Thanksgiving Countdown Planner by Steve Gamel
I
f you’re planning on hosting Thanksgiving dinner this year for your larger-than-life family, it’s likely that your
stuffing and cranberry sauce to homemade dishes, family recipes, and desserts.
worried about. This way, you don’t run the
risk of showing up to the grocery store last minute and not being able to find what
mind has already begun processing all
Take Stock of All Your Supplies: Do
ensure the day goes off without a hitch.
supplies to make this thing happen? We’re
Clean The House: This is a biggie. A lot
advance for Turkey day, especially if it’s
plates, silverware, additional tables for
countdown, but if you start two weeks
the things you must do well in advance to
you have the necessary equipment and
After all, you can never plan too far in
talking about pans, dishes, serving dishes,
your first time being in charge.
children, tablecloths, etc.
So how far in advance should you start
Order The Turkey: You want to get this
start your Thanksgiving countdown three
if you need several or if you’re ordering
you’re stress-free on the big day. Here are
until the last minute. The Food Network
planning? Experts say you should at least
purchase out of the way now, especially
weeks to a month in advance so that
a specialty bird. Bottom line: don’t wait
a few basics to get you started:
suggests that you assume two pounds of
3 WEEKS BEFORE THANKSGIVING Create Your Guest List and Send RSVPs:
turkey per adult and one pound per child. 2 WEEKS BEFORE THANKSGIVING
you need.
of people panic over this piece of the ahead of time, you’ll be able to break
up the task over a longer period of time rather than doing it on the morning of. FINAL WEEK Start Meal Prepping: During the final
few days leading up to Thanksgiving, go
ahead and start prepping the pies, sauces, etc. to get some of that out of the way ahead of time.
Consider how many people you can
Finalize Guest List: By this point, you
Pick Up The Turkey: If you’re defrosting
family either by sending formal invitations,
to be able to make it, including any out-of-
ahead of time. If you’re buying it pre-
making a phone call. This is particularly
with the next item on the to-do list.
entertain, and then reach out to friends and
should have a good idea of who’s going
email, group invites on social media, or
town guests. This will help you a great deal
important if anyone is coming in from out of town. Also, it’s an opportunity to ask about any dietary restrictions.
Plan Your Menu: Write down your ideal
menu, from the turkey and classics such as 36 | ARGYLE LIVING | OCTOBER 2021
a turkey, go ahead and get it a week
cooked, you can safely grab it two or three days ahead of time.
Start Grocery Shopping: A lot of fanatics
Start Setting The Table AND ENJOY:
items, and that’s fine. But at this point,
in stone now, go ahead and set your
suggest starting with the nonperishable why not get everything you need — and if necessary, freeze anything that you’re
Since your guest list is pretty much locked table. It’s almost showtime, so take a deep breath because you’re almost there.
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