Turkey Talk and Thanksgiving Tips

This is just a little reminder for everyone to take your turkeys out to start thawing Friday or Saturday if it is about a 20 lb turkey. I would start thawing all turkeys at the latest on Sunday. I like to have my turkey thawed at least a day or two ahead of time so I can get it all prepared, in the pan and ready to just pull out and stick in the oven. I have so many things to do the day before Thanksgiving that this is one less thing to worry about.

For all you new or inexperienced cooks be sure to take out the “guts” or giblets as most people call them and neck which are usually stuffed inside of the turkey.

If you are needing to dry bread for your stuffing lay it out this week end to get good and dry. Break it up, place it in the bowl you are going to be mixing it in and have that much done ahead of time.

This week end get your linens for the table washed and ironed and your silverware and dishes organized.

Do as much as you can ahead of time. Clean the veggies for the relish dish and salads or sides on Wed.

If you are making something like a sweet potato casserole get it all prepared and ready on Wed. so all you have to do on Thanksgiving is to pop it in the oven.

If you don’t want to be mashing potatoes two minutes before you sit down; mash them and place them in a crock pot on low to keep warm. You can keep them in there beautifully for 1 hour but no more because past that they get “yucky” fast.

Most of all for you new cooks or those of you doing your first Thanksgiving don’t panic. It is really no different or harder then any other regular meal, you just are maybe preparing more of everything.

If you are really nervous do a trial run this week end. Practice by roasting a chicken, making mashed potatoes, do one or two sides and a dessert. It’s just like a mini Thanksgiving.

If something goes wrong and most of us have had something happen once in awhile just laugh about it. It usually is the Thanksgiving everyone will remember and they will remember it with fond happy memories. It will give you something to tell your future daughter in law, granddaughter or daughter about.

I remember being so scared my first Thanksgiving cooking alone. My friend who was older and going to be one of my guests told me how on her first Thanksgiving everything was perfect, the table looked great everyone was laughing, joking and enjoying the food but half way through the meal she noticed something – she had forgotten the turkey. She had set it on top of the fridge to move it out of the way for a minute and had left it there. No one either didn’t notice or were too polite to say anything.

Things happen but you will do fine.

Jill

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From Living On A Dime Blog » Living On A Dime Blog.

Frugal Thanksgiving tips

Thanksgiving is one of those holidays where it’s a little hard to figure out how to cut back on expenses.

The traditional menu is not all that expensive to begin with. The bigger headaches for dinner hosts involve logistics (Who’s cooking what? Who’s sitting where? How do I time the bird in comparison to the side dishes? Who’s doing the dishes?).

And there is little that can be done about travel expenses except hope that you can schedule an off-peak day to avoid the congestion. College kids sometimes get a bye and can bail out to a roommate’s or cousin’s home instead of traveling all the way back home (I went to a college roommate’s home one year); but family loyalties usually just have to be worked around.

But there are tips that the frugal living experts can share on how to deal with Thankgiving costs. Most of them involve planning ahead with menus and grocery purchases, rather than leaving the details to the last minute.

• BeingFrugal’s Frugal Thanksgiving tips.
• SavingAdvice’s Frugal Thanksgiving savings.
• The Frugal Foodie’s 10 steps to a frugal Thanksgiving.
• Creative Homemaking’s A frugal but elegant Thanksgiving buffet.

This week or next will be a good time to make a list of what foods you are expected to provide, or will be asking others to provide, for Thanksgiving. When the holiday feast sales start, and in my area the weekly grocery sales change over on Sunday or Monday, you want to be ready with your shopping list.

Just before or after Halloween is also a good time to look for any remaining fall / harvest decor or merchandise that may be on clearance while the stores move in the Christmas merchandise. I bought a fall wreath today for $5 that was originally selling for $20.

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From Monroe on a Budget.