"I noted your likes and dislikes in the food line, with great interest, having a weakness in that direction. In fact, I'm something of a gourmand -- I believe you spell it that way. (...) You struck a responsive chord in me when you mentioned turkey dinner. Thanksgiving! Baked turkey, with dressing made of biscuit and cornbread crumbs, sage, onions, eggs, celery salt and what not; hot biscuits and fresh butter yellow as gold; rich gravy; fruit cakes containing citron, candied pineapple and cherries, currants, raisins, dates, spices, pecans, almonds, walnuts; pea salad; pumpkin pie, apple pie, mince pie with pecans; rich creamy milk, chocolate, or tea -- my Southern ancestors were quite correct in adopting the old New England holiday." — Robert E. Howard to H.P. Lovecraft, ca. December 1932

I hope all fans of DMR Books had a great Thanksgiving Day. As one can see from the quote above, Robert E. Howard was a big fan of the holiday we—-we Americans, anyway—celebrated today. A self-proclaimed ‘gourmand’, Two-Gun Bob reveled in the gustatory orgy of feasting that is Thanksgiving in America.

As with so many texts by REH, fiction or non-fiction, the Howard quote above is fraught with implications and background that—while not obvious—are worth digging into. Take, for instance, ‘gourmand’. As can be read here, ‘gourmand’ has a far longer history as a word in English than ‘gourmet’, which is more popular among ‘foodies’ nowadays.

‘Gourmet’ is a more high-falutin’ term than ‘gourmand’. Always was and still is. ‘Gourmet’ has distinct connections to the appreciation of wines. ‘Gourmand’ started out more as a term for a ‘glutton’, but went on to mean something basically the same as ‘gourmet’ before ‘gourmet’ came along to supplant it. To sum it up, Howard—who did admit to gluttony from time to time—was being honest, accurate and old-school, much as he was in most things. It also indicates the level of literacy he possessed, despite living in Cross Plains, Texas.

While this post is too late to affect Thanksgiving dinner for Howard fans this year, feel free to use it as a guide for next year. Without even trying, my family scored a seven out of a possible eleven this time around—-eight, if you don’t get real specific on the dressing/stuffing. That said, both sides of my kinship group have lived within fifty miles of the Mason-Dixon line for well over a century, so our culinary traditions are closer to REH’s Southern cuisine than, say, Portland or Brooklyn. Plus, we had a couple of imports from north Texas. Y’all can consider that ‘cheating’ if ya want.

So, start adjusting those Thanksgiving 2024 menus now. Robert E. Howard would approve.