Thanksgiving Timeline for a Large Family Gathering
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Thanksgiving Timeline
Start
making lists and see what you have on hand, versus what you need. Plan your menu.
If you want guests to bring a dish, list the dish next to the guest.
Make
your guest list.
Order the turkey (if ordering a fresh one). Plan on 1-1/4
pounds per person. Make sure your oven will hold the turkey.
Call to invite
your guests and if they ask to bring something, let them know what you'd like
them to bring. If they don't offer, ask them.
DO YOU HAVE:
Table
(one large enough for all your guests)
Chairs for all of your guests
DISHWARE: Dinner plates Dessert plates Coffee cups and saucers
SILVERWARE:
Forks, knives and spoons
GLASSWARE: Water glasses and/or Wine glasses
LINENS: Tablecloth (large enough to fit your table)
Clean napkins
COOKING & SERVING ITEMS
Roasting pan: Is it the right size for your turkey?
Will it fit into your oven? (Don't laugh: It's easier to buy the right pan today
than it will be on Thanksgiving morning.)
Big-enough bowls, pots and serving
platters
Sauceboat
Bread basket
Gravy pitcher
Coffeepot--Make
decaf and put in a thermos - then brew a pot of regular.
Trivets
Well-sharpened
knives
Sugar bowl
Cream pitcher
2 weeks before Thanksgiving:
Confirm guest list. Plan menu. Make a seating chart.
Order turkey (especially
if you want a fresh one). Plan on 1 1/4 lb. per person.
Make lists of: serving
pieces you'll need (platters, bowls, gravy boat); table settings — do you
have enough dinner plates, dessert plates, utensils and glasses?; equipment (roasting
pan with rack, meat thermometer, knives, pots, pans)
Make out shopping and
''to do'' lists
Pick wine (check selections in wine guide)
Plan a festive
centerpiece
1 week before Thanksgiving:
Clean the house.
Put
clean towels in the bathroom.
Make a final shopping list--Remember ice, cream
for the coffee and nuts for nibbling in the living room.
Week of Thanksgiving:
Monday: Carefully read through your recipes to see exactly what food and
equipment you need; clean and decorate house. Defrost your turkey (if it's frozen).
Remember that you have to allow 24 hours for every 5 pounds if you're going to
defrost a turkey in the refrigerator. That means a 15-pound turkey will take three
full days, so get started on Monday.
SUGGESTION: If you miss that deadline,
you can defrost the bird faster in a sink full of cold water, allowing about half
an hour for each pound of turkey and changing the water occasionally. (It will
still take 7 1/2 hours for that 15-pounder, so do it after work on Wednesday,
then refrigerate it.)
Tuesday: Do your final food shopping. Make a cooking schedule for Thanksgiving Day. If guests are invited for 5 P.M., count backward from a 6 P.M. dinner, writing down the time everything goes into the oven or the microwave. Don't forget the dishes that will have to be reheated. Buy all ingredients and drinks; lay out all serving dishes and cooking equipment; start preparing any dishes that will keep (cranberry sauce, spiced pecans, pumpkin cheesecake).Make pastry dough for the pumpkin pie. Make a spinach dip or another do-ahead appetizer.
Wednesday: Idea!: Have a few friends over to help decorate, prep and cook (this should involve loud music and plenty of wine); set and decorate table; make pecan-chocolate tart; chop everything for side dishes; dry out bread and cook sausage for stuffing; plan cooking schedule for Thursday. If you have only one oven, keep in mind that most of the day it will be occupied by the turkey. Set the table. Clear out the coat closet for guest coats. Clean the guest bathroom. If possible, make it off-limits to the family. Take the gravy out of the freezer and put it in the refrigerator so it can defrost Bake bread for the stuffing and let it stand at room temperature overnight. Chop vegetables for the desired stuffing. Make the dinner rolls. Make the sweet potatoes. Make the pumpkin pie.
Thanksgiving Day
Have coffee, take a deep breath, and get organized.
Let turkey sit at room temperature at least 1 hour before roasting.
Eight hours before serving the turkey: Make the stuffing. Make
the mashed potatoes and refrigerate.
Assemble and bake side dishes early in
the day (reheat right before serving).
Five to seven hours before serving the turkey: Roast the turkey. Make cheese crisps or another appetizer. Prepare a vegetable side dish. Roast turkey, finish setting up, prepare appetizers — and take a break to get yourself ready
Have a glass of wine. One hour before serving the turkey: Place the turkey on a serving dish. Pour the drippings into a bowl until you're ready to make the gravy. Bake any stuffing that didn't get into the turkey. Reheat the sweet potatoes. Reheat the mashed potatoes. Reheat the dinner rolls. Whip cream for the pumpkin pie and refrigerate. Make the gravy.
Reheat side dishes while turkey is resting (at least 20 min.)
Let
guests mingle and have drinks and appetizers while you carve turkey.
Thanksgiving Shopping List
Meats, Eggs & Dairy
whole
turkey: (12-13 pounds) Buy larger for left-over turkey
pork sausage: 1 pound,
preferably mild with sage
2 eggs for the Jiffy cornbread mix: (use whatever
ingredients your mix calls for)
2 eggs for the Pumpkin Pie
3 eggs for
the Cornbread Dressing
2/3 cup milk for the Jiffy cornbread mix: (use whatever
ingredients your mix calls for)
1 cup 1% milk for the mashed potatoes
1
cup heavy cream for the Pumpkin Pie
1/ cup whole milk for the Pumpkin Pie
whipped cream and/or ice cream for pies
3/4 stick unsalted butter for
pie crust
1/3 cup (1 stick) butter for apple pie
3/4 stick butter for
mashed potatoes
5 tablespoons butter for sweet potatoes
1 ready made pie
crust
vegetable shortening: 2 tablespoons
bacon drippings
3 cups giblet
broth for Cornbread Dressing
3 cups Quick Turkey Stock
Dry & Canned
Goods
Jiffy brand cornbread mix: 2 boxes (each 8.5-ounce) (or equivalent)
French bread: 1 loaf
honey: 2/3 cup
corn (or vegetable oil): approx.
1-1/2 cups total
olive oil: extra-virgin, 2 tablespoons
walnut oil: 1/3
cup
chicken or turkey broth: low-salt, 2 cans
flour: approx. 2 cups total
sugar: approx. 1-1/4 cups
light brown sugar: approx 2 cups
Dijon mustard:
1-1/2 teaspoons
15 oz. can solid-pack pumpkin
honey: 2/3 cup
Produce
onions: 3 medium
celery: 6 stalks
carrots: 1
cranberries:
1 bag (12-ounces) fresh
orange: 1 medium
garlic: 3 cloves
lemons:
5
green beans: 2 pounds
5 Granny Smith apples
jalapeno pepper
potatoes:
5 pounds
Yams: 4 pounds
Herbs, Spices & Nuts
sage: 1 tablespoon
fresh sage or 1-1/4 teaspoon dried
rosemary: dried, 2 teaspoons
poultry
seasoning: 1 tablespoon
bay leaves: 4
garlic: 3 cloves
garlic powder:
1/4 teaspoon
cloves, ground: 1/4 teaspoon
ginger, ground: 1 teaspoon
cinnamon:
2-1/2 teaspoon
nutmeg: 1/4 teaspoon
walnuts: 1/2 to 3/4 cups chopped (optional)
pecans: 2 cups shelled halves
almonds: 1/2 cup sliced
peppercorns:
for fresh ground pepper
salt: 3-1/2 teaspoon
mini-marshmallows: 2 cups
Other
white wine: 1/2 cup (optional)
pies: Pumpkin and Dutch
Apple, either bought from a bakery or made using your favorite recipe. Ingredients
for making pies are included in above lists.
Thanksgiving Recipes
Quick Turkey Stock
Giblet Gravy
Mashed
Potatoes
Turkey Stuffing
Cooking
Turkey Tips:
Unwaxed dental floss is good for trussing because it does
not burn and is very strong. Or instead of sewing up a stuffed turkey, close the
cavity with two heels of dampened bread. Push each into an opening with the crust
facing out, and overlapping to hold the stuffing in. See the turkey
cooking chart
Instead of stuffing the bird, try steaming it by pouring one cup of water mixed with 1/4 cup of pinapple juice into the body cavity. The meat will be more flavorful and juicy.
Nowadays, people roast their turkeys breastside down so the juices will make the breast juicier. Turn the turkey back upright for the last hour of cooking. They used to cook turkeys in brown grocery bags, but they don't recommend it anymore. That's why they invented oven bags. Hope all this helps, and have a great Thanksgiving!
___________________________________________
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