Thanksgiving dinners provide a backdrop for all that is gracious and good and homey and, in most homes, familiar. Let’s take, for instance, pumpkin pie.

Or in the words of comedians everywhere, please, take mine. I have never loved pumpkin pie. I have never even liked pumpkin pie, though I discovered during a visit to Indiana that I liked the pumpkin pie a childhood friend made that included cream cheese. Cream cheese is my idea of a great addition to nearly any recipe, and so, in an effort to join the ranks of those who love this Thanksgiving staple, I volunteered to make it one year.

That was a mistake. I used the recipe from my friend for what I recall was a chiffon pumpkin pie. It tasted great! The uproar it caused among one or two at the Thanksgiving table (the good humored ribbing only slightly covered what I discerned was a personal horror at the perversion of the beloved pie), however, convinced me that for the satisfaction of all that is traditional, some things are better left unaltered.

So if you love pumpkin pie, you can have my slice. I’ll bring a cheesecake.

Now, about the stuffing . . .