bread, Thanksgiving looks different for each student here at Hills. 

For most American families the traditional Thanksgiving food is something that is awaited all year long. Turkey, mashed potatoes, green beans, and sweet potatoes are your basic foods and many students here at Wayne Hills enjoy these holiday foods. 

Senior Bradley Galambos said, “Mashed potatoes are where it’s at and I like my meats.” He says he loves mashed potatoes which are one of his favorite Thanksgiving foods. Bradley also enjoys the different meat options that his family serves on the big table. 

When being from different backgrounds, for the more ethnic cultures, the traditional Thanksgiving food is more like a side. 

Mia Kahrar, a senior at Hills, loves her Spanish food and when it comes to Thanksgiving she says, “I hate thanksgiving food, so I just eat my Nana’s rice and beans.” If the rice and beans aren’t served at the table Mia said Thanksgiving will be horrible. Other students enjoy the traditional Thanksgiving food with a twist. 

Senior Sam Huerta enjoys the turkey and says, “We do soy sauce, sesame oil, herbs, and ginger when we make the turkey. It’s an Asian turkey.” Sam and her family enjoy the Asian twist on their turkey and believe that it tastes so much better this way.

Gluten is a staple in Thanksgiving food. Whether it’s the bread crumbs in stuffing or the flaky crust of a warm slice of apple pie, gluten is used in many different Thanksgiving foods. However, some individuals aren’t able to eat these foods and instead have to opt for other alternatives. 

Senior Erin Durot said that she needs to, “have gluten-free bread and I can’t eat the stuffing because it upsets my stomach.” Instead, she sticks to eating turkey and gluten-free stuffing. 

Similar to Erin, senior Destiney Grahm also gets an upset stomach when eating certain Thanksgiving foods. The senior said that “I’m lactose intolerant so I can’t eat American cheese, mashed potatoes, or ice cream like when we had ice cream and pie I couldn’t have any.” Destiny has to avoid certain foods as well, but there are plenty of alternatives, such as dairy-free ice cream, for her to choose from instead. 

While the Thanksgiving classics are staples in almost every family here at Hills, everyone has a different variation of how they cook each food and serve it. Some students ate sesame oil turkey while others ate butter and cilantro turkey. Other students ate warm apple pie with vanilla ice cream while other, lactose-intolerant, students skipped out on the dairy to save a trip to the bathroom. Health, ethnicity, and a multitude of other things change how families choose to enjoy Thanksgiving, but everyone uses food to share the love!