WBZ Anchor Lisa Hughes Cooks Something New Every Thanksgiving

Mike Casey and his wife, WBZ-TV anchor Lisa Hughes of Wellesley. Bill Brett for The Boston Globe

By Emily Wright

November 25, 2014

1 minute to read

Lisa Hughes doesn’t think Thanksgiving gets enough love, which is exactly why the WBZ-TV anchor loves to talk about it.

“Thanksgiving is my absolute favorite holiday,’’ Hughes gushed. “I love to cook, and because I work a night shift, at best I get to cook twice a week. I start thinking about Thanksgiving days in advance.’’

Hughes, who hosts Thanksgiving at her home in Wellesley, tries to make something new every year. This year she’ll make a kale salad with pomegranate and ricotta salata, and a mushroom and green bean casserole—a twist on the classic.

Since Hughes is a pescatarian, she cooks salmon, her favorite dinner staple, as a main course, and leaves the turkey roasting to her brother-in-law. She does serve butternut squash recipe from a Shelburne Farms cookbook to keep things a little traditional.

Each year Hughes’s family—like many other families—goes around the table and says what they’re thankful for, but what sets them apart is their finale.

“My brother-in-law’s birthday is in the beginning of December, so we turn the very end of dinner into a birthday sing-along for Uncle Joe Joe,’’ Hughes said.

After years of cooking traditional Thanksgiving desserts, she and her family decided to scale it back. Now, Hughes’s sister brings the treats that everyone, including Hughes’s 13-year-old daughter, Riley, and 3-year-old son, Dylan, really wanted in the first place — whoopie pies and cupcakes with candles in them.

For more on how notable Bostonians celebrate Thanksgiving, visit the links below:

WBZ Anchor David Wade Loves Green Bean Casserole for Thanksgiving

RadioBDC D.J. Adam 12’s Thanksgiving Is All About Pie — and Hiking

Boston Pops Conductor Keith Lockhart Is a Mashed Potato Master

Celtics President Rich Gotham Just Loves Thanksgiving Leftovers

Flour Bakery Owner Joanne Chang Is a Turkey Girl at Thanksgiving