A Thanksgiving Timeline...

     When I plan for Thanksgiving, I like to make sure that I know which food I'll be making, what I have already, what I need to buy, and when I'm going to make it.  This is what my lists look like for this year.  (Though this is a much neater version, all in one place.  The "real" version is scribbled on a million scraps of paper which move around on legs of their own and also seem to multiply.  I'm thinking of instituting a breeding program...)

     There are a couple of things on the menu that I haven't and won't give recipes for.  My mashed potatoes and green beans aren't anything to write home about.  They're good places to put butter and gravy and quick things to make the day of that I don't have to think about when I'm focusing on not burning the darn chicken.

Menu

Dish	Timeline
Bread	Up to 1 month in advance
Pumpkin	Monday
Cornbread	Tuesday
Stuffing	Wednesday
Gravy	Wednesday
Cranberries	Wednesday
Pears	Wednesday
Roast Veg.	Wednesday
Dessert	Wednesday
Chicken	Thursday
Mashed Potatoes	Thursday
Green Beans	Thursday

Check Lists

Check the Pantry	Check the Fridge	Check the Cellar	Grocery List
cloves cinnamon nutmeg ginger salt pepper sugar brown sugar whole wheat flour all purpose flour bread flour vegetable oil olive oil 3/4 C cornmeal 1/4 C grits 1 can evaporated milk 2 C mushroom stock pecans	2 boxes of butter 2 C milk eggs	5 small red potatoes + more for mashed potatoes 3 onions 1 1/2 heads garlic 3 medium apples	1 Quince 1 Parsnip Chicken 1 package of Poultry herbs (Rosemary, Sage, Thyme) 1 package of Sage 1 Fruity White wine like Riesling or Pinot Grigio Celery 8 oz Cranberries 1/2 lb Chanterelles 1 Portobello 6 pears 1 box yellow cake mix 1 bottle whipping cream Fresh Greenbeans Snowdrift Cider