The best reason for Thanksgiving. Spending time with family. My four sons listening to my dad's stories.
Thanksgiving is such a wonderful day, yet it can be overwhelming if you are the hostess.
I have hosted Thanksgiving most every year except the year we were in Florida as a family. I guess my house is the biggest so that's just how it is. We’ve had as many as 43 and as few as a dozen. This year we are expecting 30.
There is so much stress and busyness with the approaching holidays that I thought I'd post a few suggestions on how to create a wonderful Thanksgiving without additional stress.
I've thrown in a few recipes - always, always bake with real butter and fresh dairy products. It really makes a big difference.
http://www.afarmwife.com/2012/11/raspberry-sponge-cake.html
* The best way to cut down on work is to bake your turkey ahead of time. I usually bake my turkey on Tuesday before Thanksgiving. I bake the turkey in an oven bag. Let it cool off to touch. Being careful to save the juice, take all the meat off the bones and put it back into a throw away aluminum baking pan. Pour the juices back over the turkey. Cover tightly and refrigerate. Then all you have to do is put it in the oven and warm thoroughly. It is so moist and tasty from sitting in all that juice. AND, the mess of carving is done. You can use the juices to make gravy. Then your house smells like you’ve been cooking all morning.
* We sort of started a tradition of having cinnamon rolls in the morning while preparing dinner. These are made weeks ahead and put in the freezer. Also, if you’re going to bake do it on Tuesday while you’re baking your turkey. No need to wait until the night before or that morning. It will taste delicious.
* Normally I make real mashed potatoes, but when I am feeding that many people I go for the potato buds. They are so good you can't tell that you cheated. But it saves a bunch of time. But if you have a smaller group or you want to make your own, peel the potatoes the night before and cut them in small pieces. Leave them in a bowl of water. Make sure the water covers all the potatoes. If you cut the potatoes into smaller pieces it will take less time to cook them. And always use real butter and milk.
* Set the table the night before. For me since we do buffet I use a table cloth (you can use the fun paper ones – easy to clean up) and set the glasses, silverware and napkins. No plates.
* If possible serve buffet style. We gather everyone around our island which is heavy with enough food to feed a small village. Once everyone is around we pray and thank the good Lord for putting up with us another year and for all the amazing blessings we have. Then we file past the food and load up the plates. When it is buffet style anyone can get up and get whatever seconds they want without disturbing someone to pass the food.
http://www.afarmwife.com/2014/09/pumpkin-crunch-cake.html
* Use heavy duty paper plates, nicer plastic silverware and cups. There will be enough dishes to do without using your plates, silverware and cups. It is so nice to throw away the biggest portion of work. You have a lot more time to sit around the table with that second cup of coffee and visit.
* I used to make several batches of punch to serve with dinner. It’s just one more job and more expense. Serving water is perfect. It’s inexpensive; easy and with all the great tasting food why waste calories on what you’re going to drink?
http://www.afarmwife.com/2014/02/chocolate-oat-squares.html
* Don't waste your time cleaning house before everyone comes. I noticed my kitchen floor really could use a good mopping. But, knowing there will be all those people walking around dishing up food it is ridiculous to waste time cleaning a floor that no one will see and that is guaranteed to have food dropped.
* Thanksgiving is a great time to try new dishes. We always have a few new ones. If they are a hit you're the star of the day. If they bomb then most of it has been tasted so you have less to throw away.
* Don't worry about having enough food. There is always enough. Even if there isn't, no one is going to starve.
* Have plenty of Ziploc bags to send leftovers home if you have anything left after the tribe swarms the tables.
*Sometime during the day take a moment to sit back, be quiet and take in the blessings of your family. Pay attention to the laughter, the hugging, the little ones fussing. It's music straight from God.
* Last but not least, look for someone who needs to join your family and invite them to join you. Holidays spent alone are painful.
I pray you have a blessed Thanksgiving Day and some great family time together.
