It dawned on me a little while ago that this year will mark my 20th anniversary of hosting Thanksgiving Dinner. Though there were a few years in between when I took time off from hosting, for the most part, I’ve made it a point to welcome friends and family to my home and to my table for one of my favorite holidays.

My first attempt at roasting a turkey was actually the year I graduated college. It was an epic fail as I kept opening the oven door and not letting the turkey roast. After 10 hours, the bird still wasn’t cooked and I ended up discouraged and frustrated, daunted and fearful of failure.

Luckily, years later, I came upon Martha Stewart’s magazine, immersed myself in her recipes and was finally able to put together my first Thanksgiving feast with all the fixings. Over the years, I’ve edited and revised how I prep and roast my turkey as well as the side dishes and am passing on my best tips that I’ve acquired through trial and error.

The key is to plan ahead and know what will be served and back into how much time it will take to get the dishes ready for dinner. More importantly is having the proper tools at one’s disposal so as to prevent any last minute mini panic attacks.

I start buying items on my Thanksgiving list two weekends prior to Thanksgiving, leaving the turkey, basil, dairy, potatoes and green vegetables for the weekend prior to the holiday. I spread out the table setting prep from Sunday through Tuesday the week of Thanksgiving, checking the linens, silverware, glassware and dinnerware for cleanliness and washing and drying if necessary. Though I have a complete fine china setting, I find a more casual modern tableware to be easier to work with and less expensive to replace if something should get damaged or break, diminishing my stress level the night of festivities. I set the table by no later than Tuesday night.

I start prepping the turkey no later than the Sunday prior. About 14 years ago, a contractor who was working on on our home told me about brining. I hadn’t heard of the technique but he said that brining tenderizes the turkey and shared with me a very simple brine tip: use tons of kosher salt and fill a huge pot with ice, letting the turkey sit in the fridge for a few days.

I’ve since modified that recipe and just a few days ago found a handy brine kit with both the bag for a 30 lb bird and organic spices at Whole Foods. This upcoming weekend, I will take my large stockpot and after cleaning out the bird, rinsing it and seasoning it with brine and kosher salt in the bag, I’ll hoist it into the stockpot and fill it up with ice cubes, letting the dried herbs seep into the crevices of the turkey while it sits in the refrigerator for a few days.

On Thanksgiving morning, while I prepare breakfast, I’ll take the turkey out from the pot, rinse it out and pat it dry, let it rest on the roasting pan for an hour in room temperature while pre-heating the oven and start on the cornbread.

In every homemade feast, one should not be ashamed to get a bit of help. I’ve made cornbread from scratch in the past, but it takes a lot of ingredients to put it together and much longer to prepare. Last year I came upon the organic version of Marie Callendar’s cornbread which I couldn’t find at Costco or Smart & Final this year. Luckily, on my shopping trip to Whole Foods, I discovered they sold them so I bought a few packets. What I usually do is boil some organic corn to add to the mix before baking and after it’s done, I drizzle some organic honey. I test the doneness by placing a toothpick or small fork in the middle to see if it comes out clean. I set it aside on the countertop and loosely cover it with aluminum foil. An hour before the guests arrive, I place it in the warming oven.

After the cornbread is baked, I replace it with the turkey. I remove the middle rack, using an oven mitt and set the convection oven temperature to 475 degrees. The roasting pan and rack are incredibly important to having an evenly roasted and moist turkey. At any given time, the turkey could potentially dry out so having the proper tools during the process is key. The rack keeps the turkey raised, allowing the heat to circulate around all parts of the turkey so that it can cook evenly.

While the oven is rising to the proper temperature, I work on prepping the turkey. First I take either chicken broth/stock, white wine and/or lemon juice and give the turkey a rinse while it sits on the rack on top of the pan allowing the liquid to collect at the bottom of the pan which will allow some moisture to seep into the bird during the long roasting time. Then I take 2 sticks of butter and melt it in a saucepan at a low temperature while continuing my prep, watching to make sure it doesn’t burn. In the meantime, I take organic basil, rinse it out, dry the leaves on paper towels, remove the leaves from the stems and grind it in the food processor.

I’m now ready to season the bird, I take my black pepper and no salt seasoning, coating the outside, the inner cavity and flipping it over, coating the opposite side. Then I take the basil and stuff it in the main cavity and put a bit in the other end in the much smaller cavity. I halve or quarter a few lemons and stuff those in both cavities before tying up the legs and secure the turkey in twine, placing it breast side down on the roasting rack as the breast tends to dry out and cook faster.

By now, the butter should have melted. I cut up a piece of the cheesecloth which should cover the turkey that’s exposed, leaving a few inches extra to tuck under. I dunk the entire piece of cheesecloth and drape it over the body of the turkey using tongs and using a baster to pour any of the leftover butter gently over the turkey. It’s now ready to set in the oven and should be basted with two sticks of melted butter every hour. I set the timer for 50 minutes so I can start melting the butter and be ready to baste at the one hour mark, repeating the cycle of dunking the cheesecloth and using a baster to coat the turkey with liquid butter every hour. Depending on the size of the turkey and the specific oven, flip breast side up halfway through the cooking time and continue the basting routine. Aluminum foil is also important as the turkey nears the end of its roasting time. The wings tend to crisp up faster, depending on the oven, and the aluminum foil slows the process down a bit. I create a loose tent over the turkey in the last hour, allowing the heat to enter but shielding the skin from crisping up too quickly. Near the end of the roasting time, I test the temperature of the breast and the the thigh, lowering the temperature to 350 degrees.

When it’s close to the proper internal temperature and the skin looks like it’s starting to brown too much, I take the turkey out of the oven and let it rest on the countertop. It will still continue to cook from the heat as long as it’s covered with aluminum foil, preventing the heat from escaping. A sign that the turkey is cooked when the juices run clear.

Simultaneous to the turkey going in the oven, I start to work on the mashed potatoes. I place a pot 3/4 full of water on the stove and set it on high as I begin working on Martha Stewart’s recipe: https://www.marthastewart.com/319180/big-marthas-mashed-potatoes-with-cream-c

I’ve never bothered creating another recipe because Martha’s is so incredibly creamy that gravy becomes unnecessary reducing my time in the kitchen. Plus, it’s such an easy recipe that there’s no need to reinvent the wheel. I try to use Yukon Gold potatoes as they’re creamier but one thing to note regardless is it takes at least an hour to boil depending on your stove top. Test the potatoes for doneness by using a fork to see if they’re tender. Once they’re done, drain the potatoes in a colander and return the potatoes to the pot, letting them sit with cubes of ice to cool them for a few minutes. The skin easily peels off when the potatoes are hot but it’s a challenge because of the heat so adding a bit of ice makes the task manageable. Place the skinned potatoes in a bowl and quarter them on a cutting board before placing them into the Kitchen Aid mixing bowl with the ingredients. I omit the salt in mine so while mixing, I taste mine and add either some extra black pepper, butter or cream cheese which is why I double the amount of ingredients than what is called for in the recipe. My mixer is crucial in the preparation as nothing else I’ve used in the past has given me the desired end result. Once the potatoes are ready, I set the them aside in a pan and cover it with aluminum up foil as I work on my other dishes. An hour prior to our guests’ arrival I place it in the warming oven with the cornbread.

To add a bit of color, I usually incorporate a green vegetable dish. Last year, I boiled some frozen green beans and tossed it in some organic olive oil, a bit of garlic and zested it with some organic lemon. It was a very simple, colorful healthy dish.

This year, if Coscto has it in stock, I’ll probably roast some Brussels sprouts which are also very simple to make. I rinse the Brussels sprouts and pat them dry with paper towels. Then I halve or quarter them, placing them in a bowl, drizzling them with a bit of extra virgin olive oil, seasoning them a bit with sea salt and pepper and mixing the oil and spices throughout evenly, using my hands. I place them on an oiled aluminum foil resting on top of a cookie sheet and spread them equally across the pan. I roast them at 475 degrees and use tongs to flip each one after 10 minutes and depending on the oven, take them out after 20 minutes. They’ll have a beautiful slightly charred smoky caramelized flavor.

The last thing I prepare is the salad. I use organic baby spinach, slice up some organic English cucumbers, add organic honey cashews and organic dried blueberries and the salad is complete. I’ve added chunks of organic avocado and slices of organic white mushrooms in the past as well. I have 2-3 different kinds of dressing available for our guests.

Hosting a Thanksgiving dinner should not involve slaving away for days prior in addition to all of Thanksgiving Day. The key is to plan ahead and check off some of the tasks ahead of time. Some years, I’ve baked the cornbread a day or two beforehand. Conceivably, one could make the mashed potatoes early as well since both keep well and are easily reheat-able in the oven. It would minimize the tasks on Thanksgiving and alleviate the pressure to finish all the cooking in time. Last year, I used the disposable half steamers to serve the side dishes. I had them set up in wire chafing stands with chafing wick fuel keeping the food warm as we ate. Whatever leftovers we had, I covered them with aluminum foil and stored them in the fridge which made cleanup a breeze.

It’s also good to start an annual tradition or routine. For me, Thanksgiving begins with the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade as I start the prep and breakfast. It gets me in the spirit and the right frame of mind and signals that it’s a day of celebration. After that ends, I switch the channel to Food Network where they inevitably have a Countdown to Thanksgiving marathon on which helps add to the excitement and sometimes provides valuable last minute time-saving tips.

Thanksgiving is truly one of my favorite holidays because I have the opportunity to spend time with people I care about in the comfort of my home while enjoying a healthy, homemade, organic feast. I am always filled with gratitude that my life has been blessed with an abundance of friends who over the years, I’ve come to consider my family. Though not all of them can share the evening with me, Thanksgiving gives me the opportunity to give back to a select few and that is the cornucopia of the holiday for me.

Turkey checklist:

Turkey

Brine

Extra large stockpot

Kosher salt

Ice cubes

Twine

Cheesecloth

Aluminum foil

Saucepan

Roasting pan with roasting rack

Liquids: carton of chicken broth/stock, bottle of white wine and/or lemon juice

Baster

Tongs

Food processor

Temperature gauge

Oven mitts

Basil

Lemons

Black pepper

No-salt seasoning

8 sticks of unsalted butter

Carving board

Carving knife

Turkey plate

Mashed potatoes checklist:

3 1/2 lbs potatoes

16 oz cream cheese

2 sticks of unsalted butter

1/2 cup whole milk

1 cup heavy cream

Black pepper

Ice cubes

Stockpot

Colander

Kitchen Aid Mixer

Pyrex measuring cup

Serving dish

Cornbread checklist:

Marie Callendar’s mix

Extra virgin olive oil or spray

Cake pan or half steamer pan

Corn

Honey

Water

Baking/serving dish

Green beans checklist:

Stockpot

Frozen or fresh green beans

Lemons

Garlic

Extra virgin olive oil

Zester

Serving dish

Brussels sprouts checklist:

Brussels sprouts

Sea salt

Black pepper

Extra virgin olive oil

Aluminum foil

Cookie sheet

Serving dish

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