Last year I wrote a Thanksgiving cooking piece for beginners on Facebook. This was the post that made me want to start a blog. This was also the post where so many people told me I should have a blog. Ok, so it took two months for it to happen.
I shared my Thanksgiving post with a group that I am in called The Apocalypse Supper Club. On my newsfeed, I kept seeing so many people who were panicking because they were being forced to stay home for the holiday and would have to cook themselves.
Whenever I teach a cooking class one of the first things that I say to my students is that my goal for the class is to take away the intimation of cooking. When students saw how easy recipes really are they weren’t intimated by them anymore; they felt accomplished! Yay! Watching people who were afraid to cook then are suddenly excited by it is priceless to me.
I wanted to write a post that would be informal yet informational to first-time Thanksgiving cooks. I wanted them to not be afraid of cooking for a big holiday. I wanted them to maybe even enjoy it a little bit.
You know what? That post went viral on Facebook. Not only did the three thousand members of the group see my post, but they shared it on their personal Facebook pages. I also shared it on my Facebook page. Lots of my friends shared it on their pages. You get the picture.
Thousands of people loved my post. They found the advice helpful and it did indeed take away some of the fear & dread for many people. Mission accomplished. I decided to share last year’s post with all of you even though there aren’t travel restrictions in place this year and many of you who don’t like to cook; won’t have to. Without further ado here’s the post:
Hey!!! If this is your first Thanksgiving that you have to cook because of travel & gathering restrictions I must tell you this….today (Sunday) is the day you may want to take your frozen turkey out of the freezer and defrost in the refrigerator in a container in case it leaks while it defrosts. I made the mistake of taking my turkey out too late too many times and sweated it out if it would be ready to roast on Thanksgiving. Here are a couple other pieces of advice I have found helpful over the last 31 years of cooking Thanksgiving dinner.
▪️Read the recipes you plan to make AHEAD and re-read them. For real you don’t want to find out on the big day you forgot to get something that would change the dish drastically.
▪️Make a list and shop early. No one wants to torture themselves and be in a last-minute panic situation at the grocery store.
▪️Simple recipes with fewer good ingredients always come out better and are way less stressful.
▪️Mise en place or prep ahead!!!!! I cannot stress this enough!!! Being well organized and ready to go on the big day is fucking priceless! You will thank me and this goes for other big meals not just on thanksgiving. Seriously just taking the time to prep a few things here and there instead of just sitting on your phone is time well spent and is good for you mentally as well. Lol!
▪️Never apologize for your food!!!! To quote Julia Child “I don’t believe in twisting yourself into knots of excuses and explanations over the food you make. Usually, one’s cooking is better than one thinks it is!”
▪️Let yourself off the hook and don’t try to make everything from scratch. If you like to bake then by all means make your pies on Wednesday, but if you don’t enjoy baking then buy them!!!! Keep your menu small and don’t try to tackle too many things. This one is huge. People start thinking about every dish they have ever had on past Thanksgiving and think they need to make them all.
▪️Plan on something super simple or order a pizza on Wednesday night so you can take the time to get organized for tomorrow. The same thing goes with a simple breakfast on Thanksgiving morning. This is not the day to make pumpkin pancakes or some other dumb shit you think is necessary. It’s not.
▪️This may be the biggest one of all. The big daddy of advice….clean as you go!!!!! Honestly, people get so overwhelmed when they look around their kitchen and it looks like a bomb went off or worse when the pot or bowl or whisk that you need is dirty under a mountain of dishes!!!!
I hope this helps anyone who is dreading to cook…because they don’t enjoy cooking or perhaps they have always been that person that is lucky enough to just show with a pie or flowers for the table. I have some time today so I am prepping ahead things that can be made far in advance and make turkey day a snap!!
Take a deep breath. Count your blessings. Give thanks for all the good things that did happen in this shitass year and Bon Appetit! ❤️❤️❤️~julz
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