A Simplified Thanksgiving Game Plan

About author / Pamela Chester

Mom of two; graduate French Culinary Institute; kids cooking program instructor; Master's degree in food studies. Creates kid friendly foods and loves her slow cooker.

Thanksgiving will be here in a few short days, and that means many of us will enjoy a dinner with loved ones, giving thanks and sharing in an all-out eating affair. Across the country, Americans will be tucking into a similar feast of roast turkey (or tofurkey if your family is vegetarian), cranberries, stuffing, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie. Many of us, myself included, feel that Thanksgiving dinner should be the same every year.

Just earlier today I had a conversation with my mother about how one year the family revolted because she had put chestnuts in her stuffing. You see, I still think she makes the best sausage stuffing known to mankind, and she knows she can never get out of making it exactly the same each year. I could make a whole meal out of that alone. It was after that year that we almost never diverged from the same menu, even when I started occasionally hosting my own Thanksgiving dinner. Sure, we vary the vegetable side dish over the years (with some becoming such hits that they make a repeat appearance year after year), but the rest of the menu is always consistent. The same traditional sentiment is behind the fact that many of us, even those who cook everything else from scratch, love to have the canned variety of cranberry jelly on the table.

When you have a young family, sometimes hosting the dinner can be an overwhelming task. Whether you are a newbie first time Thanksgiving cook, or you have been cooking the meal for your family for years, it takes a lot of effort and advance preparation to pull off this showstopper of a feast. The key to making a low stress Thanksgiving dinner is to simplify and to minimize the last minute work; do as much prep work in advance as possible. If you are a more of a procrastinator, then you might be doing some of it into the wee hours the day before. But getting as much done as you can before turkey day will help you to relax and enjoy your family and guests.

You may also want to divvy up different parts of the meal to guests that have offered to bring something to dinner. You’ll have to manage this process a bit to ensure you have a balanced menu and don’t get two of the same category of dish from different people. One person can bring a pie, another a vegetable side dish, another an appetizer. If someone in your family is famous for their stuffing, have them bring it. It’s minimal work for each guest to bring one item and makes for a lot less to do for the main host. And if you are really pressed for time, there are many store-bought items that can be purchased in place of making them yourself, such as those infamous cranberries.

If your kids are lucky enough to have off from school the day before, put ‘em to work! Get your kids involved with the preparations and it’ll ease the load a little bit, plus they’ll have made a contribution they can be proud of. I always enjoyed helping to make the homemade apple pie, and eventually it became my tradition to make it each year myself. Even young kids can sort silverware, help wash the prep dishes, and make simple dishes like the Corn Chive Pudding below. This recipe is so simple, and makes a side dish that can be easily reheated once the turkey comes out of the oven. It’s a great covered dish if you are going to someone else’s house as a guest.

Here’s to a simple and enjoyable Thanksgiving for you and your family!

Serves/Makes: 8

• 2 packages (10 oz size) frozen corn, thawed
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups milk
• 4 large eggs
• 1/2 vanilla bean, scraped
• OR
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1 cup fresh chives, chopped
• 1 pinch nutmeg