I love Thanksgiving. I love the food. I love getting together with friends and family, especially those I do not always get to see. I love the crispness that is usually in the air. I love thinking about the blessings and challenges for which I’m thankful. I especially love being able to show my gratitude for those I love by preparing a special meal for them. Thanksgiving is my very favorite holiday. However, it was not always so. As a child born on July 5, Independence Day with its loud and brilliant fireworks, family cookouts and sunshine, was by far my favorite celebration of the year. Thanksgiving was ok, mostly because of the extra days off school, but compared to the gift-tastic holidays of Independence Day/My Birthday and Christmas, it just wasn’t my favorite day.
But once I went away to college, Thanksgiving took on a new level of importance. Thanksgiving was a holiday I really began to look forward to. After a few months away from family and longtime friends at school, I began to anticipate a return to the familiar. Thanksgiving was the first time since summer that I was sure to see most of my old friends. Even though I was happy in my new life and would have vehemently denied it at the time, it was a comfort to spend time with my family again. I started to value family traditions that I used to take for granted. The chaos of the holidays used to feel oppressive, but after some time away, I really began to appreciate and even enjoy the reality of too many people crammed in a small space talking too loudly and eating way too much food. I also began to realize how simply beautiful the idea of Thanksgiving truly is.
By the time I graduated college and moved out on my own, my food tastes and preferences had changed. I was exposed to a lot of new tastes and really enjoyed experimenting with cooking in my own kitchen. As I began to gain more cooking skill, I began to view Thanksgiving as the ultimate culinary challenge. All my life I had been just showing up and eating the food prepared by others. While I would try to make myself useful helping my mother and sister in the kitchen whipping potatoes, setting the table, or making a pie, I really didn’t have a major role in preparing the Thanksgiving meal.
All of that changed when, after moving 3 ½ hours away from my family with the love of my life, we decided to host our very first Thanksgiving. I will never forget all of the work, thought and stress that went into planning that first meal. How we spent days cleaning and organizing, shopping and trying to figure out where all of our guests would sleep in our small 2 bedroom condo; how I read and re-read the Williams-Sonoma Thanksgiving cookbook and mapped out the recipes I planned to use; how grossed out I was by the neck and bag of giblets that I had never before had a reason to handle; trying for the first time to make my husband’s family recipe for potato rolls – and failing to even approximate the light and fluffy goodness of his grandmother’s rolls; setting off the smoke alarm and enduring all of the teasing that followed (and has continued to this day). I will also never forget how pleased I was that my family seemed to actually enjoy the turkey I worked so hard to season, truss and roast even though it was not deep-fried, as usual; the fun of starting a new tradition of a family football game in a tiny urban park; how fulfilling it was to be able to provide a meal for the people I loved.
Since that year, I have cooked all but one Thanksgiving meal. Many things about my life have changed but the affection I feel for Thanksgiving has continued to grow (along with my cooking skills). For me, cooking is one way I show my love for others, and I hope that loves comes through when we share a meal. Now that I’ve moved even farther away from my family and have children of my own, each year I look forward to the opportunity that Thanksgiving provides, of gathering together family and friends in the spirit of appreciation and thankfulness. Because no matter how large, small, simple, opulent, chaotic or peaceful the celebration, the world can only get better if we all take some time to think of the people and things for which we are grateful.
In case there are some of you who are leaving the kid table for good and ready to not only “set” the grown-up table, but pour yourself into creating the food that goes on that table, I’m sharing this…
Many thanks!
Lindsay
**I’ve made a Word document of the menu and timeline below for easy printing and reference. I also included a shopping list by menu item to get you started.
Printable Thankgiving Timeline (Word document)
Since that first Thanksgiving, I have realized the importance of a timeline when making such a notable meal, especially if you appreciate eating food that is at the right temperature. Having a timeline can help you stay on track and reduce the stress and chaos in your kitchen. Even more importantly, making the items you can BEFORE the big day will make a huge difference in the amount of work that is crammed into a limited time.
TRADITIONAL THANKSGIVING MENU
Turkey (whole or breast only)
Dressing
Mashed/Whipped Potatoes
Gravy with pan drippings
Cranberry Sauce
Mac & Cheese
Green Bean Casserole
Rolls
Salad
Punch
Pumpkin Pie or other dessert
The timeline below is one I’ve refined for myself over the years. Please make adjustments based on your serving time and menu, paying special attention to your specific recipe temps and times. I’m also sharing some of my family’s favorite recipes. The menu is a very traditional one and is only used as an example to make the timeline useful.
THANKSGIVING MEAL TIMELINE
DO THE DAY BEFORE
The items below can be made in advance of Turkey Day (T-Day). Some of them (like cranberry sauce) actually improve in taste if given time for flavors to “marry.” This is possible only if you have space to refrigerate items overnight, which is why I always start by cleaning out the fridge. Doing as much as possible the day before will make for a much more relaxed T-Day!
* Clean out the refrigerator
* Brine the turkey – If you have not done this before, PLEASE try it. Especially if you are roasting the bird, brining will add so much more juiciness and flavor to the turkey.
* Cranberry Sauce – Prepare fully and refrigerate in serving dish (I love the W-S recipe for Cranberry Sauce with Cider and Cinnamon)
* Green Bean Casserole – Mix all but onion topping and store in oven-ready glass/casserole container. (Alton Brown makes a can-less version which is super easy and tastes so much better than the condensed soup version for those who are up for only a little more work. But by doing it the day before the work is not so bad!)
* Dressing/Stuffing – Saute all vegetables, cook turkey leg or giblets if using, chop up bread and let to dry overnight. You can actually make it completely and refrigerate in oven-safe dish. (Since that first year I have made the Celery Dressing recipe from the Williams-Sonoma Thanksgiving cookbook.)
* Mac & Cheese – Prepare and store in oven-safe dish, ready for reheating. I love Ina Garten’s Grown-Up Mac & Cheese recipe.
* Pumpkin Pie – Most desserts can be made in advance. This is really helpful if it needs to be baked since you will need that valuable oven space for many of the other dishes on T-Day.
* Salads – Wash and chop any vegetables and prepare salad if possible. If making dressing, do it the day before to help flavors develop together.
* Rolls - Make and bake. (This is the one element where I cheat and buy two varieties of some good quality rolls from a local bakery. I am not a baker and still have not mastered my husband’s family recipe, so I skip the time on the rolls.)
* Any other snacks or treats that can be made in advance should be. Whenever possible, store the food in the container it will be cooked or served in to save even more time and the search for the perfect dish when your guests are arriving.
* Set up punch bowl, napkins, plates, glasses, gravy boat and serving utensils in advance.
* Arrange tables, chairs and tablecloths.
* Set the table the night before, if possible. Place centerpiece or any other décor.
T-DAY TIMELINE
Note: This timeline is for a 6:00pm meal time (T-Time). Turkey cooking times and temps vary based on recipe used and exact preparation. This timeline is for a whole turkey that is about 16 pounds. Turkeys roasted at 325 degrees will take about 15 minutes per pound. If roasting only the breast of the turkey, allow about 10 minutes per pound when estimating cooking time. Turkeys are done when a thermometer in the thigh (not touching the bone) reads at least 175 degrees or the breast is at least 165 degrees. Also, I prefer not to stuff the bird to be sure it is fully cooked (and the less I have to shove my hand in a carcass, the better!). Since some people call seasoned bread casserole “stuffing” whether it is in the bird or not and others call it “dressing”, I’m using both terms below. Also note, if you are basting your turkey, just plan to do it any free second you have but ideally every 30 minutes of cook time.
To adjust times, use the time you want the item to finish cooking/come out of the oven and work backwards to determine when it should be put in the oven or started on the stovetop. Don’t forget to account for any prep time that is necessary BEFORE cooking begins and add it to the schedule.
12:00pm TURKEY OUT of the refrigerator – While the bird comes closer to room temperature, prepare it to cook. Rinse off brine, pat dry with paper towels, season and truss. I love the W-S Turkey Seasoning Paste. For safety, do not leave the turkey out of the refrigerator for more than 2 hours.
1:15pm Preheat oven (325 degrees or whatever recipe calls for)
1:30pm TURKEY IN OVEN
BREAK – Use time to set table and have a glass of wine – or do whatever non-cooking items are necessary (like getting yourself dressed!)
If you have not finished making the Dressing/Stuffing, do it now.
4:00pm Dressing/Stuffing out of fridge
Potatoes – Peel and chop
4:15pm Dressing/Stuffing in oven
Water on to boil potatoes
Assemble Salad
4:30pm Potatoes – cook, when done, drain and keep in pot on stove to stay warm until ready to mash/whip
Start Gravy – You can make your roux (butter and flour), add stock and then “hold” the gravy base until you have the turkey pan drippings later. Keep it on the back of the stove but turn the burner off, the heat from the oven will keep it warm. Place a layer of plastic wrap on the surface of the gravy base to keep skin from forming. Be careful with seasoning now since the stock will reduce some and may be too salty when finished.
5:00pm – Take out all previously made dishes (Cranberry Sauce, Pies, Salad, etc) and finish assembling any necessary dishes. Place all items that do not need to be served hot or very cold in their final serving destination.
Assign a serving utensil to each dish
Assemble Punch
5:15pm – Mash/Whip Potatoes and season. Cover with foil, warm on stove.
5:25pm – TURKEY OUT OF OVEN (175 degree thigh or 165 degree breast), tent with foil and allow to rest
Dressing/Stuffing out of oven
Take out any salad dressings, butter, or any other condiments from the refrigerator and place in final destination
5:30pm Mac & Cheese in oven to heat
Green Bean Casserole in oven to heat
(A shortcut is to warm it in the microwave and put it in the oven to brown topping after turkey comes out. )
If necessary, place potatoes in oven to re-heat
5:45pm Add onion topping to green bean casserole to brown
Rolls in oven to warm
Finish gravy with pan drippings, place in final serving destination
5:55pm Mac & Cheese out of oven
Green Bean Casserole out of oven
Rolls out of oven, place in final serving destination
Carve turkey
6:00pm Enjoy!
