THANKSGIVING MEGA-THREAD

onacasserole · 2016-11-22T04:22:44+00:00

I love to entertain! In my view the best hostess should put her guests at ease and make the evening feel effortless, not stressful. Here's how I approach hosting for Thanksgiving or any occasion.

Hosting Tips

Make a one week timeline. The week leading up to the event includes lots of little prep stuff. Make a master list of everything that needs to be done, and then parcel it out over the week long lead up. Be detailed, include items like "buy napkins" and "make mashed potatoes".
Shop two days before the event. This allows you to avoid major rushes, prep things early, and gives you a couple of days to pick up those inevitable forgotten items.
Prep as much as possible in advance. Many side dishes and desserts can be made a day in advance. Only cook what you absolutely must on the day of.
Decorate the evening before the event. You can even set the table.
On the day of do the dirty prep work first, then shower and do your makeup (but put on a dressing gown or casual clothing). This gives you the hours leading up to the event plenty of time to finish your work. About 1 hour before guests arrive throw on your dress and heels and you're ready!
Have appetizers ready to go. I always have at least 2 appetizer platters prepared and waiting for my guests. This helps stave off those who are super hungry and makes the entire evening feel less urgent. Plus, everyone loves apps!
Remember to have fun! I always cringe when a host is running around like crazy. It makes the guests feel like they have to jump in and help, and everything takes on a stressful vibe. An aunt of mine is like this and events at her home are always extremely short and rushed.
Don't run out of anything! I err on the side of too much food and drink.
Make to-go packs. If it makes sense in terms of where your guests live, buy a bunch of cheap disposable food containers. When you're cleaning up the table put leftovers into each one and send them with your guests when they leave! People love this.

ETA: I'm thankful for my wonderful Captain and my fun loving group of friends. My life is far better than I ever imagined.

VigilantRedRooster · 2016-11-21T23:04:50+00:00

New twist on baked yams/sweet potatoes

We're all familiar with the traditional Thanksgiving recipe of baked candied yams covered with marshmallows. A few years ago, someone introduced a new twist on this dish. Instead of marshmallows and way too much sugar, this dish uses well caramelized sweet onions. Here's an example recipe. Several years ago I spent Thanksgiving off-roading at Ocotillo Wells, and was able to prepare a perfect large pan of these in a temperamental RV oven.

Judo move to avoid holiday date competition

Since I was little, our extended family would gather for dinner on major holidays. When my brother and sister got married, their in-laws moved to corral them at THEIR family gatherings on all the holidays. My Mom's solution was to pivot to the weekend BEFORE the major holidays for our gatherings. Everyone's schedule is wide-open, and we're not driving in holiday traffic with the rest of the herd. Plus, this frees up major holiday weekends for me to do as I please. Since I'm so busy with running my business M-F, weekend time is very precious.

Be mindful of food temperatures!

I've gotten more than my fair share of food poisoning cases in recent years, so I'm hyper-vigilant about food safety now.

Plan ahead and thaw the turkey in the refrigerator for a few days. If you have to thaw one faster, immerse it in COOL water (not warm or hot!)
Pack and refrigerate leftovers promptly. If you're sending certain people away with care packages, have some inexpensive containers at hand, and pack these at the end of dinner and put them into the fridge until it's time for them to leave. Pack and refrigerate as many dishes as possible before settling down for after dinner chat and food coma time
During meal prep, be careful about cross-contamination from raw meats. Wash hands and surfaces well and frequently
Put minced turkey and gravy in individual sandwich bags and freeze them. These form the basis for quick, excellent hot turkey sandwiches after a trip through the microwave.

I am thankful to see the RPW community thriving well, and for all the members who make this group what it is!

PinkTulipz · 2016-11-21T22:43:45+00:00

Apple roses!

Super simple and beautiful - I'd recommend them if you want to surprise extended family with something creative! Also great if you're like me and not exactly a master at baking yet.

1 large red apple, cored and very thinly sliced
1/4 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
1/4 cup melted butter
1 egg
2 teaspoons water
1 teaspoon confectioners' sugar (optional)

Full directions and a video here

If you're making a big batch, a muffin tin works just as well.

MsSadieDunham · 2016-11-22T18:47:58+00:00

My family is traveling down to my dad's (2.5 hours away) to spend thanksgiving on the beach! My in-laws are coming too so they'll be about 10 of us there, I'm excited.

I just made sweet potato casserole today for the big day, here's the recipe and tomorrow I'm making cranberry sauce and a pumpkin pie.

I'm also cooking a turkey this year for my church's community dinner, I won't be here to help on the big day so I wanted to help somehow.

I'm thankful this year for my health, my new baby, our new president, and my wonderful husband ♥️

Delixcroix · 2016-11-21T22:18:23+00:00

Uhhm. Am Canadian but i did handmake Profiteroles this week.

Stuffed them using a cream cheese sauce and pumpkin cheesecake mix from Epicure. They are like little dough wrapped cheesecake coffee snacks.

mabeol · 2016-11-22T20:28:54+00:00

I'm flying home for Thanksgiving for the first time in years! My friends have generously adopted me every year, which I appreciate deeply, but it's going to be such a treat to spend it with my family.

I'm the token high maintenance eater at our house (vegan), and I have a few rules I swear by:

STFU. This is a holiday about food. Now is not the time to start a conversation about factory farming. No one is going to respond well, and expecting otherwise is foolish.
Don't let the food dictate your day. Veganism is a choice, and one of the consequences is fewer options at big holidays. This shouldn't surprise you, and it's not justification for sulking or tantrums. It's part of being vegan, so go into it with realistic expectations and recognize that the joy of the day comes from so much more than more food than you can actually eat.
Plan to contribute most of the stuff you can eat. A few relatives might go out of their way to make a vegan dish for you, but many won't. So step up and make the things you'd like to eat.
Have fun with it! I absolutely love wowing my carnivore relatives with delicious food, either vegan versions of the classics or brand-new dishes they've never had! Pumpkin sage biscuits! Stuffing! Lentil mushroom walnut balls with cranberry pear sauce! Pumpkin fritters!

Willow-girl · 2016-11-23T13:37:49+00:00

To heck with Thanksgiving! I am eating pie NOW!!! :-D

lidlredridinghood · 2016-11-22T00:45:29+00:00

I'm thankful to have an awesome Captain that's helping me prioritize where to focus. Life is pretty fucking awesome.

cartographiclimits · 2016-11-22T15:47:13+00:00

Anyone have any advice about how to deal with not being able to contribute much? I injured my ankle recently so it's hard for me to get around or stand for long periods of time. My brother and my sister in law are hosting, but since I love to cook and bake (and I am good at it!) I usually make a bunch of desserts in advance and help out a lot on the day of. But this year some friends (one is a pro chef!) are attending and making a bunch of fancy-pants side dishes and desserts. My sister in law told me to bring a pie or two (I can stand long enough to make a pie in advance at my house, if I take breaks) but it still feels weird. I haven't sat around and waited for the cooks to finish at a big holiday since I was a kid.

It's been frustrating the last few weeks because I haven't been able to do as much housework or cooking as I would like. And honestly, I love the praise and and excitement of cooking at big events. I'm really going to miss the whole "Thank you so much for cooking, this is amazing!" I feel like a big brat because I'm all pouty that other people will get all the attention this year. Anybody got any tips on how to stay pleasant and not get jealous about everybody else doing all the cooking while I sit on my butt?

Class_Punk · 2016-11-22T18:24:52+00:00

I am thankful for Christmas shopping and gift giving, its fun. If I pick out some inexpensive gift for a family member and its not a holiday, they'll feel guilty (or else they should, greedy jerks), so this time of year I'm absolved of that, and the little Dave Ramsey angel on my shoulder has his mouth scotch-taped and his hands twisty-tied behind him while he's kicking around trying to write his miniature newspaper column, and there is nobody better to give gifts to than immediate family members who aren't evil or (too) crazy like some people have to deal with (for instance the people related to me), so my fear is assuaged. My parents own hundreds of books, and I am going to add fuel to the fire-- though that's only a metaphor, otherwise there would be serious holiday trauma, lol.

palmettomom2609 · 2016-11-23T15:07:35+00:00

So I am not the cook in my family, my wonderful husband is. I enjoy calligraphy so I made notecards for the items being served and place cards for each of the 14 people for Thanksgiving. He is making 2 kinds of mashed potatoes.

humanbynature · 2016-11-24T17:09:45+00:00

We are having a friendsgiving today, and the man I've been dating for a month is coming! My roommate will be doing all the cooking because she's great at it and I don't want to mess up her grind. I'll be doing the cleaning, and the home-decorator in me is trying to come up with all the ways I can make our small grad student apartment very cozy and warm. It's hard being on a budget, but the little things like making wrapped napkin-utensil sets, hanging extra string lights, lighting candles, and finally buying throw pillows for the couch could make a difference. Things I wish we had; Cards Against Humanity and an extra arm-chair/loveseat....

VigilantRedRooster · 2016-11-24T21:41:11+00:00

Thanksgiving dinner: Doing it Yang-Ham Style.

Willow-girl · 2016-11-25T02:39:13+00:00

Praise ghod, no one brought up politics at the family holiday dinner!

Title	THANKSGIVING MEGA-THREAD
Author	LuckyLittleStar
Upvotes	4
Comments	27
Date	November 21, 2016 9:45 PM UTC (9 years ago)
Subreddit	Posted in /r/RedPillWomen
Original Link	https://old.reddit.com/r/RedPillWomen/comments/5e6rq9/thanksgiving_megathread/
Archive Link	https://theredarchive.com/r/RedPillWomen/thanksgiving-mega-thread.86653 https://theredarchive.com/post/86653

Comments

New twist on baked yams/sweet potatoes

Judo move to avoid holiday date competition

Be mindful of food temperatures!

I am thankful to see the RPW community thriving well, and for all the members who make this group what it is!