Thanksgiving Planning

Archive for February, 2010

I have a family coming over for thanksgiving. Are there any good games anyone knows of I can have for our family get together? THANKS!

For some great Thanksgiving games go to
http://www.perfectpartyideas.com/thanksgiving-party.html
My family loves them!
Have Fun!

Party Guy

My husband and I just moved into a house from an apartment and this is our first time hosting the family for Christmas (Yea!).

I have been seeing Christmas decorations since before Halloween, but I always thought you were supposed to wait until AFTER Thanksgiving to decorate.

Is that no longer the social norm? Should I wait?

My family has always done it the weekend of Thanksgiving – I had no idea some people would do it before!

I suppose it depends on where you live. If you’re in a place where it’s bitterly cold and/or snowy by Thanksgiving, then I can hardly blame people for trying to get Christmas decorations up as early as possible. Otherwise, though, no, I don’t get that…

If you’re used to waiting, and aren’t particularly in a hurry to get your decorations up, then sure, wait. There’s no real "social norm" about when you have to decorate for Christmas – although I will say that your neighbors would probably be annoyed if you did it in, say, September! But now isn’t too early, if you really want to get them up. It’s totally up to you and what you feel like doing.

I’m making Thanksgiving dinner for the first time by myself this year. It will probably only be like 4 of us eating so I won’t be making a huge feast 🙂 I want the traditionals but maybe a twist of the original recipes. Any suggestion for the cranberry sauce, instead of just opening the can and putting it on the plate. Also my husband wants a salad…and I’m gonna have a turkey ( of course…lol ), stuffing, sweet potatos with the marshmellows, rolls…etc. Thanks everyone in advance 🙂

yes i found a simple recipe for jelly cranberrry sauces.. you simply mix it up with cool whip and miniture marshmallows its very yummy…………plus it looks a lot nicer too…i also wonder maybe if some walnuts might add a touch to it..

I was planning on cooking turkey (obviously) but I was wondering if there were ways to make the foods we all love for Thanksgiving in a healthy way, maybe cook them differently or replace some ingredients to make them healthier. I would love to have stuffing, mashed popatoes, yams, vegetables and the like but would be open to substituting them for different foods. Any help would be greatly appreciated!! Happy holidays and happy halloween 🙂

Here are some ideas for ways to reduce the fat and calories for your dinner.

1. Make your turkey unstuffed. Fill the cavity with onioin, garlic, an herb bundle with thyme, rosemary and lemon zest. Rub olive oil on the skin and top with kosher salt, rubbed sage, and fresh ground pepper.
2. Green bean casserole update: Saute diced yellow onion with minced garlic in 2 T olive oil. Toss steamed fresh green beans with onion and add salt and pepper. Add sliced portabello mushrooms and 1/2 cup white wine to the mix. Saute until wine is reduced and mushrooms are tender. Add 1/2 cup low fat or fat free sour cream and 3 oz of fat free cream cheese. Blend until melted. Place in baking dish and top with parmesan bread crumbs. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.
3. Instead of sweet potato casserole, try baked sweet potatos with a streusal topping. For streusal, mix 1/2 cup light butter or margarine with 3 T brown sugar and 1/2 cup candied walnuts. When sweet potatoes are cooked thru, split them, and top with some of the streusal. Return to oven and bake until streusal is melted, bubbling and yummy.
4. Cook yukon gold potatos in chicken broth for added flavor. Drain and mash with fat free sour cream, garlic, and a little light butter. Season with kosher salt and fresh ground pepper to taste.
5. Stuffing: Take your favorite cornbread stuffing mix and make according to package directions, reducing fat by half and substituting light margarine instead. To stuffing, add sauteed onion and celery along with crumbled lean turkey sausage for added flavor. Bake in baking dish for 45 minutes.

I’m a die-hard for traditional turkey dinners, so I don’t stray far from recipes that I love very much. Since its one day a year, I indulge in family favorite recipes, but try to lighten them up a bit and get in some exercise while I’m at it.

Im planning to surprise my mom for Thanksgiving, but flying out to Idaho from California for 4 people on short notice, is way out of my budget. So I want to drive out their is their anything I should be worried about? What should I do to make sure it’s a pleasant ans safe drive, since I am driving out their with my kids.

There’s probably going to be snow by then, so if you have a 4WD vehicle I suggest driving it. Bring snow chains, have some blankets, extra food, and water, a first aid kit, cell phone,.

Bring some cassette tapes or CD’s cause there’s some areas that you won’t get any radio reception.

Its a nice drive, but at that time of the year the roads can be bad. So take it easy and drive responsibly (i.e. if you get tired stop and rest).

Things to consider when planning your Thanksgiving menu.

Good Housekeeping Videos:
http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/video/?src=syn&mag=ghk&dom=youtube&chan=home&link=rel_733

Good Housekeeping Magazine:
http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/?src=syn&mag=ghk&dom=youtube&chan=home&link=rel_734

Subscribe to Good Housekeeping:
http://subscribe.hearstmags.com/subscribe/splits/goodhousekeeping/ghk_sub_nav_link

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Duration : 0:1:23

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Learn how President Lincoln brought back Thanksgiving in this free holiday origins video from an American history authority and Turkey Day expert.

Expert: Matt Cail
Contact: www.homepaintings.biz
Bio: Matt Cail is an artist who works in oil, water color and acrylic paints, among others.
Filmmaker: randy primm

Duration : 0:1:36

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Set a perfectly beautiful Thanksgiving Table! This step-by-step guide from Julie Mulligan shows you just what to do to create an unforgettable table this Thanksgiving Day! In this video, Julie teaches how to create beautiful placemats using fresh flowers. For more great ideas from Julie, visit http://blog.1800flowers.com/julie

Duration : 0:2:23

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Learn how to garnish a traditional Thanksgiving turkey for dinner in this free cooking video.

Expert: Lori Schneider
Contact: www.figscatering.com
Bio: Lori Schneider is a chef and owner of Figs Catering in Austin, Texas.
Filmmaker: Drew Noah

Duration : 0:1:0

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Learn how to oven cook a whipped sweet potato casserole, a traditional Thanksgiving Day dinner recipe, in this free cooking video.

Expert: Lori Schneider
Contact: www.figscatering.com
Bio: Lori Schneider is a chef and owner of Figs Catering in Austin, Texas.
Filmmaker: Drew Noah

Duration : 0:1:19

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