My friends all know that Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. I’m a Thanksgiving kind of gal. This year, due to the worldwide pandemic, the holidays are going to be a little different for many of us. I personally will be cooking my first Thanksgiving meal for my little family. While I’ve cooked many big meals and always do an early Christmas dinner for my side of the family, there’s something about taking on Thanksgiving that seems a little intimidating. I believe that the best defense is a good offense and a good offense involves a plan. So here’s some tips and ideas to help you get your Turkey Day celebration on track:
Plan a Menu. It all starts with the menu. I like to write out a menu and write next to each item what ingredients I’ll need even the most basic things like salt and pepper. Then, I take those ingredients and form my grocery list. I check my cupboards and freezer to see what I already have on hand as I create my list. (This is important…sometimes your mind convinces you that you have something that you don’t.)
As you’re planning your menu, don’t feel as if you have to recreate every thing about your traditional dinner. My mom always fixes a TON of food and there’s no need for me to replicate that for me and my guys. For example, I’ve never had a Thanksgiving meal without some form of cranberry sauce. But it’s not a ride-or-die for me. I’m the only one who will eat it in my household so there’s no point in buying a can of sauce for me to eat one tablespoon of it.
Now I will totally contradict myself and say if there’s something you can’t imagine NOT being on the table then go for it even if it’s indulgent for a small crowd. For me, that’s going to be Broccoli Casserole. I’m the only one who will eat it and that’s okay. It’s a tasty leftover and I will eat it over the long weekend.
Shop early. I have grocery shopped the day before Thanksgiving and it’s not an experience I wish to repeat. I can’t imagine adding a pandemic to this war zone. Start gathering in what you need now. Except for the fresh vegetables I’ll need (celery for my dressing, potatoes for mashing, apples for the pie) I have everything in the house for my dinner. As one of my friends who normally doesn’t cook on Turkey Day said, “I’ve got to get my stuff together or we’ll be eating tacos.”
Plan your strategy. One of the keys to surviving the preparation of a big meal is to pace yourself and not try to do everything the day of the meal. On Wednesday, I plan to bake the cornbread for my dressing so it can dry a bit over night, chop and sauté the veggies for my dressing, bake my pie, and make the sweet tea. On Thursday morning, I’ll pop my turkey breast into the oven, make the dressing, prepare the broccoli casserole and other vegetable sides and bake the rolls. Everything that you can do ahead of time will make Turkey Day that less stressful.
Remember the internet is your friend. Call upon the food experts of the web. I generally look for recipes from some of my favorite tv chefs or bloggers for ideas when I’m tackling something new. A blogger that I like a great deal Dwardcooks has a FREE Thanksgiving guide this year. I can usually find some good ideas from Pioneer Woman as well.
Some of my own recipes that I’ll be using for the big day are:
Don’t stress it! Finally, enjoy the day. Try to remained focus on the true intent of the day: gratitude and love. If your turkey bombs, laugh it off and have frozen pizza. This has been a crazy year so give yourself some grace.
Let me know what you’re cooking and how your Turkey Day turns out!
Peas and Hominey,
Minda