Sanity Saving Thanksgiving Timeline Planner

Four to Seven Days Before Thanksgiving

• By now you should have finalized your guest list.  Make a list of who’s coming and have a count of how many adults and how many children will be at your table. This will help you get a handle on how much food you need.

• Finalize your recipe selections. Are there any dietary restrictions, diabetic, gluten free, lactose intolerance, plant based, keto needs you need to consider? Are there tried and true family recipes that must be on the table? Will you be be doing a traditional menu or are you willing to experiment with something new and inspirational? If you are asking people to bring a dish, now is the time to tell them! Print out a copy of all the recipes you will be making. It is easier to work from a copy of a recipe than having many opened books and magazines cluttering up the prized real estate on your kitchen counters. Besides, the books and magazine will stay clean and you can toss the printed recipes when you are done with them. Win-win. You may also want to create a folder on your computer called Thanksgiving 2022 and put a copy of the recipes in it for future reference along with notes about what worked, what was a disaster and what you would do differently next time.

• Prepare your shopping list. Take a look at your guest list. Will there be mostly adults, or starving teenagers eager to eat as much as you can dish out or small children with little bellies that are easily filled? The general rule for buying a turkey is to figure 1-1.5 pounds per person. Of course no one will be eating 1.5 pounds of turkey, but this figure takes into account the weight of the turkey bones and food shrinkage (yes, a turkey will shrink when you cook it- oh, if losing weight were so easy for us humans!). If you order  fresh turkey, get that order in before it’s too late! You can pick it up several days prior to Thanksgiving. If you buy a frozen turkey, you must allow it to thaw for several days in your refrigerator prior to cooking it. It takes more time than you think. Allow for it. Go through your recipes, write down all the ingredients and then add up the quantity of each item from each recipe. For example, if you use two onions in the base of your turkey pan and two onions in your stuffing or dressing, you would need four onions. Don’t forget to check your pantry items to make sure you have enough of a particular ingredient to make the recipes at hand.

• Buy your non-perishable items. Onions, potatoes, carrots, root vegetables, soda, juice, wine and liquor can all be bought in advance. Do it. No one wants to schlep a ton of groceries into their kitchen all at one time. If possible, sort your loot into piles according to what recipes they will be used in.

• Plan your refrigerator and freezer space. Now would be a good time to toss the items in your refrigerator and freezer that have turned into science experiments turned awry. You need that precious space. Keep in mind a turkey takes up a lot of room. Will you also need a cooler for things that won’t fit in the fridge? Don’t forget the ice.

• Select serving pieces, linens and tablescapes. If you have everything laid out and to the side, it will be easy to set the table and get the food out when the time comes. Scrambling and cursing like a sailor for that damn gravy boat is not a good look.

Three Days Before Thanksgiving

• Buy perishables. Now is the time to get your vegetables, fresh herbs and pick up your fresh turkey.

• Buy flowers for your table and other items to create your tablescape. Don’t make it too elaborate. Remember, you’ll have to remove it to make room for your food platters. I’m generally not one to save my kids’ school art work projects (that becomes overwhelming after a while) but I did save a Pilgrim and Indian set they made out of construction paper, feathers, and toilet roll inserts in second grade. They go on my Thanksgiving table year after year, regardless of the decor.

• Prep, Prep and More Prep. Prepare anything you can chop, precook or parcook and then refrigerate or freeze. When chopping ingredients put them in separate labeled containers or resealable plastic bags such as garlic for stuffing or dressing and garlic for turkey etc.

• Make Pies and Desserts. True confessions time. I’m not much of a baker. Too much precision, neatness and measuring ingredients for me. I’d rather purchase my desserts or dole them out as a what to bring me when my guests don’t want to arrive empty handed. That said, if baking is your thing, now’s the time to do it.

One Day Before Thanksgiving

• Set dinner table and arrange flowers.

• Set up beverage bar.

• Continue to prep and parcook side dishes. If you are serving appetizers, prep and parcook them too!

• Season or brine your turkey. Your turkey will taste better if you season or brine it in advance. Promise.

• Plan cooking and reheating times. Do you have a single oven or a double oven? Plan out what needs to be cooked or reheated and when. Do you have enough oven space to reheat everything while the turkey is resting, ie. before you slice it? Yes, your turkey needs to rest. Resting allows all the juices to be reabsorbed by your bird. You’ve worked too hard to skip this crucial step. If you don’t let it rest, your turkey will become dried out.

Thanksgiving Day

• Cook remaining casseroles,potatoes and appetizers, if any.

• Cook turkey

• Serve appetizers.

• Reheat sides dishes.

• Serve dinner, relax and enjoy your family and friends. After all, isn’t that what it’s all about?

What secret Thanksgiving tips and tricks do you have hidden in your mom toolbox? Please share them in the comments below. Thanks, smiles and have a fabulous Thanksgiving.