I know it’s hard to believe, but Thanksgiving is literally just around the corner. I kind of hyperventilated a little when went on eBay yesterday and it said 47 days until Christmas!
With only 16 days left until the main turkey event, now is the time to start planning. Don’t wait until the very last minute so you’ve got to fight your way out of the store with the last box of Stove Top or pumpkin pie mix. And don’t forget to let people you are not able to see on Thanksgiving know you are thinking of them with Hallmark’s Thanksgiving eCards.
I first shared this post in 2010, but it’s still more relevant than ever, and has some great reader tips on it, so I wanted to bring it back into the picture for everyone who is preparing themselves for the upcoming feast!
- Start cleaning your house now
If you do a little bit every day, eliminating clutter and getting things in order, you’ll have a lot less to clean when Thanksgiving arrives. If you’re having guests over, focus on those areas that they will be seeing and get your family to pitch in. We’ve all got to learn to clean up our own messes as we make them or quickly thereafter– not 3 days later. My family is infamous for this habit, and it often looks like a bomb went off after a long weekend! - Pre-order your turkey (especially if it’s farm raised)
We actually ordered our farm fresh turkey at the beginning of October from the poultry farm down the street from us and it may indeed be too late for you to order a bird from your local farm. But a frozen bird can be just as good if you brine it beforehand. If you’ll be using a frozen turkey, consider buying it early (like now) so you’ll end up with the size you need (about 1-2 pounds of turkey per person) but don’t forget to thaw it out the day before either (or two days early if you’re brining)! - Start buying supplies
If you begin purchasing the non-perishable items already, you will have a lot less to shop for on the days leading up to Thanksgiving, you won’t have to go to four stores to find what you need last minute, and you can space out the spending a bit more so it fits into your weekly grocery budget. - Plan your menu
I like to go with several classics that I basically only make on Thanksgiving. To be honest, I would love to eat them at other times of the year, too, but I just haven’t gotten around to doing turkey dinner in July yet. If you want to do something new and exciting, consider trying it out a few weeks earlier. You don’t need the stress of trying new recipes and them turning out differently than you expect. I also tend to make everything myself, from stuffing to cranberry relish. It’s not only because I prefer homemade, but because you just can’t get most of the prepared things here in Germany. The one thing I do still use is Libby’s canned pumpkin but this year I’ll be using some of the Baby Bear pumpkins we grew! - Make a time map
I like to write down exactly what I need to prepare and the day I intend to make it (I bake the pies a day early to free up the kitchen space). I consider it my Thanksgiving Day Game Plan. Then I go through and build myself a time line for turkey day so I know how much time I need to chop, prepare and mix. I may not follow the time table exactly in the end, but it helps keep me from running around like a crazy person during the last hour (although I do a bit of that too). And since my dining table is in our kitchen, I don’t want the guests seeing me freak out! Plus, it helps me to remember all the various dishes I’m making so I don’t end up forgetting to bake the rolls — as I did a few years ago! - Make as much as you can ahead of time
As I mentioned, I like to bake the pies and cheesecake a day earlier. And I start brining the turkey 24 hours in advance too. Because I make stuffing from old pieces of bread, I actually started a bag in my freezer with the pieces already chopped up. Anything you can do a day or so ahead of time to save yourself stress — do it! - Make decorations a week ahead or earlier
Don’t be running in four directions, trying to build a centerpiece while you baste the turkey and mix pies. If you want someone else to do the centerpiece for you, by all means let them do it the morning of — but if you are the chef on Thanksgiving day, just be the chef. - Solicit help
In the past few years,we have always had helpers in our kitchen for Thanksgiving. Some years I’ve even had help the day before. Yes, the pies did get over-salted one year, and sometimes giving instructions can be tedious, but having extra hands to peal, chop and stir are invaluable. If you are willing to give up that much control, host a pot luck Thanksgiving dinner, where the guest brings sides and/or desert so you just focus on the turkey and drinks (or something to that effect). - Budget in a break on the big day
Just because you CAN be superwoman and wake up at 5am to get everything done in one day does not mean you HAVE to! I’ll never forget waking up to the house smelling like turkey and other yummy foods when I was a kid. But back then we also ate at about 2pm…and now we eat about 5 or 6pm on Saturday. So if you need to arrange the day’s meal a bit later in the day so you can fit it all in, do it. And make sure you allow yourself a few minutes to sit down and drink some water or iced tea in between shifts. - Your tip!
What do you do to make Thanksgiving run smoothly?
https://www.noordinaryhomestead.com/?p=2016
I go to my parents house – easy enough for me! Hahaha! Seriously though, something my mom has always done is make the rolls, bake the turkey, and make the pumpkin pies – then she lets everyone else who is coming bring a dish or two, that way no one is totally bogged down. I always bring carrot suffle and green bean casserole. My sister-in-law always brings garlic cheese grits. Another friend always brings some veggie and an apple pie, and so on. Happy November! 🙂
Oops, missed the “o” – souffle! I knew it didn’t look right! 😉
Having others bring stuff is definitely a way to make the event easier. And when it’s lots of family and friends coming together, it’s just much easier. Of course since our friends are German they want the traditional American stuff and I’m too much of a control freak to let them bring stuff lol. I have fun doing all the cooking anyway 🙂
These are great tips! I need to start working on my menu! I’m actually fixing dinner for my family AT my parents’ house this year. Should be fun!
so glad I stopped over from Oh, Amanda!
blessings,
Melanie
adorkable-me.blogspot.com
Great ideas and planning ahead on every day is pretty cool. Do you remember the year we drove out to “the Ranch” of mom and dads’, and we smoked a turkey out there ? It was awesome and quite good.So many great mememories…….You get many good recipes from your mom. Have a great Thanksgiving……..!
One of the best ways you can insure a tasty turkey is to get an heirloom, free range bird. The taste is far superior to the rather bland, factory birds that are generally available now.
Cranberry sauce is so easy to make I never buy the canned store variety. Just follow the instructions that are usually on the package of berries and stir in some orange supremes and a handful of chopped walnuts. I make this year round to use as an accompaniment to roast or fried chicken.
The best wine to serve with your turkey is in my opinion gewürztraminer, although a Johannisberg riesling can also make a fine pairing. Even though gewürztraminer is a German wine the French and Italians have both had great success with this particular varietal as have many vineyards in California.
I sincerely hope that everyone has a wonderful thanksgiving and remembers how thankful we should be that we have such bounty in a world where so many live lives of great deprivation.
Such great tips! I wanted to do a farm raised turkey but so many of them sold out early!
I actually usually order ours in October…even here in Germany just so they’re aware. I’m sure in the US it’s something you have to start talking to local farms about even further in advance since they have a much bigger demand!
I try to get everything set out on the counters or table in their groups so that I know what goes with what and be sure to have everything pre-measured. I try to make the pies a day ahead and I try to do some of the things in the crock pot so that makes life easier too…the stuffing is ESPECIALLY good in the crock pot. The potatoes for mashed potatoes are done real quick in the pressure cooker. I try to utilize what I’ve got (kitchen gadget wise). Oh and I make the cranberry chutney ahead of time too…give it better flavor. Even when I am in the US, I’ve gotten so used to making everything from scratch because I can’t get it in Germany, that I am used to the taste of things from scratch, mainly because they taste a million times better. But you’re right…I still use Libby’s, too. 🙂
Happy Thanksgiving!
I agree on your tips. Planning and organization are critical to a reduced-stress holiday.
1. Plan your menu. Aside from desserts, my family expects a very traditional Thanksgiving, so I have htis memorized. Buy the non-perishable goods a little bit a time. I usually start buying for both Thanksgiving and Christmas in early October. I buy the perishable items a week before the holiday. (This is good too, because you’re avoiding the last minute shoppers and the shelves are still stocked.)
2. Cleaning is also important. Determine a schedule to do a little bit each day. (My mother-in-law literally goes around checking for dust. I have caught her doing this more than once. My house is clean!)
This is an example:
Day 1: Bathrooms, laundry (especially sheets and towels for guests; pet bedding); declutter, putting personal items away; vacuum/sweep
Day 2: Dusting and polishing, vacuum/sweep
Day 3: Reevaluate laundry; vacuum/sweep/mop
Day 4 The day of the holiday Check bathrooms, tidy, mop kitchen again (due to spills)
3. The cooking! I usually start 3 days before the holiday.
Day 1: Start turkey thawing, bake cornbread for dressing; cook sweet potatoes (refrigerate cornbread and sweet potatoes after cooling)
Day 2: Bake dressing, sweet potato casserole, pumpkin pies, cakes (frost on day 3), and 2 easy vegetable side dishes (These may be moved to day 3)
Day 3: Cook turkey, frost cakes, set table
Great tips, Joy! I’m also a big fan of starting a day or so ahead with the cooking…and definitely start cleaning well in advance. My MIL is thankfully NOT a stickler about dust (I would probably die if she was like yours — she’d have me in front of a firing squad because my house is definitely not that clean!) But I do what I can as I try to balance it all…and hopefully Santa will bring me a once a week housekeeper! 😉
When we are cleaning up after dinner we take small casserole dishes out and in them we assemble layers of turkey, gravy, stuffing and potatoes (and gravy again) for each family to take home. The carcass then goes into the soup pot with water to be boiled for a few hours. The pot goes out on the cold porch last thing in the evening and soup is finished the next morning.
Great tips, both in the post and in the comments! I’ve had as many as 45 people for Thanksgiving before, and when you have a group that large don’t be afraid to ask for help. Even out-of-town guests can bring sodas and ice. We’ll just have a small group this year (the people who look for dust and pick fights have been banned) so it will be easy-peasy 🙂
I go to my mom’s house! lol no really, we do go to my mom’s house but she does apply many of your tips to our Thanksgiving and we are her help! 🙂
Great tips! Definitely worth recycling. Thank you.