There are some Thanksgiving spread staples that we all know and love: turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, etc., etc. Still, each family does their holiday meals a little differently, whether it's adding a secret ingredient to a sauce or a traditional recipe passed down through generations. In a tweet that went viral this past weekend, writer Maya Kosoff asked what weird, retro recipes always find their way onto our Thanksgiving tables...and the answers were as entertaining as they were appalling.
For starters, the original poster started off the conversation with a description of what her family calls "seafoam salad." This green concoction is made up of lime jello, canned pears, cream cheese, and Cool Whip, according to her tweet, which genuinely doesn't seem that bad compared to the inexplicable food traditions others revealed.
There was, for example, this unfortunate lad who was fed a bologna cake by his in-laws. From the looks of it, all it takes is bologna, ranch dressing, and Cheez Whiz to make this thing. Oh, and you can't forget the olives and herbs for garnish, of course.
Apparently, Jell-O and dairy-based dishes are quite common on many Thanksgiving tables. Some families used cream cheese, others used Cool Whip, cottage cheese, or—ugh, I don't even want to say it—mayonnaise.
This is a lot, to say the least. Next time someone offers to cut you a piece of one of these gelatin, dairy, and fruity combinations, all you gotta say is a nice, stern "OK, boomer," and maybe you'll make it out of the holiday meal unscathed.
Alexis Morillo is the Associate Editor at Delish.com where she covers breaking food news and viral food trends.
