Oct 21, 2017
If you’ve agreed to host Thanksgiving dinner this year and this realization has started to dawn on you, don’t panic just yet. While this holiday can certainly be a stressful one for a lot of people, most of the bad rap can be attributed to a lack of preparation. If you follow the below tips, you might even enjoy the holiday.
Plan, Plan, Plan
The key to a successful Thanksgiving dinner and, most importantly, your sanity is all in the planning. At least one week before the big day, create a plan and a list of things to accomplish each day of the week leading up to Thursday. From recipe selection and grocery shopping to creating a timeline of when each dish needs to go in the oven, good planning will save you many times over. When creating your timeline, note the amount of bake time needed, especially when it comes to the turkey, as multiple dishes may be competing for oven time. A turkey typically roasts for 20 minutes per pound as a general rule. If you find while making a timeline that there simply ISN’T enough time, switch out an oven baked side for one that can be made in a crockpot, on the stove, or the day before.Work Ahead
Days before the big day, smart women are already getting a head start on their Thanksgiving prep work. Pie crusts can be made in batches beforehand and frozen. Vegetables can be peeled and chopped. Use post it notes to label each dish you will use for every entrée, side, and sauce, so there will be no guesswork or frantic dish washing on T-Day. A helpful idea is to print out each recipe you’ll be using and put everything together in a binder in the order you’ll use the recipes to maximize efficiency and save time later.Take Care of Yourself
