The food is bought and prepped. The table is set. The wine is chilled. The turkey is roasting away in the oven. Don’t forget about the music!
Here’s our Thanksgiving 2018 playlist. If you follow it on your own Spotify, you can ask Alexa to play it by just saying, “Alexa, play my Thanksgiving 2018 playlist on Spotify!”
Happy Thanksgiving, friends!
I always used to feel stressed and anxious going into hosting a dinner. Getting the timing right, making it look effortless, enjoying it. I wanted to share a few tips and a few round ups of tips that I think will help you get through Thanksgiving dinner, or any other dinner party.
Here are some other Thanksgiving tips that will help you get to the main event with a smile on your face:
The Kitchn’s Thanksgiving Tips
And of course, the Butterball Turkey Talk Line: 1-800-BUTTERBALL
This one is for all my pals that like to do things with an unconventional flare. Might I propose turkey thighs for Thanksgiving dinner instead of a full roasted turkey? They cook faster, and let’s be honest, everyone loves the dark, moist meat anyway!
Okay, if not for Thanksgiving, for Friendsgiving Dinner. But make these. They’re incredible.
Bourbon Glazed Turkey Thighs
Yield: 6 servings | Time: 1.5 hrs
Ingredients
6 bone-in turkey thighs
Salt & pepper
For the glaze:
1 c bourbon
1 c ketchup
1 1/2 c brown sugar
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp paprika
2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp garlic powder
salt & pepper to taste
For garnish:
Roasted garlic heads, pomegranate seeds, parsley
Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a roasting pan (very, very well) with foil. Might I suggest spraying the roasting pan with cooking spray BEFORE lining it and after? You’re welcome.
Dry the turkey thighs with a paper towel, season with salt and pepper.
While the oven is preheating, over medium heat, combine all glaze ingredients. Bring to a boil and then simmer, whisking until all the ingredients are well combined. Taste, carefully, for salt and pepper. Reserve some glaze for the serving.
Rub half the glaze over the turkey thighs. Cover the thighs with foil, piercing the foil with a fork to allow for venting holes. Roast for 30 minutes.
After 30 minutes, remove foil, basting the thighs with the glaze again. Roast for another 30-40 minutes, until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees.
Allow the thighs to cool for 10 minutes, drizzle with reserved glaze and serve. Garnish, if you like, with parsley, pomegranates and roasted garlic.
I know I said it about mashed potatoes, but really, is it Thanksgiving Dinner (or Friendsgiving Dinner) without a stuffing on the table?
It’s so hard to pick a favorite Thanksgiving side dish, so I definitely love a mashed potato, and I’d just like to call the stuffing the main dish. K? I wanted to do something a little different with this stuffing recipe, so I used spicy sausage instead of sweet sausage, and it definitely shook it up a little!
I love to take a dish that you expect to taste a certain way and just ever so slightly change it up for a more surprising experience.
This stuffing is a little savory, a little sweet, and has a little bit of heat! It’s so simple, comes together so quickly, and can totally be made ahead and just reheated.
Also, I mean, the leftovers are pretty amazing.
Spicy Sausage Stuffing
Yield: 12 servings | Time: 1.5 hrs
Ingredients
One loaf of bread, cubed into desired size
1.5 c sweet onion, chopped
1 c carrots, chopped
1 c celery, chopped
1 tbsp thyme
1 tbsp rosemary
2 tsp salt
2 tsp black pepper
1 lb spicy sausage (either a pack of ground sausage, or a pound of sausage links with casing removed)
1/2 to 1 stick of butter
1/2 c dried cranberries
2 3/4 c chicken broth
parsley, for garnish
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°. Grease 9×13 baking dish with cooking spray or lightly with butter. (I vote butter, friends!)
Line a baking sheet with foil, spray lightly with cooking spray. Bake the cubed bread, if fresh, for about 7 minutes, just to take the moisture out of the bread. Set aside in a large bowl.
Meanwhile, heat up 3 tbsp butter in sautee pan. Once melted, add onions, carrots and celery. Sautee until soft and onions are translucent, about 8 minutes. Add butter if the pan gets dry.
Add herbs and salt, pepper to your mirepoix mixture. Add 1 tbsp butter and the sausage. Brown the sausage, about 8 minutes. Add butter as needed to keep the pan from drying out.
Remove from heat and add the sausage and vegetable mixture to the bread along with the broth and cranberries. Mix well and place in prepared baking dish. Cover with foil and bake 25 minutes.
Remove foil and continue to bake until bread is golden.
To serve right away, just add chopped parsley to garnish.
To make ahead, allow the stuffing to cool completely, cover with foil and place in the refrigerator. Take out of the fridge for at least 25 minutes before reheating at 350°, for about 10 minutes.
What would the point of Thanksgiving be without mashed potatoes?
YASSS, as they say. These goat cheese mashed potatoes are my all time favorite. If you’re not the biggest fan of goat cheese, just stay with me here. I promise you don’t really taste it – the goat cheese adds a little tang and a lot of creaminess to the potatoes.
It’s also important to toss two little pats of butter on the top, ya know, to get all that melty goodness in there for a finishing touch. Also, chives, which I apparently forgot, look lovely on top of the mashed potatoes!
So just how many potatoes do you need? This recipe accounts for 8 people, but you can increase the proportions easily! It’s 1 medium potato per guest and 1 oz of goat cheese per guest. Easy!
Goat Cheese Mashed Potatoes
Yield: 8 servings | Time: ~60 minutes
Ingredients
8 medium yukon gold potatoes, of similar size
8 quarts of water, or enough water to cover the potatoes by at least 1 inch
8 ounces of goat cheese
1/2 cup of whole milk or cream
4 tablespoons of butter
Salt & pepper to taste
Garnish: chives or parsley; pat of butter
Directions
Bring pot of water to a boil.
Add salt, like you would salt a pot of pasta, and whole potatoes.
Boil for about 35 minutes or until easily pierced with a fork.
When the potatoes are ready, dump into a collander and allow to drain. When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, gently peel the potatoes. I like to leave some skin on!
Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in the same pot, turn the heat off and add the potatoes. Pour milk or cream over the potatoes and start to mash until it’s just about the consistency you prefer. I like some chunks in my potatoes!
Add in the goat cheese and stir until just combined. Don’t over stir or you’ll basically end up with really delicious cement. Salt & pepper to taste.
Tip 1: You can make this ahead! Just reheat with a little milk/cream and taste as you reheat. It may need more butter, goat cheese, salt & pepper.
Tip 2: Boil your potatoes in chicken broth! I add some bullion to the boiling water, I’m convinced it makes these goat cheese mashed potatoes even better.
When it comes to Thanksgiving, there are few things better than: 1. a recipe you can make ahead of time and 2. a recipe that comes together in 15 minutes.
Enter: cranberry sauce. Though I hate to admit it, I was most definitely a canned cranberry sauce kind of gal – you know, the one that still maintains the shape of the can when you dump it on a plate. But a few years ago, I finally made my own cranberry sauce after learning just how easy it is. It’s actually one of the few recipes I can just hold in my head and repeat year after year.
Perks of fresh cranberry sauce: it just tastes SO fresh. You don’t really need anything special for this recipe, though a citrus zester is handy for the orange peel garnish. It’s a $10 tool and certainly one I reach for at least once a month.
You’ll also want a pot with pretty high sides – I use my stock pot to make this cranberry sauce – because it WILL foam up. And if you’re pot is too small…well…you know.
Also. Even if you don’t love cranberry sauce, it still looks festive on your table! Breaks up all the brown, ya know?
4 Ingredient Cranberry Sauce
Yield: 2 cups | Prep Time: 2 minutes | Cook Time: 10 minutes + cooling time
Ingredients
1 lb bag cranberries
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
Juice of 1 orange
Orange zest, for garnish
Directions
Combine all ingredients except orange zest in a pot and bring to a boil over medium heat. Watch the pot the whole time and continuously stir to help break up the cranberries. When the cranberries start to foam, lower the heat very slightly and watch that your pot does not overflow. Once the foam subsides and cranberries are a mix of jelly-like liquid and crushed cranberries, remove from the heat and allow to cool. Transfer to a serving bowl, garnish with orange zest!
I love the idea of leaning into a meal with a soup (okay, a salad right after, too, because I’m 100% extra when I start cooking and planning an experience for friends & fam). This Butternut Squash & Apple soup is so, so good. It’s cozy and hits all the notes you want a soup to hit in the fall. It comes together relatively quickly, once you’ve roasted up your squash and can be made a day or two ahead.
You start with roasting up your squash with fall spices and while that’s roasting, you get your mirepoix going (it’s easy, promise!). Once that squash is nice and roasted, you combine in a pot with your mirepoix, add some broth, hit it with a stick blender, taste for S&P and you’re done.
Butternut Squash & Apple Soup Recipe
Yields: Serves 8-12 | Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 1hr
Ingredients:
For the Squash:
3 lb butternut squash, peeled, and cubed
2tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp salt
1 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 tsp each: cinnamon, allspice, chili powder
For the Mirepoix:
1 chopped medium sweet or spanish onion
2 chopped medium celery sticks
2 chopped medium carrots
1 chopped sweet apple, such as gala
2 tbsp butter
You will also need:
Salt & Pepper, to taste
4 cups of chicken broth
2 cups of water
Optional, for garnish: pecans, pepitas, goat cheese crumbles, freshly ground pepper.
Directions:
Preheat your oven to 400°. Prepare a pan with foil & oil spray, or a silpat.
Peel & chop your squash into cubes. Tip: they don’t have to be perfect, but will roast more evenly if you keep them about the same size.
Place the cubed squash into a large mixing bowl and add olive oil, S&P, spices.
Toss the squash to coat evenly with oil and spices. Tip: your hands are the best tool in your kitchen!
Bake your squash 30-40 minutes, until easily poked with a fork.
While your squash is baking, prepare your mirepoix ingredients.
Melt butter in a pot large enough to hold the squash and 6 cups of liquid. (Might I suggest at least an 8 qt pot?)
Once the butter is melted, add your mirepoix and sautee until soft and onions are translucent, about 8-10 minutes.
When the squash is finished, add to the pot and top with broth and water. Stir to combine.
Remove from heat and use a stick blender/immersion blender to blend until smooth. Alternatively, you can add your mixture – carefully – to a blender. Allow to cool or serve immediately.
If making ahead of time, allow the soup to cool completely, before transfering to an airtight container and refridgerating. Bring to room temperature and reheat on the stovetop, adding some liquid to thin the soup again.
To serve, top with some nuts and cheese, such as pecans or walnuts, pepitas, goat cheese.
Okay, this is really our Friendsgiving Menu, but hey, it totally works as your Thanksgiving Menu, too! Thanksgiving is by far my favorite holiday – I love the entertaining, the houses full of friends and family, that cozy, romantic vibe that starts to fill the air. Plus, there’s no pressure of gift giving – just getting together with your loved ones and making some excellent food in the kitchen.
All week, I’ll be sharing the recipes, tips and tricks and some table inspiration for your Thanksgiving meal!
This year, we’re serving up:
Get ready to get cooking!
thanksgiving is a time to stop and recognize all the things we are thankful for. just think how happy and grateful you could be all year long if you stopped to do this every week – what about every day? just like valentine’s day, every day should be a day for thanks (like every day should be a day for love).
what about starting a new tradition today? right here, right now. start giving thanks every week.
i hope you all have a wonderful thanksgiving – lots of love to you and yours! xoxo
i am thankful for my health, my family, my family’s health, my loving relationship, my job and YOU!
