I’ve already shared with y’all that Thanksgiving really isn’t my thing and we (kind of) boycott it by going on a trip every year instead. The main reason for this is, when you’re a personal chef, every week feels like prepping for Thanksgiving. So I want to share with y’all my tips on how to prep for the big holiday the way I prep for big dinner parties, events, and my clients every week. Just because I don’t celebrate Thanksgiving doesn’t mean I don’t know how to host it - this is an every-week thing at my house!
Brainstorm good eats
Sit down one quiet morning or afternoon with a cup of coffee or tea and start looking into menu ideas. I do this at the beginning of every week to plan my client’s meals and any photo shoots, blog posts, and dinner parties I have coming up. This is the starting point and you may be dreading it, but if you love food (and who doesn’t) it will be so much fun! I look at it as one of my more relaxing tasks of the week, which is why I always sip something warm and cozy while I’m doing it.
Use surefire family recipes and cookbooks
Ok, y’all have heard me go on and on about this but I can’t stress it enough... ever. Recipes online are not always good recipes and won’t always turn out the way they look in pretty Pinterest pictures. Anyone can post recipes on Pinterest, Instagram, and all over the internet these days. Unless you have tested the recipe - no matter how pretty the picture is the blogger took - don’t use it for a big day like Thanksgiving unless it comes from a legit publication or cookbook. Now I’m not saying all publication recipes and cookbooks are perfect BUT (more than likely - Lord Jesus, at least I HOPE publications and cookbook authors test their recipes before publishing) most legit cookbook authors and publications have tested printed recipes multiple times. That’s not always the case with recipe bloggers - I’m not hating, I’m a blogger too. I’m just telling the truth. Family recipes are also perfect for the big day. Great-granny may not have written it down in any form that makes sense to you, but usually mama knows the hidden secrets and can help make that old family recipe perfect for the dinner table.
Create your menu
Decide what dishes you want to serve and jot them down in an app like Notes or Evernote. Sometimes for big events, I like to create the menu aesthetically on my phone through an app like Canva or Unfold. Seeing it look pretty always inspires and excites me to get the plans moving.
Make a list and check it twice
Making your grocery list is one of the most important steps in planning any big party or dinner. And if you’re very through when doing so, you can knock everything out in one grocery trip. At this point, I take my menu, go through each recipe’s ingredient list, and write down what I need. A complete game-changer is doing this in the Lists app on your phone. Write each ingredient and how much needed on a separate line, then when you go to the grocery store, you can just check off as you go - right on the app!
Stay focused at the market
Stick to the list! Stick to the list! Stick to the list! Yes, it’s very easy to run across something like apple cider and think, “Ah! I didn’t plan a cocktail and need one!” That’s ok, just don’t let too much of that interfere with your plan and what you walked in for. Give yourself time and don’t rush, but also set a goal when you walk in. Every time I make a grocery trip, I have a time limit in mind of how long I need to be there and what time I want to walk out.
Organize your fridge and pantry
I didn’t mention this before, but before you go to the store, you should clean your fridge out completely. It should be near empty and ready to be filled with Thanksgiving goodies. When unloading, try to keep ingredients together that go together in certain recipes. That way, you can pull everything out at once when prepping a dish and everything is ready to go. It will expedite the prep work for that recipe.
Prep and store, prep and store, then prep and store some more
Go through every recipe and decide if there’s anything that can prepped days before. Even if a dish can’t be completely made ahead, I guarantee there are PARTS to every dish that can. I promise, there’s more than you think. Here are some examples: marinades, dressings, chopping of veggies, sauces/gravy that can be re-heated, roasting of nuts or croutons, etc. Most sections of a recipe like these things can be done anywhere from 3 to 5 days ahead of time (the Sunday before is a perfect prep-day). Make sure you store and label all parts of a dish prepped ahead. Dressings can be stored in mason jars, veggies can be stored in large plastic containers, and sauces can be stored in deli containers. Dry food like nuts and croutons (that don’t have to be refrigerated) can be stored right on your countertop, giving you extra fridge space.
Make as much ahead as possible
While dishes like salads can’t be completely made ahead, there are plenty of traditional style Thanksgiving dishes that can. Casseroles, gratins, lasagnas, cranberry sauce, pies, etc can all be completely made and either a) baked ahead, refrigerated, and re-heated or b) completely prepped ahead, refrigerated, and baked the day-of.
Store-buy yummy snacks
Everything doesn’t have to be made from scratch the day of Thanksgiving. I always, always like to have small bites out for early arrivers or to simply have a cocktail-hour before dinner. It’s festive, everyone will get a drink and a few bites in them while you’re pulling the final dishes out of the oven, and then it will be time for dinner!
Set the table as early as possible
Even weeks before, it’s ok to go ahead and set the table. That’s one last thing you have to worry about, and if you go ahead and do it now, you won’t be scrambling to get it done last minute. The beauty of it may even inspire you to host a fall dinner party or Friendsgiving before - just don’t forget to set the table back!
