4 Thanksgiving Party Tips
By Shondell Varcianna
October 02, 2015
Lifestyle
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Thanksgiving is a time when friends and family gather to spend quality time with one another and reflect on the great things that have happened throughout the year. If you’ve been asked to host the Thanksgiving celebration for your loved ones this year, the task can seem pretty overwhelming. Luckily, there are a few simple tips to keep in mind that will ensure you and your guests have a great time.
1. Plan Your Menu
It’s best to start planning your menu as soon as you can. This is especially important if you have family members with food allergies or diet preferences. While your loved ones may want some traditional Thanksgiving meals such as mashed potatoes and gravy or roasted turkey, if you plan ahead, you can put some tasty twists on these dishes. Adding mashed cauliflower to the potatoes adds an earthy taste and more fiber to the dish. Or, you can season your turkey with Italian herbs or Mexican spices to make the dishes a little more memorable. Write down your list of ingredients and the amount of people who will be attending before heading to the grocery store, so you’ll know exactly what to buy.
2. Prep Your Pies
If you’re serving pie for dessert, make your pie shells ahead of time and freeze them. This will make cooking a lot more efficient once you’re actually preparing the Thanksgiving meal. The day before the party, you can make your fillings. This works especially well if you’re having sweet potato or pumpkin pie. If you’re having fruit pies, you can slice the fruit the night before and refrigerate it with a little lemon juice to prevent browning and to give the fruit a slightly tart taste, which pairs well with apples and peaches.
3. Start The Party With a Fun Appetizer
Get the Thanksgiving party started on a fun and upbeat note with an appetizer that is great to look at and even better to eat. For example, a vegetable platter featuring veggies shaped like a turkey is sure to get the attention of your loved ones, even those who aren’t big fans of vegetables. You can also do creative things with traditional Thanksgiving dishes, like making quesadillas with turkey and a cranberry salsa, or serving turkey and stuffing meatballs with gravy for dipping. When the first thing people eat is delicious, your guests will look forward to the other courses you’ve prepared.
4. Make it Fun For The Kids
Finally, the adults will likely have a good time catching up, watching sports or engaging in thought-provoking conversation. The kids at your Thanksgiving party, however, are likely going to need a little more entertainment. Plan fun activities like a Thanksgiving scavenger hunt, an outdoor football game or a dance party in another section of the house, so your young guests will look forward to coming to the Thanksgiving celebration as well. You can also make cupcakes or mini cakes and having a cake decorating “party” with the children by giving them ingredients like brown and red edible glitter, candy corn and licorice to adorn the desserts.
Picture by W Worldwide
1. Plan Your Menu
It’s best to start planning your menu as soon as you can. This is especially important if you have family members with food allergies or diet preferences. While your loved ones may want some traditional Thanksgiving meals such as mashed potatoes and gravy or roasted turkey, if you plan ahead, you can put some tasty twists on these dishes. Adding mashed cauliflower to the potatoes adds an earthy taste and more fiber to the dish. Or, you can season your turkey with Italian herbs or Mexican spices to make the dishes a little more memorable. Write down your list of ingredients and the amount of people who will be attending before heading to the grocery store, so you’ll know exactly what to buy.
2. Prep Your Pies
If you’re serving pie for dessert, make your pie shells ahead of time and freeze them. This will make cooking a lot more efficient once you’re actually preparing the Thanksgiving meal. The day before the party, you can make your fillings. This works especially well if you’re having sweet potato or pumpkin pie. If you’re having fruit pies, you can slice the fruit the night before and refrigerate it with a little lemon juice to prevent browning and to give the fruit a slightly tart taste, which pairs well with apples and peaches.
3. Start The Party With a Fun Appetizer
Get the Thanksgiving party started on a fun and upbeat note with an appetizer that is great to look at and even better to eat. For example, a vegetable platter featuring veggies shaped like a turkey is sure to get the attention of your loved ones, even those who aren’t big fans of vegetables. You can also do creative things with traditional Thanksgiving dishes, like making quesadillas with turkey and a cranberry salsa, or serving turkey and stuffing meatballs with gravy for dipping. When the first thing people eat is delicious, your guests will look forward to the other courses you’ve prepared.
4. Make it Fun For The Kids
Finally, the adults will likely have a good time catching up, watching sports or engaging in thought-provoking conversation. The kids at your Thanksgiving party, however, are likely going to need a little more entertainment. Plan fun activities like a Thanksgiving scavenger hunt, an outdoor football game or a dance party in another section of the house, so your young guests will look forward to coming to the Thanksgiving celebration as well. You can also make cupcakes or mini cakes and having a cake decorating “party” with the children by giving them ingredients like brown and red edible glitter, candy corn and licorice to adorn the desserts.
Picture by W Worldwide