The Ultimate Thanksgiving Menu

Does the thought of preparing Thanksgiving dinner from scratch overwhelm you? It does me too, honestly. It’s a lot to prep and I hate feeling like I’m missing out on all of the fun because I have to spend the whole day in the kitchen! After years of being in charge of the Thanksgiving meal, I’ve nailed it down to a science. Most of my Thanksgiving menu is prepped ahead, meaning that on the day of, I get to relax and watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade with everyone else! I’ve got the recipes and the game plan all laid out for you here…couldn’t be easier! So, what’s on the menu you ask?

After scrolling through all of those pictures, are you hungry yet?! If you’re ready to get cooking (or planning), here’s the step by step schedule of how to get all of this food on the table (while all still warm, which is quite a feat!).

Up to 12 months in Advance:

Grandma Ruth’s Sweet Corn: This corn should be prepared and frozen ahead. For serving, simply microwave until hot! My family makes huge batches of this corn in the summer, at the height of sweet corn season, and freezes for the winter.

4-5 Days in Advance:

If the turkey is frozen, place in in the refrigerator to thaw. Assume about 24 hours for every 5 pounds. I usually give my bird an extra 24 hours in the fridge, so assuming I have a 15-20 pound bird, I need 4-5 days for it to thaw.

1 Day in Advance:

Turkey: Soften the butter, chop the herbs, and make the herb butter. Quarter the orange, lemon, and onion. Cover and refrigerate.
Garlic Herb Mashed Potatoes: Prepare the potatoes, up to the point of baking. Chop the sage for the crispy sage topping. Cover and refrigerate.
Sweet Potato Casserole: Prepare the sweet potato mixture, place in the baking dish, cover, and refrigerate. Mix the dry ingredients together for the crumb topping, and store in an airtight container on the counter. You will add the butter to the crumb topping and put the topping on the casserole just before baking.
Green Bean Casserole: Mix the green beans, cream of mushroom soup, milk, salt, and pepper (everything except the fried onions). Pour into a baking dish. Cover and refrigerate.
Pomegranate and Vanilla Buttered Brussels: Prepare the Brussel sprouts by halving them (or into quarters if you have large sprouts). Soften the butter and mix in the vanilla bean paste. Prepare the pomegranate (or buy the pomegranate arils to save yourself a prep step).
Traditional Sage Stuffing: Prepare the stuffing up to the point of baking. Place in a baking dish, cover, and refrigerate.
Pumpkin Cheesecake: Make the pumpkin cheesecake. Let cool. Do not top with whipped cream or pecans, just cover and refrigerate undecorated.
Apple Cider Sangria: Mix all ingredients and fruit in a pitcher. Cover and refrigerate. (This is actually much better if it’s had time to sit for a day before serving).

Thanksgiving Day

1-2 hours before the turkey goes in the oven, set out the herb butter mixture for the turkey to soften.
T-5.5 hours: Roast the Brussel sprouts; cool and refrigerate. Reduce oven temp. Get turkey out of the fridge and prep with the herb butter. Let sit on the counter while the Brussel sprouts roast.
T-4.75 hours: TURKEY GOES IN THE OVEN (Assume about a 4 hour cook time).
T-1.5 hours: Stuffing goes in the oven (350 degrees), prepare crumb mixture for sweet potatoes and put on top of the sweet potato casserole. Set out the vanilla butter mixture for the Brussel sprouts to soften.
T-45 minutes: Turkey comes out, tent and rest. Sweet potato casserole goes in the oven (350 degrees), add French Fried Onions to green bean casserole and stir. Remove the foil from the stuffing.
T-30 minutes: Garlic Herb Mashed Potatoes and Green Bean Casserole go in oven. Mix the Brussel sprouts and vanilla butter together and place in a baking dish. Prep the salad, but do not dress.
T-15 minutes: Brussel sprouts go in the oven to heat through. Heat butter on the stove to fry the sage for the mashed potatoes. Carve the turkey. Microwave the corn. (Recruit a helper if you can for these last 15 minutes until the finish line!)
T-5 minutes: Top the green bean casserole with a sprinkle of French Fried Onions.
Go-Time! Mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, green beans, Brussel sprouts, and stuffing come out. Top the mashed potatoes with crispy fried sage and browned butter. Toss the Brussel sprouts with pomegranate arils and pecans.
EAT!
When ready for dessert, decorate the top of the cheesecake with whipped cream and sprinkle with chopped pecans.