Delicious Real Food Thanksgiving Feast

TIP 1: To reduce amount of prepping dishes and storage containers to wash, place food directly in baking dishes as you finalize, cover and refrigerate so they are reading to go straight into the oven Thanksgiving Day.

If refrigerator space is a challenge, store food in zip-lock bags as you prep. Try to minimize number of zip lock bags use; wash and re-use later if possible.

TIP 2: If only one oven is available, before roasting turkey, roast Brussels Sprouts; then roast Green Beans. These can be served at room temperature.

Then bake Three Root Puree and Sweet Potato Butternut Squash per recipes. Remove from oven, cover. When turkey is removed from oven after roasting, place them back in oven, covered to reheat.

TIP 3: Make a baking timeline for the day of Thanksgiving that best suits your needs. The following can be served at room temperature:

• Roasted Red Bell Peppers and Tomatoes
• Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Mushrooms
• Lemon Green Beans

1 week out

• Buy groceries
• Review recipes
• Review pantry
• Adjust grocery list accordingly
• Review all needed cooking, baking utensils
• Review all serving platters, spoons, dishes etc
• Decide on beverages

Weekend Before

• Prepare and freeze piecrust for Short Cut Pecan Pie
• Prepare and freeze (unbaked) Cranberry Blueberry Pie
• Make Cranberry Sauce and store in serving container if possible
• Make and freeze Three Root Puree
• Make—EXCEPT for the onion/ poblano pepper—and freeze Butternut Squash and Sweet Potato Puree
• Toast pumpkin seeds, cool and put in storage container
• Make Chocolate “Turkeys”—get the kids involved!
• Make salad dressing

Two Days Before

Prep Wild Rice Stuffing

• cook wild rice, cool
• slice leeks and celery
• cook sausage, leeks, celery and thyme; cool
• mix wild rice with cooked sausage and vegetables, place in closed container in refrigerator
• chop walnuts, put in separate container

Prep Roasted Red Bell Peppers

• wash and cut red bell peppers in half, leave stem, but remove seeds
• wash and cut plum tomatoes in half
• peel garlic
• store bell peppers, tomatoes and garlic in covered container in refrigerator

Prep Herb Butter

• Wash and chop parsley, sage, thyme
• Peel and cut all shallots

Make Raw Pumpkin Pie. Cover and store in refrigerator

Remove from freezer and leave in refrigerator to thaw

• Three Root Puree
• Sweet Potato and Butternut Squash Puree

Day Before

Prep Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Mushrooms

• wash, trim and quarter Brussels sprouts
• wash, trim and quarter mushrooms
• peel and quarter shallots
• strip rosemary leaves off stem and chop
• toss all together in a baking dish, cover and put in refrigerator

Prep Roasted Green Beans

• wash, trim and cut green beans into 2-inch pieces

Place Three Root Puree in baking dish, cover with aluminum and place in refrigerator

Finish Sweet Potato and Butternut Squash Puree

• slice onion
• seed and slice poblano pepper
• sauté onion and poblano pepper until very tender
• mix 3/4 of onion/poblano pepper into Sweet Potato and Butternut Squash Puree and place in baking dish. Cover and put back in refrigerator; place remaining 1/4 onion/poblano pepper in small covered container in refrigerator

Remove from freezer

• Short Cut Pecan Pie
• Cranberry and Blueberry Pie

Make filling for Short Cut Pecan Pie and bake

Bake Cranberry Blueberry Pie

Prep Salad

• wash and slice green onions
• wash, core and cut apple into matchsticks, squeeze some lemon juice and toss
• put green onions and apple into a small container in refrigerator

Morning Of

Prep turkey

• preheat oven
• prep with herb butter
• mix chopped walnuts into Wild Rice Stuffing
• stuff neck and main cavity of turkey with Wild Rice Stuffing
• place remaining Wild Rice Stuffing in a baking dish
• put turkey in the oven 4 hours before desired eating time and follow roasting instructions on recipe

Finish prepping Roasted Red Bell Peppers and place on prepared baking sheet, place in oven

Finish prepping Brussels Sprouts and Mushrooms, place in baking dish if not already in it

Finish prepping Roasted Green Beans and place in baking dish

If you have a second oven, roast Brussels Sprouts and Mushrooms as well as Roasted Green Beans when turkey has two hours to finish roasting. Remove from oven and cover.

Bake extra Wild Rice Stuffing

Then put Three Root Puree and Sweet Potato and Butternut Squash in oven.

Prep gravy

Prep salad

Prepare dessert table

• Cranberry Blueberry Pie
• Short Cut Pecan Pie
• Raw Pumpkin Pie
• Chocolate “Turkeys”

One hour before checklist

• Turkey is almost finished
• Gravy is made, awaiting final drippings
• Cranberry Sauce is on table
• Wild Rice Stuffing ready to serve
• Brussels Sprouts and Mushroom ready to serve
• Green Beans reading to serve
• Roasted Red Bell Peppers ready to serve
• Three Root Puree in oven
• Sweet Potato Butternut Squash in oven
• Finish making salad, except for salad dressing

Last to do

• Gravy
• Toss salad with salad dressing, sprinkle remaining cranberries and pumpkin seeds on top