Nov 10, 2016

Plan Your Thanksgiving Menu Now

I'm a big believer in planning ahead, and I've been thinking dreaming about this year's Thanksgiving meal since the end of October. :D

Plan Thanksgiving Now | Chief Family Officer

I'm off the hook when it comes to the turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, and dessert, but I make most of the other sides. I've been making Streuseled Sweet Potatoes for over a decade (!), but I experiment with just about everything else. No one in our family is really a fan of white potatoes, but everyone loves my pureed cauliflower, so I'm going to make that this year along with a Cauliflower Gratin.

Whatever your Thanksgiving traditions are, it's extremely helpful to plan your menu now, so you can start buying ingredients when they go on sale, prep in the weeks and days leading up to Thanksgiving, and schedule your cooking time on the big day so you don't have three dishes needing the oven all at the same time at different temperatures.

If you need inspiration, look no further than our Thanksgiving Pinterest Board, which is full of classic, modern and everything-in-between recipes.

And if you're curious, here's my full plan for Thanksgiving:

Streuseled Sweet Potatoes - I make two of these every year, one to take to the big dinner, and one just for my family in case we don't get any of the leftovers. I omit the flour and nuts in the topping, and substitute quick oats. I love that the dish can be made ahead of time and frozen, so that all I have to do on Thanksgiving Day is bake.

Pureed Cauliflower, or as my husband affectionately calls it, Cauliflower Smush, is super easy to make now that riced cauliflower is everywhere. I'll buy the two-bag pack at Costco, cook the cauliflower in a stainless steel pot with some chicken stock, and use my stick blender to puree it all. I'm thinking this will actually be great to make in my Instant Pot - that would allow me to keep it warm for hours without using the stove.

Cauliflower Gratin originally calls for colored cauliflower, which I did see a while back at Whole Foods. I'll probably stick to regular cauliflower for cost reasons, although I might splurge if I can find the colorful varieties, just to add visual interest at the table.

I want to make some green veggies, so I'm going to make Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Pancetta & Sage (the sage makes it seem very Thanksgiving-appropriate), and possibly some steamed asparagus.

What are you making?

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