Thanksgiving

[prosodic]

Okay...I have about 5+ weeks...no need to panic...yet.

But I am hosting Thanksgiving. I am HOSTING Thanksgiving.

And I've never done that before.

Oh sure, Lance had one of his friends over for Thanksgiving once, when we were in Germany. But he was just happy to have football and not be alone. They had worked all day. Dinner was turkey breast cooked in a crockpot with some Stovetop stuffing (generally, I want homemade stuffing on Thanksgiving), homemade mashed potatoes, apple pie.

I didn't make a huge fuss. I never did when we were there. Mostly, it was just Lance and myself. And it never really felt like Thanksgiving because it was always a work day and we were in Germany.

But now, we have Rich & Kathy coming over. And their little boy. I will be working all week, so that limits the time I have to do some food prep ahead of time. But I'm sure it can be done. I can work the weekend before and freeze things, if need be.

That's really not my issue. I think I'll be making a whole turkey. This will be the first time I've ever done one. I've half a mind to get a turkey fryer and let Lance do the turkey. I'm just too afraid of overcooking it and having it come out dry. I fancy myself to be a damn good cook, and I can do a whole chicken, no problem. But a turkey is a whole different beast.

As for desserts...Kathy is bringing an apple streusel pie. I'm having pumpkin pie too, but I can just buy one from the store. My family always just got pies at Frisch's Big Boy because nobody does a better pumpkin pie than they do. Well, we don't have a Frisch's here, but I'm sure I can still get a good pumpkin pie somewhere. And real whipped cream...not Cool Whip.

I just need to come up with a menu. Homemade mashed potatoes with gravy, of course. Probably a sweet potato casserole. Green bean casserole, since that's something Lance grew up on at Thanksgiving. Homemade stuffing. That's quite a lot already for 4 adults and a little kid. Lots of starch though. And I always like to have cranberry sauce. I grew up on the canned stuff, but I really prefer homemade. Rolls/biscuits. Cranberry orange bread. Veggie tray and cheese plate.

I'll be obsessing over this now for the next month.

Comments

[godchick.livejournal.com]

Cooking a turkey is so easy. If your worried about overcooking, you could buy a meat thermometer or one of those turkeys with the red button that pops up when done. I prefer the thermometer. Don't stuff the turley the night before I think if you go to www.butterball.com, you can find good information. You can buy those cheap throw-away tin pans but they are not very sturdy. You would need help getting it in and out of the oven anyways.
Your menu sounds delicious. It's really not too much food if you want leftovers and to send some food home with your guest.

[almightychix0r.livejournal.com]

Go buy Reynolds Oven Bags. They come with two in the box and the turkey will come out FANTASTIC. I was so scared to cook my first turkey (and you know I'm not the best cook) but the bags make it super easy and really tasty.

[godchick.livejournal.com]

The cooking bags are great and cut down on the roasting time.

[jenny-rambles.livejournal.com]

Oh god - I can't think of the place up there - its like a Dennys, but it has a bakery. They have AMAZING pies. I think theres one by the Tacoma mall....I want to say it has a green sign? I'll do some research and see if I can find them - order pie from that chain, they ROCK!

[jenny-rambles.livejournal.com]

I found it!!
https://www.sharis.com/

Sharis - go to the link and click on their pie list - they were AMAZING!

[prosodic.livejournal.com]

We have a Shari's very close by. They haven't been advertising any pumpkin pies though, so I didn't know they even had any.

[jenny-rambles.livejournal.com]

I'm pretty sure they do seasonal pies - I remember it was a big thing to "Order your Pie in Advance"!!!!

[godchick.livejournal.com]

Another great pie place is Marie Callenders. There's one up your way in Federal Way.
http://www.mcpies.com/famous_pies/pie_menu.php

[wisheschick.livejournal.com]

I cooked my first turkey last Thanksgiving and it honestly wasn't that bad. It turned out really tasty! I think it gets such a bad and daunting reputation because the cooking time is so long. Good luck!

[feralparakeet.livejournal.com]

OK, I'm only now catching up on LJ since my laptop's been out of commission for a while, but here's my advice.

Turkey: cut a few slits under the skin and put little pats of butter underneath. Stuff it with a little onion and garlic, and LOTS of parsley. Roast it in the oven, but do it upside down and baste it regularly. It won't be as golden or 'adorable', but serve it sliced and people will rave. Having the breastmeat on the underside keeps it much more moist.

Dressing/stuffing... I really can't say that I've had anything better than southern style. Break up some dry cornbread (you can freeze ahead of time), add onion and celery, poultry seasoning and/or some sage (not too much), a few other spices, an egg and some chicken stock. Get it to the point where it's around cake batter consistency, and bake it up.

If you're also going starch-heavy, I really recommend smashing red potatoes (skin-on) with a little butter, cream, gouda, garlic, and bacon.

Those items plus some asparagus with lemon butter and any special requests are my usual Thanksgiving meal. I don't host anymore, but I still cook (now with Dad's help).

Ohh... and I'd say skip the pumpkin pie and do sweet potato instead. This means that you don't have to put marshmallows on top of anything (though my family does streusel and nuts), and it covers all your bases.