Three Course Thanksgiving

Meal

Table of Contents

iii

Table of Contents

Contents
Before you Read ............................................................................................................................. v
Planning ...................................................................................................................................... v
Simple Appetizers ........................................................................................................................... 1
Chips and Dip ................................................................................................................................. 1
Ingredients and Supplies ............................................................................................................. 1
Instructions .................................................................................................................................. 1
Caesar Salad with Homemade Dressing and Croutons................................................................... 2
Ingredients................................................................................................................................... 2
Instructions .................................................................................................................................. 2
Pigs in a Blanket ............................................................................................................................. 3
Ingredients................................................................................................................................... 3
Instructions .................................................................................................................................. 3
Side Dishes...................................................................................................................................... 4
Garlic Bread .................................................................................................................................... 4
Ingredients................................................................................................................................... 4
Instructions .................................................................................................................................. 4
Cranberry Sauce .............................................................................................................................. 5
Ingredients................................................................................................................................... 5
Instructions .................................................................................................................................. 5
Mashed Potatoes ............................................................................................................................. 6
Ingredients................................................................................................................................... 6
Instructions .................................................................................................................................. 6
Macaroni and Cheese ...................................................................................................................... 7
Ingredients................................................................................................................................... 7
Instructions .................................................................................................................................. 7
Main Course .................................................................................................................................... 8
Smoked Turkey ............................................................................................................................... 8
Ingredients................................................................................................................................... 8
Instructions .................................................................................................................................. 8

Table of Contents

iv

Ham ................................................................................................................................................. 9
Ingredients................................................................................................................................... 9
Instructions .................................................................................................................................. 9
Desserts ......................................................................................................................................... 10
Turkey Decorated Cupcakes ......................................................................................................... 10
Ingredients................................................................................................................................. 10
Instructions ................................................................................................................................ 10
Pumpkin Pie .................................................................................................................................. 12
Ingredients................................................................................................................................. 12
Instructions ................................................................................................................................ 12
Pecan Pie ....................................................................................................................................... 13
Ingredients................................................................................................................................. 13
Instructions ................................................................................................................................ 13
Index ............................................................................................................................................. 15

Before you Read

Before you Read

Preparing Thanksgiving dinner can be an overwhelming task, especially if you are having many
family members over. Many families have their own traditions when it comes to what food will
be served. Simple recipes can go a long way when you want to impress all of your guests and
satisfy their appetites. Thanksgiving doesnt have to be overwhelming; all you have to do is take
the time to plan it out.
This manual contains recipe suggestions for all three courses of a traditional Thanksgiving meal:
appetizers, main course with sides, and dessert.

Planning
Planning ahead will lead to a stress-free Thanksgiving Day.

Make a list of who will be attending, including children

Ask about food allergies and beverage preferences
Ask if guests will be bringing parts of the meal
Read over each recipe carefully and make a shopping list
Shop far enough ahead of time to avoid last minute trips
Prioritize if you are short on time

Simple Appetizers

Simple Appetizers
Chips and Dip
You cant go wrong with this simple party dish. Be sure to pick the right chips for your choice of
dip. Tortilla chips go great with everything, but pita chips complement the bold flavors that
hummus offers.

Ingredients and Supplies

Dip: Hummus, salsa, cheese, or any preferred dip

Chips: Pita, tortilla, or any preferred chip

Veggie sticks: carrots and/or celery

2 Small serving bowls

Large serving plate

Instructions
1. Place the dip in a small serving bowl
2. Place the chips on a large serving plate
3. Place veggie sticks in small serving bowl
4. Place bowls with dip and veggies on large serving plate

Simple Appetizers

Caesar Salad with Homemade Dressing and Croutons

This is a more traditional appetizer for any meal that can wow guests with its bold flavors.

Ingredients

cup high quality extra virgin olive oil

4 cloves fresh garlic, peeled, smashed, then minced
1 baguette, preferably a day old, sliced thin
cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
4 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated
1 teaspoon anchovy paste
2 eggs
Freshly ground black pepper (1/4 teaspoon or to taste)
teaspoon salt
4-6 small heads of romaine lettuce, rinsed, patted dry, discard wilted outer leaves

Instructions
1. In a very large bowl, whisk together the olive oil and garlic.
Let it sit for half an hour.
2. While the oil is sitting, make the croutons. Spread the
baguette slices out over a baking sheet (may need to do in
batches), lined with parchment paper. Brush or spray with
olive oil (or melted butter, or if you want garlicky croutons,
dip pastry brush in the garlic infused oil you have sitting in
step 1). Broil for about five minutes or until the tops are
lightly browned. (NOTE: do not walk away, these can
easily go from browned to burned.) Remove and let cool.
3. Add anchovy paste and eggs to the oil garlic mixture.
Whisk until creamy. Add salt and pepper and cup of
lemon juice. Whisk in half of the Parmesan cheese. Taste,
and more lemon juice to taste. The lemon should give an
edge to the dressing but not overwhelm it.
4. Using your hands, tear off chunks of lettuce from the heads
of lettuce (do not use a knife to cut). Add to the oil mixture
and toss until coated. Add the rest of the Parmesan cheese.
5. Coarsely chop the toasted bread and add (with the crumbs
from the chopping) to the salad. Toss. Serve immediately.

Simple Appetizers

Pigs in a Blanket
This appetizer is great for all ages, but especially the little ones. Its easy to make and will leave
your guests wanting more.

Ingredients

8 frankfurters

8 slices of American cheese

1 (10 ounce) package refrigerated biscuit dough

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
2. Wrap cheese slice around frankfurter then a biscuit
around that.
3. Put on cookie sheet with overlap of biscuit facing down
so you dont have to use toothpicks.
4. Bake in preheated oven until biscuits are brown, about
10-15 minutes.

Side Dishes

Side Dishes
Garlic Bread
Garlic bread is dinner classic. Garlic bread is also a much simpler recipe as opposed to corn
bread. Though it may be simpler, garlic bread has a great taste that can please many people.

Ingredients

Large chopped garlic cloves (6)

Salt (1/2 teaspoon)

Ground Black Pepper

Butter (2 tablespoons)

Olive Oil (1/2 cup)

Ciabatta bread (1 loaf)

Chopped Oregano or Parsley leafs (1/4 cup)

Instructions
1. Begin by preheating oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Use a food processor to mince garlic.
3. Add salt, pepper, and chopped leaves.
4. Mince mixture lightly, only a couple of times.
5. Heat olive oil in a pan.
6. Add the garlic mixture.
7. Let the mixture cool.
8. Slice ciabatta bread vertically.
9. Spread butter on each slice.
10. Spread Garlic mixture on the same side as the butter.
11. Place in the oven to bake until golden brown or desired
crunchiness.

Side dishes

Cranberry Sauce
Cranberry sauce is the perfect side dish for turkey. Cranberry sauce is both delicious and easy to
make.

Ingredients

Fresh cranberries (1 pound)

Granulated Sugar (2 cups)

Water (1/3 cup)

Cinnamon (1 stick)

Ground Allspice (1/2 teaspoon)

Ground nutmeg (1/4 teaspoon)

Orange (get the juice out of the Orange and use the peel for zest)

Instructions
1. Combine sugar, water, and cranberries in a pot.
2. Stir the sauce.
3. Boil the sauce over medium heat.
4. Decrease heat to a simmer.
5. Once its simmering, add the cinnamon stick.
6. Add in allspice and nutmeg.
7. Stir sauce while simmering for about 6 minutes.
8. Add the orange juice and zest.
9. Stir for a 3 minutes.
10. Let it cool before serving.

Side Dishes

Mashed Potatoes
Mashed potatoes is a side dish goes well next to many dishes. During thanksgiving, mashed
potatoes becomes one of the best dishes next to turkey.

Ingredients

Creamer potatoes (4 pounds)

Bay leaf (1 leaf)

Salt

Ground black pepper

Butter (3 tablespoons)

Chopped Chives (2 tablespoons)

Heavy Cream (2 cups)

Instructions
1. Peel the potatoes.
2. Cut the potatoes into 4 sections.
3. Place the potatoes in a pot.
4. Add the bay leaf.
5. Add salt 2 table spoons.
6. Add water to the pot and begin to boil.
7. Wait for potatoes to get soft.
8. Once soft, drain the potatoes and remove the bay leaf.
9. In a sauce pan, heat up the cream and butter.
10. Mash potatoes with potato masher.
11. Combine the mashed potatoes with the cream mixture.
12. Use salt and pepper to your liking.
13. Mix well.
14. Lastly, sprinkle the chives on top.

Side Dishes

Macaroni and Cheese

Macaroni and cheese is a classic dish that goes well with any meal.

Ingredients

Salt
Vegetable Oil
Elbow macaroni (1 Pound)
Milk (1 quart)
Butter (1 Stick)
Cheddar Cheese Grated (2 cups)
Ground black pepper (1/2 tablespoon)
White bread crumbs (1 cups)
All-purpose flour (1/2 cup)

Instructions
1. Begin by preheating the oven at 375 degrees.
2. Boil water and add salt and oil.
3. Add the macaroni to the water and cook ingredients
together for 8 minutes.
4. Heat milk in a different pan but dont boil it.
5. Melt 6 tablespoons of butter in a pot and add the flour.
Cook for 2 minutes on low while stirring the mixture.
6. Add the milk while stirring the mixture and continue
cooking for another 3 minutes.
7. Remove the mixture from the heat and add cheese, salt,
and ground black pepper. Finally, combine with
macaroni and stir it.
8. Put the macaroni and cheese in a baking pan. Combine
remaining butter with bread crumbs and put the
macaroni and cheese in the oven.
9. Bake the macaroni and cheese for 35 minutes or until
the macaroni is golden brown on top.

Main Course

Main Course
Smoked Turkey
Smoked turkey is the dish that best represents Thanksgiving. Turkey is a healthy dish and makes
great left overs.

Ingredients

1 (12 pound) whole turkey, neck and giblets removed

1 (20 pound) bag high quality charcoal briquettes

Hickory chips or chunks

Instructions
1. Place the charcoal into the bottom pan of the smoker.
Light the coals and wait for the temperature of the
smoker to come to 240 degrees F. Lightly oil the grate.
2. Rinse turkey under cold water, and pat dry. Place
hickory chips into a pan with water to cover.
3. Place turkey onto the prepared grate.
4. Add 2 handfuls damp chips at start of cooking then a
handful every couple of hours during the cooking
process.
5. Leave the lid on DO NOT keep looking at the turkey
or you will let the heat out!
6. Continue smoking until the internal temperature of the
turkey reaches 180 degrees F, or keep going until the
coals die out.

Main Course

Ham
Ham is the second most common dish for Thanksgiving dinner.

Ingredients

6 pounds bone-in ham

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup honey

2 teaspoons cornstarch

teaspoon red pepper flakes

teaspoon cayenne pepper

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Place ham on a rack in a foil lined roasting pan. Bake
the rounded side up for one hour.
3. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, mix all
ingredients together. Stir until it forms a nice thick
glaze.
4. Rub on half of the ham and bake for 30 minutes more.
5. Flip the ham over and rub on remaining glaze and bake
for 1 more hour.
6. Remove from oven and allow the ham to rest for a t
least 30 minutes before serving.

10

Desserts

Desserts
Turkey Decorated Cupcakes
A simple and great way to decorate cupcakes

Ingredients

Chocolate cupcake mix (prepared and baked according to package instructions)

Chocolate buttercream ice cream

Dark chocolate morsels, melted

White chocolate morsels, melted

Decorator bags (or zip-close bags with the corner snipped off)

Wax paper

Cookie sheet or pan

Candy corn

Red jelly beans or red-hots

Instructions
1. Frost the cupcakes
a. Cover the tops of your cupcakes with the
chocolate buttercream using a knife to create
feathery peaks.
b. Create the head by putting an extra drop of
frosting on one side.
2. Create chocolate tail feathers
a. Fill two decorator bags with the melted
chocolate, one with the dark, and one with the
white.
b. Pipe the dark chocolate outline of the feathers
onto the wax paper-lined cookie sheet.
c. Use the white chocolate to fill in the centers.
d. Place in freezer until hard (about 5 minutes).
3. Create the eyes
a. Using the decorator bags, place a small peasized drop of white chocolate on the wax paper.
b. Place a small dot onto the center of the white
chocolate.
c. Place in freezer until hard (about 5 minutes).

Desserts

11

4. Assemble the turkey

a. Push the chocolate feathers into the frosting
across the back in a fan shape.
b. Add a piece of candy corn for its beak.
c. Add a few pieces of candy corn to give him
wings.
d. Place the jelly bean or red-hot underneath his
beak for its waddle.

12

Desserts

Pumpkin Pie
Pumpkin pie is a dessert perfect for a Thanksgiving dinner. The pie goes well with ice cream on
top.

Ingredients

2 eggs

1 (16 ounce) can pumpkin puree

1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1 (9 inch) unbaked pie crust

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F
2. Combine eggs, pumpkin puree, sweetened condensed
milk, and pumpkin pie spice in a large bowl and mix
until combined.
3. Fit pie crust into a 9-ince pie dish; pour pumpkin
mixture into the crust.
4. Place pie on a baking sheet and bake in the preheated
oven for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees F and
bake until filling is set, 35 to 40 minutes.
5. If desired, top the pie with either ice cream or cool
whip.

Desserts

13

Pecan Pie
Along with pumpkin pie, pecan pie is a staple of a Thanksgiving dinner.

Ingredients

1 cups pecan pieces

3 large eggs

1 cup sugar

cup light or dark corn syrup

2 tablespoons melted butter

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

teaspoon salt

1 (9-inch) deep-dish frozen unbaked pie shell

Instructions
1. Spread pecans in a single layer on a baking sheet.
2. Bake at 350 degrees F for 8 to 10 minutes or until
toasted.
3. Stir eggs together and the next 5 ingredients; stir in
pecans. Pour filling into pie shell.
4. Bake at 350 degrees F for 55 minutes or until set,
shielding pie with aluminum foil after 20 minutes to
prevent excessive browning. Serve warm or cold.
5. If desired, top the pie with ice cream or cool whip.

Index

15

Index
anchovy paste, 2
Appetizers, 1
baguette, 2
Caesar Salad, 2
cheese, 1
Chips and Dip, 1
Cranberry, 5
Croutons, 2
Cupcakes, 10
Desserts, 10
extra virgin olive oil, 2
frankfurters, 3
Garlic Bread, 4
Ham, 9
Homemade Dressing, 2
Hummus, 1

Ingredients, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13

Instructions, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13
Macaroni and Cheese, 7
Main Course, 8
Mashed Potatoes, 6
Pecan, 13
Pie, 12, 13
Pigs in a Blanket, 3
Pumpkin, 12
romaine lettuce, 2
salsa, 1
Sauce, 5
Side Dishes, 4
Turkey, 8, 10
Veggie sticks, 1