The other day I read a gourmet cooking magazine's cover story on Thanksgiving Dinner. The subject of the article was "How to cook an entire Thanksgiving Day feast in four hours." My thought is-why would you want to do that? The thought of cramming the entire meal preparation into four hours, while entertaining family and friends, makes me break out in a cold sweat. With a little forethought and some strategic planning, you can have most of the meal cooked ahead of time, and spend Thanksgiving Day enjoying your family and friends, instead of frantically cooking. With a solid plan of action, you just might feel like a guest in your own home.
For the next three weeks, we will have numerous ideas and suggestions to help you plan your entire Thanksgiving Dinner-complete with make ahead dishes, and advice on everything from what wine to serve with dinner, to cooking the star of the meal-the bird.
Today we will discuss the menu, and your game plan. November 13th will be Turkey Talk, the dressing, and the perfect pan gravy. On November 20th we will feature some perfect wines to complement the meal (and some terrific wine buying and tasting tips), as well as some fabulous make ahead side dishes. On November 27th, look for some tips for entertaining children on turkey day, as well as some interesting turkey day trivia. Also, be sure to check out Thanksgiving Day edition of the paper, which will have a HUGE food section on everything from Creative Ways with Turkey Leftovers to Preparing for the Holidays. If you had any negative thoughts about cooking for Thanksgiving this year, let them go. We have done the planning for you!
When pondering Thanksgiving, or just entertaining in general, one person in particular always comes to my mind. The Julia Child of Southern cooking and entertaining, Nathalie Dupree. For many years Ms. Dupree has educated the public through her informative cookbooks, cooking classes, and her PBS cooking show. One of my all time favorite cookbooks is Nathalie Dupree's Comfortable Entertaining ( Viking Penguin, $29.95). This gem is much more than a cookbook. Packed with advice and tips about everything from table settings to tea parties, this book is worth its weight in gold if you like to entertain, or simply want to learn about the craft. The holiday section and the chapter about Thanksgiving are particularly helpful, and enlightening. I recently had the honor of speaking with Ms. Dupree about preparing Thanksgiving Dinner. I asked for advice about avoiding the anxiety so commonly experienced by those hosting the event. "When planning a big meal like Thanksgiving Day dinner," said Ms. Dupree, "you need to try do as much as possible before the day." Making lists is crucial. "The main thing to remember, is to break the meal into components," explained Ms. Dupree, "Making a large meal is just like doing laundry, you have to separate the tasks, and do them one at a time. You should not try to do it all at once." For example, when Ms. Dupree plans her Thanksgiving Day menu, she includes dishes that can be made ahead and frozen, or that can be cooked ahead, and reheated. She also stressed that not everything has to be prepared at the very last minute and served piping hot. "Think about caterers," she reminds us, "They have to make things ahead, and the food is often still quite good." The timing of the meal is also important. Ms. Dupree said, "People often set the time for the Thanksgiving meal at odd hours, say 2:00 in the afternoon, or 4:00." She recommends either eating the meal at lunchtime, or waiting until the dinner hour. "When you set the hour of the meal at a time people do not normally eat, guests can get hungry, and might be tempted to fill up on appetizers."
In her fabulous Comfortable Entertaining book, Ms. Dupree offers a plethora of tips for making Thanksgiving Dinner a memorable, stress-free event.
Among my favorite of her suggestions include:
·When inviting friends and/or family members for dinner, ask them if there were something special they would like. Ms. Dupree writes, "People are funny about Thanksgiving. Most of us have some special food we are used to, that we attach to the holiday. It can range from lumpy mashed potatoes to mincemeat pie. If I can make it, I promise to do so."
·A week or so before Thanksgiving, try to use up what is in your refrigerator, and before doing major shopping, clean out the refrigerator completely, to make room for the big meal.
·Ms. Dupree cooks and carves the turkey the night before Thanksgiving, then cooks another one on Thanksgiving Day. That way, the carved one can be reheated, and the whole one looks pretty on the buffet table, and can be carved for second helpings and leftovers.
·Use yellow post-it notes to label what food will go into which serving dish. That way you are certain you have enough dishes, and that the food will fit into the bowl. This task should be done the day before, when you set the table.
·One of Ms. Dupree's all time favorite tips: "Plan ahead for where dirty pots will go. One solution is to clear out the space under the sink and place a cooler filled with soapy water there."
Monday
August 4th, 2025
2:36PM
