Thanksgiving is a time for the family to come together, tell stories, then sit down and feast on some tasty, belly-expanding deliciousness. Turkey, gravy, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie are all Thanksgiving staples, but if you want to really spice things up a bit this year, we have some ideas.

Bizarre presentation, unusual flavor and the “oddball factor” add new elements to this great tradition. If you're feeling playful and adventurous, you could add a few of these items to your menu.

Boneless Turkey Stuffed With Alligator Dressing

Well, we’ve come to a traditional Thanksgiving meal at last, but with a twist. This is actually a real turkey, the kind of bird pretty much everyone else carves into at Thanksgiving time, although it’s deboned and comes with a catch. Instead of a normal stuffing, this boneless bird is crammed full of alligator dressing, which is comprised of alligator meat, onions, rice, tomatoes and other good stuff. This is definitely a turkey fit for the more adventurous epicures in your family, or anyone who happens to love alligator.


Jones Tofurky & Gravy Soda

gravy soda
Jones Soda Co.
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What in the world is Tofurky & Gravy Soda, you might be wondering just about now? Well, we’re glad you asked. This peculiar novelty drink is a perfect example of truth in advertising. It’s a bottled soda that taste like –– yes, you guessed it –– turkey (the vegan kind) and gravy. Yeah, we know, that sounds pretty disgusting. Well, you can always opt for mashed potato soda if tofurky soda won’t quench your thirst, or you can try another vegetable or meaty flavor instead. There’s just no accounting for taste, it seems…


Pooping Turkey Candy Dispenser

Candywarehouse.com
Candywarehouse.com
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Speaking of taste, here’s a questionable yet fun Thanksgiving holiday treat (not food technically, but food related) that will keep the children entertained and laughing all night long. The Pooping Turkey Candy Dispenser does just what the title of this innovative and mildly inappropriate product suggests. You push down on the buttocks of the plastic turkey, and out pops a small candy. In case that wasn’t gross enough, the candies are brown, just to make sure there’s no doubt about what they’re supposed to represent.


Turkey Cranberry Layer Cake

Chow.com
Chow.com
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Everyone likes cake. They’re sweet and delicious, often covered in gooey frosting and full of sugar. Well, that’s usually how you would describe a typical cake, but not so for the Turkey Cranberry Layer Cake. A woman by the name of Amy Wisniewski over at Chow.com came up with his very unusual holiday “treat,” if that’s how you want to describe it. This is a layered cake with space devoted to all kinds of traditional Thanksgiving foods, from turkey and sweet potatoes to cranberry sauce and marshmallows. Hey, if the food is all going down to the same place (your stomach), does it really matter how it’s put together beforehand?


Mashed Potatoes- and Gravy-Flavored Jellybeans

Amazon.com
Amazon.com
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Jellybeans are always a holiday favorite. What about mashed potatoes and gravy-flavored jellybeans? Imagine the surprise of someone biting into one of this holiday candies. They’d probably expect a fruity taste, but they'll get a hefty dose of potatoes and gravy instead. These oddly flavored jellybeans come inside the Harry Potter Bertie Bott's Jelly Beans 3 oz. Bag, which also includes ketchup-, sausage- and onion-flavored beans, among many others.


Turkey-Shaped Jell-O Mold

Daniellespencer.com
Daniellespencer.com
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If you buy and decide to use a turkey Jell-O mold, you’ll still end up with normal Jell-O, but you just might be able to fool your friends into thinking that it's a small game bird. If you get creative with the coloring and the types of Jell-O you use, you should be able to get enough of a “meaty” cast to your mold in order to deceive the eye, and make the wobbly Jell-O look like a real turkey. Why would you want to do this? Honestly, we have no idea.


Lay’s Turkey-Flavored Potato Chips

Lays
Lays
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If you happened to live in China but still would like some of the nostalgia associated with Thanksgiving back home, why not pick up a bag of Lay’s Turkey-Flavored Potato Chips? These chips, produced by one of the world’s snacking giants, are supposed to taste like turkey and gravy. Unfortunately, you can only find them overseas. Since ham- and other meat-flavored chips are already in existence, these chips aren’t really a big stretch of the imagination. Just think of all the prep and cooking time you’ll save. Simply tear open a bag, and enjoy.


Vegan Whole Turkey

Vegeusa.com
Vegeusa.com
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Do you want a turkey that’s not a turkey? If you’re a vegan or vegetarian who still wants to enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday sprit, you can bake a vegan whole turkey instead of the real deal. The vegan birds are typically made from raw cane sugar, soybean fiber, soybean protein, starch vegetable protein and other non-animal products, then molded into the shape of a butchered turkey. The most striking feature about these turkeys is how closely they resemble the actual animal. Okay, we concede, these birds may not be for the vegan purists out there.


Pumpkin Pie Pop-Tarts

Poptarts.com
Poptarts.com
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Pop-Tarts make us think of our childhood, waiting around the toaster for something sweet and sticky to pop out. Well, if you’re a fan of filled pastries, and you’re a lover of holiday traditions, you can now take heart. Kellogg's offers a limited run on Pumpkin Pie Pop-Tarts. You’ll get frosting, sprinkles, and pumpkin-pie flavors (clove, nutmeg and cinnamon), toasted and warm, ready for you and your friends to instantly devour.


Thanksgiving Gumballs

Perpetualkid.com
Perpetualkid.com
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This Thanksgiving idea seems like a pretty good one. Yes, you’ll find turkey-flavored gumballs in the mix, but thankfully the manufacturers also stuck with some more appropriate flavors, like pumpkin pie and cranberry. We’re not sure if this is something you’d want to serve with your big holiday meal, but if the kids get bored or you're scrounging around for something to eat later on, you might be able to calm them down and pique their curiosity with a few Thanksgiving gumballs.

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