Have you planned your Thanksgiving menu yet?
There is no judgment on my part. My range currently consists of: mac and cheese; eggplant with bulgur and chermoula (don’t ask); kale and caramelized onion stuffing; caramelized onion and potato gratin (I will be part onion at the end of this meal); Sweet Potato Pie; pumpkin pie; And pumpkin pie crumble.
Does this seem like an unbalanced meal to you? To me too. (And I didn’t even think about it oven temperatures or cooking times Again. Eeks!)
If you haven’t finished planning your menu, or you still haven’t decided what to bring your family or friends for Thanksgiving, that’s OK: we have plenty of last-minute options for you help flesh out your menu from start to finish. .
The beauty of this choice? This does not require brining for several days! Or any brush, or: The bacon slices, which mummify the whole turkey, do this part for you. You’ll have to don’t forget to defrost your turkey. (But if you forget, all hope is not lost.)
Plus, the drippings and turkey neck are made into gravy, meaning you don’t need to struggle for a separate recipe.
The turkey is in the oven, so you need something you can make on the stove. This farro—hearty enough to satiate your poultry-abstaining guests, salty and refreshing enough to merit a spoonful on each guest’s plate—takes just 15 minutes on the stove.
The olive-allium-jalapeño mixture can be made in advance, refrigerated, then tossed with the hot farro when you’re ready to serve. But the whole dish tastes just as good, if not better, at room temperatureso you can get rid of it sooner.
Victory, your name is one Salad totally made in advance and good as is. Roast the squash, toast the almonds (or other nuts), and toss the salad the night before (or early on Thanksgiving). And if you don’t have the time or space in the oven to cook the squash, use apple or persimmon slices instead.
Here is a version of less than 20 minutes reminiscent of green bean casserole, but without the cooking (or the fried onion topping). Put the green beans in a pot on the heat, then add some onions, stir, stir, stir, then add the garlic, lemon juice and soy sauce. Sprinkle with coriander and add a little cream at the end if you want an even closer cousin to the traditional casserole.
“Pre-seasoning” your mash, that is, adding a bunch of herbs with garlic and peppercorns to the salted water in which the potato pieces are cooked, means less guesswork later. This recipe recommends putting the potatoes through a food mill, but if you don’t have one, we have some ideas for Other methods it will work (just don’t use the food processor).
And since you’re already buying bacon for the turkey, you might as well buy an extra package and add it to the sweet potato section of the meal as well. In this recipe– which you can prepare in the oven while the turkey rests – you will place strips of bacon on cubed sweet potatoes. While the dish cooks, the bacon chips and potatoes roast in its juices. The bacon is then crumbled and everything is mixed with arugula (“salad”!).
You can use that same precious oven time to prepare the stuffing: This Food52 Favorite cooked at 350°F, but you can get away with cooking at 400°F, the same time as the sweet potatoes, as long as you cover the stuffing and check it early. We also recommend mix the bread cubes, vegetables, melted butter and vegetable broth in advance, so that the challah has plenty of time to absorb the liquid (and so you do less last-minute rigamaroling). If you haven’t left your bread cubes out overnight, here’s how to make them stale quickly.
Blend everything – cranberries, a mandarin orange, sugar, candied ginger and orange marmalade – in a food processor. You have finished. (And it keeps for a week!)
Sweet treats: easy and crispy chocolate cake with skinless apples
This cake for the ages is light and not terribly sweet, making it a welcome respite after a big meal. And you could have everything you need to cook it without going to the grocery store. If desired, enhance the chocolate flavor by replacing the coffee with water or adding more cocoa.
And, conveniently, this apple crisp without peel by Alice Medrich bakes at the same temperature, which means you can cook both desserts at the same time (even while guests are dining, if you’re daring!). Alternatively, prepare both desserts the day before: they are just as good cold. (And vanilla ice cream or lightly sweetened whipped cream can be liberally applied to one or both.)
The drink: Pinot Noir
Here’s why:
This article was updated in November 2023.
More entertaining inspiration from Food52
What are your favorite last-minute Thanksgiving recipes? Tell us in the comments!
