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Surely, you were sent this idea from god???

as crazy as it might sound I never had mashed potatoes with Thanksgiving dinner until I moved to Chicago from New Orleans a few years ago. For me its all about grandmaws Oyster Stuffing and New Orleans Dirty Rice (an not the kind from the box in the grocery store).
let me know if you want some recipes :)

we've been doing mac n cheese as a new addition to thanksgiving and it is definitely the most popular dish on the table and the only one with zero leftovers. We use a simple tyler florence recipe but instead of 2lbs of the cheddar we usually will do like 1/2 cheddar and 1/2 fontina:

1/4 cup flour
1 stick butter
1 quart whole milk
2 pounds sharp cheddar
1 pound elbow macaroni, cooked and drained

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a 2quart saucepan, melt butter then incorporate flour to make roux. With a wire wisk slowly pour in milk, wisking vigorously to avoid lumps. Once milk is incorporated, sauce is made. Simmer for ten minutes to remove flour flavor. Finally fold in two pounds of grated cheddar. Season with salt and pepper. In a large mixing bowl combine elbow macaroni with cheese sauce. Mix well. Pour into casserole pan and bake at 350 degrees for thirty minutes or until crunchy golden brown.

At our house we do all the traditional stuuf sort of tweaked up a bit as well as some stuff that others might find a little odd on the turkey day spread.

Ranch Potatoes (mashed potatos with powder ranch mix added, yes I know how it sounds but trust me, it's delish.)
Green Bean casserole (sauteed beans, shrooms and onions then make a gravy using the drippings and bake it all to lovelyness)
Asparagus casserole (pretty much the same as green bean but with asapagus instead)
Oven roasted Garlic and Butter glazed brussle sprouts
Homemade stuffing (corenbread and regular bread mixed with onions celery and carrots)
Butternut squash tots (roast the squash, mash it then portion out little bits and deep fry them)
Lime and cranberry relish

The roast beef at Manny's Deli in Chicago. I get it extra rare on an onion roll that is SOAKED in roast beef juice. The potato pancake and pickle on the side aren't too shabby either.

The roast pork, greens and sharp provolone sandwich from DiNics in the reading terminal market in Philly... pure bliss!

@arwenb yay! another potbelly lover!

It's hard to beat the offerings at Sandwhich in Chapel Hill, NC. They make the best tuna salad I've ever tried, a bacon-apple-mushroom grilled cheese, and an incredible "Paratha" with chickpeas, fennel, eggplant, and a handful of Indian spices. I just moved from Chapel Hill and I'm having serious withdrawals!

Bay Cities in Santa Monica is incredible, the best place to grab any kind of sandwich and they're doing these little ones now, like fat cigars, stuffed with cheese and peppers and salami and fresh basil on an oiled roll. Way too addictive.

When I'm at home I use rare roast beef from Ralph's (the Boar's Head is too low sodium for me, apparently I like the additives in the cheaper stuff because the fancier all-natural meat tastes bland) on a toasted poppy seed bun with a slice of sharp cheddar, one leaf of butter lettuce, a mix of mayo and ketchup, mashed fresh avocado then sprinkled with salt and black pepper. I've been making my sandwiches exactly the same way since I was in 3rd grade.

The GODMOTHER from Bay Cities Italian Deli in Santa Monica, CA http://www.baycitiesitaliandeli.com

Genoa Salami, Mortadella Coppacola, Ham, Prosciutto, Provolone with the works on their amazing, amazing, uhhhmazing bread

BLT on white bread with mayo.

OUT :The anchovy and egg at 'wichcraft
IN: Duke's mayo, muenster cheese, lettuce w salt and pepper on crusty sourdough or french peasant bread