I have to be a geek about getting ready for thanksgiving. i have lists. i have recipes saved on my computer. you should have seen my shopping list yesterday. it was a thing of organizational beauty. i have to do things this way, because I know that I am going to freak out tomorrow. and the more organized i am ahead of time, the less impact that freak out will have.
the menu:
salad
turkey
gravy
apple cranberry sausage stuffing (no link - can’t remember where i found this, but have been making it for YEARS.)
mashed potatoes
whipped sweet potatoes with bananas and honey
spinach gratin
green beans
cranberry compote
yeast rolls
caramel apple pie
all recipes modified, of course, to omit nuts (the holidays always try to kill me via nut allergy) and to reduce quantities.
the schedule
wednesday night:
make pie
make gratin and stuffing to point just before baking, will bake instead on thanksgiving
make cranberry compote, allow flavors to combine in fridge overnight
brine turkey
thursday morning
remove turkey from brine, pat dry, allow to come to room temperature, and rub all over with mayo as per someone’s comment earlier. roast in my brand new pan, wedding gift from aunt and uncle.
roast sweet potatoes and bananas in the big toaster oven, prepare, and bake back in toaster oven
allow gratin and stuffing to come to room temp
when turkey is done, pull out, and put gratin and stuffing in oven to bake
make gravy
bake yeast rolls in toaster oven
while we’re eating, put pie back in a low oven, to warm up. serve with ice cream
what time will dinner be? when i am done. I’ll be happy to just get all this DONE, so if we’re not eating until 8, then so be it! I’ve bought yummy cheeses and snacks to keep us entertained until dinner.
most of the ingredients are purchased, thanks to a farmer’s market run yesterday. note: when you are thinking you are being clever by going to the farmer’s market on a weekday before thanksgiving, instead of the weekend, and thereby avoiding the big crowds, please be aware that the entire population of the greater decatur area had the exact same idea.
wow. that was fun.
I will still have to run to the grocery store later to get the yeast rolls, pick up more lemons (whoops!) and some ice cream.
done already:
the centerpiece. I love the farmer’s market flower section. i have no idea what these flowers are (except for the few little ranunculus I found - FINALLY GOT THEM!). i just grabbed what i liked from the hundreds of bins.
closeup of ranunculus
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Totally Awesome Boyfriend is making Pie today and I get to Help!!!!
I don’t even know what brine means.
Which is why I am only in charge of green bean casserole (can you believe BOTH families requested that so I have to make it TWICE - who else still eats that???) and taco dip.
Both are fairly safe and difficult to screw up.
We’re still eating green bean casserole in Brooklyn. I have introduced it to the South Africans, and the South Africans, they like it.
Dude, you are going to have so many leftovers. We are 7 people (okay, 6, don’t count the vegan) and we’re only having turkey, salad, green bean casserole, yams, mashed potatoes, stuffing, some cranberry sauce (from a can), and a couple of pies. And we’re counting on leftovers!
Oh well, enjoy your first Thanksgiving as an old married lady. I’ll call you tomorrow. Not before noon. Unless I feel the urge to hurl something at the TV when a certain someone’s float goes past.
Ooooo… I’m jealous of how geek you are and the lists!!
… wish I would have thought of that… I love making lists…
I will be awake for the parade. in my jammies. with hot cocoa.
I don’t plan on spending the whole day in the kitchen!
and I will boo and hiss when a certain someone’s float goes by. and you can call me and we can make fun of that person’s outfit.
Us Brits find it hard to comprehend Thanksgiving. Up until I started blogging 2 years ago I had some vague notion that it was a big day for Americans and that it involved turkey - and that was about it. It’s safe to say that I know quite a bit more about it now. It’s fascinating to get a glimpse into another culture.
By the way, just what you want when you’re so busy preparing, consuming and recovering from the feast, but you’ve been tagged with a weirdness tag. See my place for details.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and Kev!!!