Martha Stewart’s beginner-friendly timeline for Thanksgiving dinner – and the tasks you must do the day before
There’s an unsung hero of Thanksgiving preparation
HOMEMAKING guru Martha Stewart has revealed the beginner-friendly timeline she uses to execute Thanksgiving dinner.
Hosting the holiday might seem overwhelming at first, but there are plenty of tasks you can do the day before the event.
Most of the side dishes can be prepared the day before Turkey Day, as well as dessert, according to Martha Stewart magazine.
Stewart’s Thanksgiving sample menu consists of a turkey with brown-sugar glaze, seven sides, an appetizer, and one dessert.
The accompaniments include pan gravy, cranberry sauce, glazed carrots, brussels sprouts with pancetta, green beans with caramelized onions, and scalloped potatoes.
The common advice is to refrigerate the veggies in plastic bags.
She said that the carrots, brussels sprouts, green beans, and cheese crackers can be prepared the day before.
The carrots can be trimmed and peeled, and then refrigerated in a zip-top bag.
The brussels sprouts can be trimmed and shredded and then refrigerated in an airtight container.
Sautee the pancetta that goes with the sprouts, but store the meat and its drippings in a separate airtight container.
The green beans can be trimmed and refrigerated in an airtight container.
The onions can be caramelized too. Once they cool completely, refrigerate them in an airtight container.
The last two items can be left at room temperature once they’re ready: the cheese crackers and the pecan pie.
Stewart said to let the pie cool completely and then wrap it in plastic.
On Thanksgiving morning, prepare the potatoes and refrigerate them once they’re finished.
Three and a half hours before your guests arrive, you can start roasting your turkey.
An important tip: Make sure the turkey is at room temperature before it goes into the oven.
Two hours before your company arrives, bring your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and bake your potatoes.
At this time, you can also take the caramelized onions and cranberry sauce out of the refrigerator so they warm to room temperature.
Once that’s done, you can also cook the green beans in the oven and assemble stuffing.
Thirty minutes before your guests arrive, it’s time to cook the stuffing and carrots in the oven.
You can also finish assembling the Brussels sprouts and green beans.
The final step is to make the pan gravy.
For her personal Thanksgiving, Stewart said she was prepping “thirty pies.”
On Instagram, she wrote that she was baking lemon tarts, cranberry tarts, chocolate pecan pies, pecan pies, and pumpkin pies.
In a separate post, Stewart said it’s possible for the holidays to be stress-free.
“Your holiday celebrations can be elegant and fun, without a lot of hassle. Trust me – I’ve perfected it,” she wrote.