Jim Dixon wrote about food for WW for more than 20 years, but these days most of his time is spent at his olive oil-focused specialty food business Wellspent Market. Jim’s always loved to eat, and he encourages his customers to cook by sending them recipes every week through his newsletter. We’re happy to have him back creating some special dishes just for WW readers.

I love Thanksgiving. As Jacques Pépin once noted, it’s the only holiday devoted to food and cooking, and while the traditional turkey meal is mostly flavored with nostalgia, I still need to eat it every year. But Thanksgiving is fraught with dangerous mythology that clouds American history.

Since this is a column about cooking, I won’t get into the details of why the Wampanoag tribe offered food to the English colonists in what we now call Massachusetts (just Google it). Descendants of the same tribe call Thanksgiving a day of mourning. According to the United Americans of New England, the date is “a reminder of the genocide of millions of Native people, the theft of Native lands, and the relentless assault on Native culture.” But there’s nothing wrong with taking time to acknowledge community, family, and gratitude, and if you do with a meal on the last Thursday in November, take a moment to reflect on the real history of Native people.

Not everyone can gather with the people they love. If you’re on your own and craving those Thanksgiving flavors, here’s one way to get them without roasting a whole turkey. Cooking thighs on a bed of simple bread stuffing* gives it lots of flavor, although if you’re like me, you’ll want to make some gravy, too. But you can make it ahead of time. Just roast a turkey wing or two, simmer them in water to make stock, and use it to make this recipe.

*Whether you call it stuffing or dressing mostly depends on where you live.

Turkey for One

For 1 thigh, about 2 servings*

1 turkey thigh (see note below)

4-6 slices good bread, cut into cubes and dried on the counter for 1-2 days

1 onion, chopped and caramelized

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 cups broth or water

1 teaspoon kosher-style sea salt

2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage, optional

*Most thighs weigh about 1 1/2 pounds, so unless you’re really hungry, you should have leftovers.

While the onion is cooking, combine the bread, olive oil, broth, salt, pepper, and sage in a bowl. Letting the bread soak up the broth like this provides the illusion of cooking the stuffing inside the turkey. When the onions are done, mix them in.

Spread the stuffing in a skillet or baking dish, set the thigh on it, skin-side up, and roast uncovered at 350 degrees for about an hour or until the internal temperature of the meat hits 175 degrees.

Note: Grocery stores with in-house butchers usually start cutting up turkeys a few weeks before Thanksgiving, but they may only do a couple each day. so it’s best to call before you go shopping.