My family will be in town next week and we will be celebrating a (very) early Thanksgiving together since I can’t travel to see them on the actual day. To complicate matters, I will be cooking at an air bnb (cat allergies) instead of my own house. I know the kitchen will not be as nicely equipped as mine and I plan on bringing most of my own cookware to the air bnb. I will be prepping the stuffing the night before at my house. It would be a lot easier to also make the mashed potatoes at my house but I have heard mixed reviews on making mashed potatoes too far in advance. Does anyone have any advice or should I just suck it up and also make them at the air bnb? The air bnb on about 20 minutes from my house in case that matters.

Tried King Arthur’s big and bubbly stuffing focaccia recipe and it’s amazing! So much flavor and made the house smell like Thanksgiving. I’m thinking that I will probably make it as a dish to pass this holiday season.

https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipes/big-and-bubbly-stuffing-focaccia-recipe

I make my own homemade bread. I like knowing what ingredients are in my food.

WHY do they put HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP, disodium guanylate, disodium inosinate, maltodextrin, etc. in stuffing mix and darn near everything?

Edited to add:: Personally, I'm trying to find ways to stay away from that stuff as much as possible. And I think many people aren't even aware of so many of the things they keep adding to the foods we've always loved. It wasn't until I got non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and HAD TO start reading labels that I started learning.

I personally try to cook everything from scratch as much as I can, and do make my own homemade stocks, bouillon powders, onion soup mix, etc , but not everyone does or can. Who has time for that? I never did either.

The recipes below are for making your own homemade quick mixesto put into your pantry to use for anytime. Feel free to leave out the chicken powder and use stock when making.

Chicken Flavor

3 C. Dried Bread Cubes 1 tsp. Chicken Bouillon Powder 1 tsp. Onion Powder 1 tsp. Garlic Powder 1 tsp. Parsley flakes 1/2 tsp. Celery Seed 1/2 tsp. Thyme 1/2 tsp. Pepper 1/2 tsp. Salt (optional)

Beef Flavor

3 C. Dried Bread Cubes 1 tsp. Beef Bouillon 1 tsp. Onion Powder 1 tsp. Garlic Powder 1/2 tsp. Celery Seed 1/2 tsp. Thyme 1/2 tsp. Pepper 1/2 tsp. Salt (optional)

Savory Herb Flavor

3 C. Dried Bread Cubes 1 tsp. Chicken Bouillon Powder 1 Tbsp. Sage 1 tsp. Onion Powder 1 tsp Garlic Powder 1 tsp. Celery Seed 1 tsp. Parsley flakes 1/2 tsp. Thyme 1/4 tsp. Rosemary 1/2 tsp. Pepper 1/2 tsp. Salt (optional)

Monterey Style Stuffing Mix (Onion & Mushroom Flavor)

3 C. Dried Bread Cubes 1 Tbsp. Onion Soup Mix (homemade) 1 tsp. Onion Powder 1 tsp. Garlic Powder 1 tsp. Mushroom powder, optional 1/2 tsp. Celery Seed 1/2 tsp. Thyme 1/2 tsp. Pepper 1/2 tsp. Salt (optional)

Add in sautéed fresh mushrooms to celery and onion when cooking.

To make stuffing:

Sauté chopped onion and celery in butter. Add in mushrooms, if desired. Add 1 1/2 cup water or stock,, bring to a boil, remove from heat, add stuffing mix and stir.

Alternatively: (If you don't want to add celery and onion); Bring 1 1/2 cup water or stock plus 1 Tbsp butter to boil, remove from heat. Add stuffing mix and stir.

Cover and let set for 5 minutes. Fluff with fork and it is ready to serve.

Hello! My grandfather has a lot of dietary restrictions that keep him from enjoying a lot of the traditional Thanksgiving dishes, but always makes a ton of food for the whole family that he can’t even eat most of. He used to love green bean casserole before his allergies worsened, and hasn’t been able to find a way to eat it that fits within his restrictions. He specifically loves the classic recipe with canned green beans (these should be fine), Cambells cream of mushroom soup, and friend onions. I would love to make him a green bean casserole he can eat, and the main issue is the Cream of Mushroom soup. He is adamant he wants it to taste as close to the canned soup as possible.

I figured I would use the power of Reddit to see if anyone has done something similar and could help. He cannot have gluten, dairy, or soy. I am willing to make the soup from scratch, but I’m looking for a close approximation of canned soup. Anyone have any tips?

We're a month out, my prep/planning is starting now and I'm curious what adjustments people are making this year?

For me, last year the best thing I did was the green bean casserole from scratch - I always HATED it as a kid, but I realized my issue was just with mushy canned greenbeans, and that I really liked fresh ones. I did the Binging w/ Babish recipe from his thanksgiving sides video, it was well worth the effort to do it with fresh green beans and homemade soup.

What I'm doing different is just going back to regular stuffing, I tried a cornbread stuff last year and it was total mush and just didn't turn out as good, but my friend did a sour dough stuffing from homemade bread that was AMAZING that I might try to copy.

They're easier to handle and to cook evenly. Big birds take forever to thaw and to cook. With two smaller birds, you can also experiment with rubs, etc. Bonus: four drumsticks. Enjoy your Thanksgiving!

Does anyone have a recipe to share for a Thanksgiving one-pan meal? Turkey, gravy and stuffing are the only must-haves. There are only 3 adults, none with large appetites, and I have no interest in making the full meal. I’d rather not cook at all but restaurant options are either very expensive ($50+ per person) or the food is just mediocre (Golden Corral, Cracker Barrel.) I’m also open to pre-made, heat & eat options - but the full dinners from grocery stores are also way too much food for my small family.

How does your family celebrate Thanksgiving?

We have dinner every year and the cost is $30 per family plus bring a dish, dessert, paper products, or drinks whatever. We don't hold it against anyone if you can't afford to contribute or need to do less. The hosting house is responsible for the turkey, ham, and dressing however they are reimbursed from money collected. Its been this way for almost 50yrs.

We also document each occasion with how much was collected and from who, everyone that attended, and minutes. Its neat to look through the book and see pages from before I was born and activities from those that have passed.

Thanksgiving is coming up and we are having it at my SIL house. My aunt and uncle in-law will be coming in from California for the holiday as well.
My MIL speaks to her husband in such a disrespectful way when asking him to grab something or to do a task and it’s gotten so bad that the kids all can mimic her perfectly, and do so to make fun of her.
Example: “Ste-ven! Go get Carl a bag for his leftovers!”

We have confronted her with her behavior many times in the past, she feels like we are all only picking on her and refuses to see her actions the way they are.

This year I was thinking about a way to interrupt their “discussion” by standing up in the middle of her shrills to get everyone at the table a refill of water or grab more napkins for the table.
I need more tasks to do because I anticipate it will happen many times throughout dinner and I’m tired of sitting on the sidelines while they bicker it out.
I’m hoping to have enough ideas to have a rotation between myself, husband, SIL and kiddo.

TLDR; MIL is aggressive when speaking to her husband and I need mundane tasks to do while sitting down for Thanksgiving dinner to take away from the tense situation.

I'm starting to think about the turkey. I usually put in an order for a bronze breed turkey at Whole Foods, but I think heritage breed may be out of my budget this year.

We're only a week or two away from seeing fresh turkeys in store. Any recommendations on finding the best quality at the best price?

My thanksgiving typically consists of the most common southern staples. Turkey, ham, corned beef, smothered green beans, dressing, collard greens, Mac and cheese etc etc.

This year I want to do something “non-traditional”. I had an idea of making a few types of fish (whole) in different variations and pairing it with a “pasta flight”, but I just don’t know!

Any ideas on what to cook for a non-traditional thanksgiving?

I don’t know what this dish is officially called but I need an easy recipe for yams with marshmallows on top. My mom needs help cooking this year and I want to make this.

I'm the cook in the friend group so I always host friendsgiving.

My friends and I do roasted chicken instead of turkey since we prefer chicken and everyone's families will do turkey on the real thanksgiving day.

There's always 8-12 of us, and what I make are

-Roasted chicken with homemade gravy

-Homemade texas roadhouse rolls or buttermilk biscuits or both

-Green beans with brown sugar glaze and crispy bacon

And sometimes I bake an extra dessert but literally no one likes desserts in this friend group

My friends bring one dish each such as mac and cheese, egg rolls, mashed potatoes, pies, corn stuffing, etc.

But as the host, should I be providing more? We always have a great time with plenty of leftovers, I just don't know if I'm overreacting

Hosting my first Thanksgiving this year for 13 people! I looove to cook so I’m excited to dive into Turkey and am determined to make a really good one. I’m leaning towards using Tini’s recipe (wet brine, garlic butter, etc)

My dilemma is do I do 2 small birds or one big one? We have some big eaters in this group so I’m looking for 20 pounds. If I do 2, 16 inch, roasting pans I should be able to fit them side by side in my oven but they’d have to be perpendicular to the front door. Is it better to just do 1?

I’ve googled this and read so many articles but want real person advice! Thank you!

i am finally releasing my bath bomb mold designs ive made for my own business online so other people can use them c: enjoy!

the thanksgiving ones are a turkey, a slice of pumpkin pie, a maple leaf, an acorn and corn on the cob. you 3d print the mold and press your bath bomb mix into it. theyd make cute little hostess gifts or something for the kids to do before dinner

link in the comments!

I love Thanksgiving. I only feed myself, my spouse, and our three teenagers every year, and I like to make a huge variety even if it’s just the five of us.

One thing I try to do every year is make something slightly unique that I haven’t made before. One year it was fondant potatoes, last year it was just a fall salad I’d never made.

I can’t figure out what to do as my “new” side this year. Any suggestions?

Here’s our menu for this year so far (it’s a carb fest but we like it that way).

Roasted turkey with herb butter
Mashed potatoes
Roasted parmesan green beans
Candied carrots
Sweet potato casserole
Corn casserole
Stove top stuffing
Cranberry sauce
Dinner rolls
Corn bread
Pumpkin pie
Sparkling cider

Edit: thank you everyone for the amazing ideas! I’m definitely switching plain cornbread for broccoli cheddar cornbread, but now I’m also contemplating making some kind of brussel sprouts and a second dessert. 😋

The oven timer went blank two Saturdays ago while I was doing a turkey breast for practice. I never looked at the clock when I put it in. I guessed how much was left and set a timer on my phone and one on the microwave too so I would not lose track again. I took it out when they went off and it was dry. I called my mom after and the first thing she asked was if I checked the temperature, and I do not own a meat thermometer.

I volunteered to host my partner’s family for Thanksgiving this year. Before this the biggest thing I had hosted was pizza night with 4 friends. There are 9 people coming and our table seats 4. The plan is a 14 lb turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing and green beans.

My partner’s mom offered to “bring a few things.” I do not know if my partner told her about the practice turkey, and I keep hearing it as she is not sure I can pull this off. My partner says “you’re overthinking it, she brings food everywhere.” Maybe I am. Is that a normal thing to say to the host or am I reading too much into it?

When I was a kid my mom did Thanksgiving every year, some years for 20 people. There is a photo from one of those years that comes up on the little AstroToo speaker on my desk, she is on the couch with a glass of wine before anyone got there.

Yesterday I got a text from my partner’s mom that she is bringing gravy too just in case, so I guess I will not be making gravy.