Thanksgiving for 27

My 2024 menu, strategies for success + your very own copy of THE Thanksgiving spreadsheet.

Dear friends,

I hated Thanksgiving as a kid. In fact, I dreaded it. I was an extraordinarily picky eater and wouldn’t touch most of the holiday’s signature foods with a ten foot pole. Turkey? Absolutely not. Gravy? Mysterious and scary. Every Thanksgiving, I forked through small portions of sweet potato casserole and noodle kugel (is it a Jewish thing to have kugel at Thanksgiving?) and called it a day. It didn’t help that nobody in my family really liked to cook. Though much stress and exertion went into the actual cooking of the meal, the results were lackluster.

I used to be embarrassed by the fact that I was such a picky eater as a kid, but more recently I’ve been looking back on my childhood self with more compassion. Maybe I just had particular taste. For example, I demanded omelettes with no browning on the exterior. I wanted them soft and yellow – the proper French way, though I didn’t know it then. I had very particular preferences on my ratio of cream cheese to bagel. I was sensitive to overcooked, curdled custards and overcooked, stringy chicken (and turkey!). Well, DUH.

So often, we feed children dumbed-down versions of food, and I can’t help but wonder how I would have responded to a proper, jiggly custard or a perfect French omelette. This is not to blame my parents at all; I plainly refused to eat lots of things and they tried their best. But maybe I just liked good food. My pickiness was a nuisance back then, but it’s precisely this attention to flavor and texture that help me thrive as a cook now.

So back to Thanksgiving. I always thought I hated it because I had such bad associations with the food. But as an adult, I developed a theory that maybe I didn’t hate Thanksgiving itself – in fact, if I cooked all the food the way I liked it, it might just be my favorite holiday (cooking and eating and drinking with family all day – what’s better?).

I officially took over cooking Thanksgiving dinner last year, a responsibility that I do not take lightly. You might remember my Thanksgiving prep reels from last year, featuring my multi-day prep process and the spreadsheet I created to stay organized. It included a menu, grocery lists per recipe, a master grocery list, a prep schedule, and a day-of oven schedule. Whoo!

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I’m taking all the learnings from last year and doing it again, but even bigger. This year, I’m cooking Thanksgiving dinner for 27 people (maybe more! we’ll see who shows up). I’m getting better at *delegation.* I’m making 2-3 pies instead of four, and double the amount of dinner rolls. I’m still not cooking a turkey (there will be a turkey, but not cooked by me). The spreadsheet has expanded, too – more on that below.

Here is my 2024 Thanksgiving mantra: You can’t do everything, and you certainly can’t do everything well. Be kind to yourself and prioritize the things *you* care about.

Some of my Thanksgiving strategies:

• As the family’s executive chef, I’ve set up the schedule so that most of my prep tasks happen in advance. This frees me up on the day-of to help other people with their tasks and keep everything running smoothly.

• Schedule tasks like cleaning out the fridge and grocery shopping to help keep yourself organized. And schedule a lunch break on Thanksgiving day! No one likes a grumpy cook.

• Make your pie dough ahead of time and roll/line your tins if you can. If you’re making an apple pie, assemble the entire pie in advance and store it in the freezer. Bake from frozen on Tgiving morning.

• Outsource appetizers. Nobody cares.

• Don’t waste time on the sides you’re not passionate about. I’m going w/ boxed stuffing this year. If someone else is passionate about it, let them take it on! Remember: You can’t do everything, and you certainly can’t do everything well.

• Give everyone tasks. If they don’t want to cook (or you don’t want them to cook), assign them bartending duty, or trash duty, or fridge-cleaning duty. Play to their strengths so everyone feels like they’re contributing! And keep someone on call for last-minute grocery runs.

• The Internet will tell you that you need 1-1.5 lbs of protein (turkey, brisket, whatever) per person. What I say is: you know your family best. If you’ve got multiple vegetarians in the crowd, or have eight teenage boys coming, or had a ton leftover last year, adjust accordingly. I’m currently planning on 20 lb. for 27 people, but I might add another main if I start to get antsy.

• How long to cook a turkey: Short answer – around 13 minutes per pound. But that’s assuming that you cook at 350 the whole way through. I recommend cooking at 425 for the first 30 min to help the skin get crisp, then dropping to 325-350 for the remainder of the time. It’ll cook faster since you’re starting at a higher temp, so start checking its internal temp at 1 hour + 30 minutes for a small turkey (8-10 lbs) or 2 hours for a big one (10+ lbs). You’re looking to hit at least 150° at 3 different points on the bird.

The Spreadsheet

If you are neurotic like me and enjoy color-coded organization, I’m sharing my Thanksgiving spreadsheet for you to enjoy. It’s pre-populated with the things I’m cooking this year, but feel free to customize with your own recipes. The template is read-only, so make a copy for your own use and go forth!

I’ve included links to most of the recipes we use, or quantities if we don’t follow a recipe. Note that I’ve included adjustments we make to the recipe in the ingredients lists (i.e. we skip bacon in the bourguignon, and change the types of cheese for the mac), so just be aware.

I will also note that this is my *plan*, as of 11/15 at 8:44 a.m. HST. I reserve the right to change and update as needed. I might impulsively buy a whole duck. There might be a Mystery Pie. Follow along on IG to see how the journey unfolds!

Without further ado… the spreadsheet.

PS: I do not want negative feedback on my spreadsheet! I am an Excel novice trying my best. If you don’t have anything nice to say don’t say it :* but if you have nice things to say OR want to help me add fun automations plz feel free lol.