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Hello,
Today's issue contains a great list of Thanksgiving tips from our archive. If you have any Thanksgiving tips to share, feel free to submit them on our contest pages.
Thanks for reading,
Susan
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Tips
Baste a Turkey With Cheesecloth
Cover a turkey with cheesecloth soaked in melted butter or olive oil, and it will baste itself! Remove it during the last 30 minutes of baking to let the skin get brown.
By Robin
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When carving pumpkins for pie, don't throw out the seeds! Wash off the gooey stuff, spread on a cookie sheet, sprinkle with Lawry's (seasoning) salt and bake at 375 for about 10 minutes. Makes a great snack.
By Sunny
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An Onion and Celery In The Turkey
Place a whole onion (skin and all) along with few large pieces of celery inside the cavity of your turkey before baking for a very moist and flavorful bird. I also baste the turkey with apple juice instead of butter or fat which results in a beautifully golden crisp skin and moist meat without any added fat. As a bonus your house will smell fabulous. The turkey will not have the taste of apples.
By Callie - Tampa, FL
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I cook the green bean casserole in my crock pot. I mix in some of the french onions for flavor. I brown some of the onions in the toaster oven for a crispy garnish on the top; or place the crispy onions in a bowl for each person to sprinkle on their own serving.
By Gloria
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PLEASE invite someone to your feast that would have otherwise spent the Holiday alone! This can be a very depressing time of year for SO very many people.
By Sue Archer
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Making mashed potatoes at the last minute in order to keep them hot is very tricky while your juggling everything else for Thanksgiving. I make them a day or two before. I just make them as usual, sometimes adding sour cream and garlic salt. Put them in a casserole dish and refrigerate.
Then on Thanksgiving, I pull them out and let set to room temperature and microwave to warm them up at the last minute. No one knows they were done early.
By Candace - Annapolis, MD
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As your Thankgiving guests arrive give each a paper fall leaf to write a "thankful" thought on. Have them drop them in a clear vase or fishbowl. They needn't sign it unless they want to. Then, if there are only a few, read them before the meal, or after, or hang them up for all to see.
By Linda
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Make Your Own "Sparkling" Apple Cider
Instead of buying expensive sparkling apple cider to have for your special holiday celebration, you can make your own economical version that will be just as good.
You can make it using frozen apple juice concentrate. Just add three cans of seltzer (unflavored) or club soda instead of water. It is cheaper and serves more, and no one needs to know that it didn't come out of the expensive green bottle! Just serve it from a glass or decorative pitcher.
By Peggy
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I get out all the serving bowls I will need for the feast when I set out the holiday dishes. I drop a note in each bowl or platter to remind me what goes where.
By Linda
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If you bake your stuffing in another dish, you can make the turkey stay moist by placing an apple inside while baking.
By Gladys Hill
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Thanksgiving is hard to enjoy when you are doing all of the work. Even the littlest members of the family can help so don't take all the work on yourself. Make sure you get the family involved in the preparations, table setting, chopping of vegetables, cleaning and all of the things that you need done for a great celebration. It will make it more enjoyable for everyone if you are not stressed out when it comes time to eat.
Susan from ThriftyFun
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Cook a Turkey Breast Side Down
Here's a tip for an outstanding Thanksgiving Turkey. Cook it with the breast side down. Yep, turn that bird upside down and insert a stick of butter in the cavity, put in a roasting bag and cook that baby. You will have the juiciest turkey you've ever had because all the juice stays in the bird. A friend of mine gave me this tip, he has a catering business. I always put mine on the night before we eat on about 250 degrees and let it cook all night.
There is no need to watch or baste. Just take it out the next morning and go ahead and pick it all of the bone and put in a covered container in the fridge. When you get ready to eat, take out as much or as little as you need and warm it up in the microwave and serve. Your oven will be free the day you eat to get your other items prepared (much easier). I get LOTS of compliments on the meat and I have a hassle free meal and enjoy being with my company which is what it's about anyway. Many Blessings!
By Ginger
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Rookie Moves When Baking Your First Turkey
These are all mistakes I have made over the years. After 30 or so years of cooking and eating Thanksgiving dinners, I have seen these mistakes made first hand.
Cooking a Turkey That is Still Frozen
It takes 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator to thaw a frozen turkey. If you don't have that much time, fill your kitchen sink with water (cold) and place it there. As the water gets colder from the frozen turkey, keep letting some out and adding more water. When it seems that the outside is unfrozen, unwrap it so the water can reach the inside of the turkey. Many a turkey is still frozen in the center when being cooked.
Taking Out the Neck and Giblets Package
There is a package of giblets and a neck that are stuck into the breast cavity of turkeys. Make sure you remove them. Sometimes they are put into little plastic bags which makes for a nasty mess. You don't want your beautiful turkey to taste like plastic. If you are fast thawing your turkey, make sure you take these out because they will keep the turkey frozen longer. It's near impossible to get them out until the turkey is thawed some.
Worrying About Stuffing the Turkey
I put an onion and a piece of celery inside the turkey while it is baking. It gives the turkey the flavor of stuffing without sucking up all the juices. I make my stuffing and cook it separately. You can put it in with the turkey in the last hour.
I'm sure there are more of these. Please add your own rookie moves to this post to help those that are making their first Thanksgiving dinner.
Turkey Breasts
If you don't feel up to baking a whole turkey, the turkey breasts are a great option. They take much less time to thaw, give you lots of good breast meat and even have a gravy packet inside to help. If it is the day before Thanksgiving, unless you buy a fresh turkey, this may be your only option.
If you have any more tips for rookie cooks, feel free to post them below.
Susan from ThriftyFun
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I have done my stuffing in the crockpot and have added a can of cream of chicken or celery soup to the top.
By ReNee Smith
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Every year when we sit down at the Thanksgiving table, after we have said the prayer I have each member of the family share what they are thankful for. It has become a family tradition. Also at our Christmas dinner table we all take a time sharing a favorite Christmas memory from years past. This proves to be a lot of fun especially to hear what the grandparents have to share.
By Terri
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Add 1/2 teaspoon baking powder to potatoes and whip them with a hand blender!
By ElectricChameleon
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Get your kids involved in Thanksgiving dinner!
Get your kids involved in Thanksgiving dinner! Have them help decorate the table by making Candy Cornucopias for place cards: Using ice cream cones, write each guest's name on the cone with decorator frosting. Place the cones onto a festive paper napkin and fill them with candies, dried fruit and nuts. Let the filling spill out a bit for a "cornucopia" effect.
By Kathy
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