Thanksgiving is going to be here soon. Are you ready? This time of year I find myself frantically trying to finalize our holiday plans and gearing up for the big day. It’s my turn to host our extended family for dinner, so it’s going to be quite a day.
Does the fact that we’re going to be feeding a large crowd mean that we are throwing our budget out the window? Of course we’re not. What is does mean is that we’re going to have to plan carefully to get the most bang for our buck this Thanksgiving. Here’s what we plan to do:
Get an accurate headcount of guests. You don’t need to buy an over-sized turkey and then have leftovers for days. Know how many people you are going to feed and buy a turkey that will feed those people. You don’t really want to eat turkey for weeks, anyway, do you?
Serve plenty of inexpensive side dishes. You can stretch your entrée (the turkey) farther by offering plenty of “fixings” to go with it. Stuffing is, of course, one staple. We also serve plenty of vegetables (purchased during sales and saved until we needed them). Instant mashed potatoes are easy to make (and inexpensive) for a crowd, too.
Skip heavy desserts. After everyone has gorged themselves on the traditional turkey dinner, who has room left for dessert? If you feel like you HAVE to have a dessert on hand, I would suggest baking some cookies. Guests can help themselves to one or two when they get the munchies throughout the evening. Gingersnaps or peanut butter cookies are some of my favorites for the fall season.
Ask everyone to bring a beverage. No matter how carefully I shop, drinks can really kill a food budget. Wine, beer, and soft drinks can quickly add up. We try to ease the strain of having the right drinks on hand by asking everyone to bring something with them. Some bring a bottle of wine they want to share; others bring their favorite cocktail. We, in turn, supply soft drinks and one type of beer. This method ensures that everyone has plenty to drink and a wide variety of choices.
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
I like the idea of the headcount, however, I do think yuo need to have some leftovers. It wouldn’t seem like T-giving if you didn’t.
The savings ae huge if you take out the alcohol.
Cheap side dishes are a must. Green Bean casserole is about as cheap as it gets.
Lite dessert? Find yourself a recipe for Carrot Cake cookies—its cheap. its different and its lite!
If you’ve ever eaten in a Korean restaurant you’d know that side dishes can really fill you up quickly and is relatively inexpensive. It also does a good job of filling up the table. Soda is a cheap way of filling up your guests, but we all know it’s not really healthy.
Then again, why not go potluck? That’ll save everybody some fast cash.
I agree with buying the right size turkey. I remember a few years ago when i was still living at home my mom bought this gigantic turkey and we were only having about 6 guests over! We ended up eating turkey for the next 2 weeks. Not fun.