Advice On Thanksgiving Dinner That Won't Break The Bank
posted on 11/05/2009
It seems that some folks are blessed each year with always being the visitor for Thanksgiving dinner and not the cook. It usually works out that those same people disappear when it comes time to clean up and do the dishes. At least that's how it worked as far back as I can remember.
Nonetheless I think I can help make this years Thanksgiving dinner a little lighter on the wallet or purse for the cook. You don't have to overindulge this year just because you have in the past or you think your guests expect it.
PLAN EARLY
Clip your coupons early, check your circulars and plan the menu. Keep the meal simple and watch for sales.
Figure out how many people will be at dinner and go to www.butterball.com. They have a meal calculator and planning will allow you to decide the weight of the turkey you need to buy and add to it should you decide you want leftovers.
FREE TURKEYS AND HAMS
Inner city children can try the Boys and Girls Club for a free turkey or ham. Even if the Boys and Girls Club in your area isn't giving away free hams or turkeys, they usually have food drives around Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Radio stations and TV stations give away a fair share of turkeys close to Thanksgiving and many churches hold food drives and give away thousands of turkeys in the vicinity closest to their church.
The Salvation Army, and local Sports teams give away free turkeys as well. It's great to see how professional sports teams like to give back to their community.
DESSERT MENU
First and foremost, you could try to get a few of your guests to bring dessert. That would free up some valuable time for you to do other things. If you decide you want to bake the pies anyway using store bought pastry will save time.
For some my ideas just wouldn't be Thanksgiving but if money is tight, you need to realize your guests are more important than the meal itself.
Martha Stewart is offering a free Thanksgiving cookbook. Here is the .pdf link: http://www.sirius.com/wo/i/thanksgiving/Martha_Stewart_Living_Radio_Thanksgiving_recipes.pdf
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