I now have a blended family and am trying to combine traditional family favorites with new family traditions. It's a challenge as we come from different traditions. When I get the time I love to can fresh vegetables and fruits along with jams, fruit butters, and sauces. My mother was a noted gourmet cook in our small midwestern town. We did NOT have meat and potatoes at every meal and five-can casserole was NOT in her lexicon, nor was jello salad or jello desert. However, I have come to appreciate the common dishes of my hometown as part of my heritage. Most people in Philadelphia have no idea of what lefse is or how to make it. Last Thanksgiving we had our entire blended family at our table for the first time in our own home. I had called everyone to find out what their favorite Thanksgiving dish was so that I could include it. I also needed to make it organic, vegetarian, and no nuts. Surprisingly it was a huge success. The free-range organic turkey blended will with the Tofurky. With the same Thanksgiving dinner I got a recipie for stuffing made in the crockpot. Wonderful time and space saving idea! Unfortunately it turned into something like a brown gruel. No one ate it.