Thanksgiving Tips

Mike challenged me this morning calling me Martha not Tony Stewart, just because I had some Thanksgiving tips. I must admit, I don't cook, but I EAT! Here's a list of some of our tips this morning courtesy of http://www.recipematcher.com/

Thanksgiving Tips
Top Ten Tips for a Stress Free and Enjoyable Thanksgiving! With all the fun and excitement of spending time with family and friends comes the preparation and hard work to make a successful Thanksgiving Day. We here at RecipeMatcher have put together the following tips to make your Thanksgiving unbeatable and fulFILLING (no pun intended)!

1. Prepare early and plan ahead. Take one day to sit down and write out your holiday menu. Make your list of ingredients (or go to your ePantry on RecipeMatcher and use the printable list function to take your list to the grocery store). If you have time, clip some coupons and head to the store to purchase ingredients. By planning ahead of time, you will reduce trips to the grocery store during this busy time.

2. Specify the time guests should arrive at your home. Include a cushion in the time, for example, if you would like to serve dinner at 5:00 p.m., inform guests to arrive at 4:00 p.m. This way, guests will have ample time to socialize and even help.

3. Be clear with out of town guests. Inform them if they can or can’t stay at your home. If they can’t, provide them with recommendations regarding hotels and if you are able, make reservations for them.

4. Keep it simple. Plans for meals and decorations should be simple with the intent of making guests feel comfortable; this is an opportunity to enjoy time with friends and family and not to show off.

5. Encourage people to share. Plan a few activities that will help people share what they are thankful for. Ask guests ahead of time to share what they are thankful for during dinner or encourage an afternoon walk.

6. The turkey: it is after all, Turkey Day, so ask your butcher how large the turkey should be for the number of guests you will have. Order the turkey ahead of time and schedule a pick up for Wednesday or Thursday morning.

7. Lighten the load, potluck style. Ask some guests to volunteer to make some dishes and bring them to your home.

8. Get your gear in place! Think through the number of guests you will have and the number of chairs, tables and place settings you will need, and always include a few extra place settings.

9. The day before Thanksgiving, prepare desserts and bread. You can also prepare side dish ingredients by pre measuring ingredients and chopping veggies, place them into bags and this will save precious time on Thursday.

10. On the day of, prepare and cook the Turkey. While the turkey is cooking, assemble your side dishes and bake them while the Turkey is set and resting.

Enjoy! brian