"Mr. Sugar Dish" on Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is one of my all-time favorite holidays. The fact that the biggest priorities of the day surround food, family and football is greatness in my book. The careful choreography of the menu planning, food preparation and timing juxtaposed with crazed friends/family, laughter, story telling and imbibing makes for such great times.

Let me introduce myself.  Simply put, I am Mr. Sugar Dish.  Cooking is my passion, and therefore my wife suggested I post some Thanksgiving dinner wisdom here on her blog.

Turkey breast with apple,
cranberry, and bacon stuffing

Growing up in and Irish-Catholic household, the idea of creating a meal around a large piece of roasted meat was not unfamiliar. In fact, my mom’s beautiful preparation of a beef roast with all the fixings was a regular Sunday tradition in my youth. I still remember coming inside on a cool afternoon and being struck by the intoxicating aroma of beef and caramelize onions (and of course, the extra fat my mom would request from our butcher because it makes a richer gravy and high-rising Yorkshire pudding). My family has a solid history of really strong cooks including my mother, grandmother and great Aunt (both on my mom’s side). A lot of my cooking is squarely based on the flavor profiles of their recipes.

On Thanksgiving, my mom, (and when I was much younger) grandmother and aunt would all combine forces to put together a huge spread of delicious and traditional offerings. Some of my favorites included chicken livers, creamed onions, mashed turnip, maple glazed sweet potatoes and apple pie with a shortbread crust. I also remember being in the kitchen and helping prep certain dishes and also started to learn about different techniques. Preparing these types of holiday meals was really where my love for cooking started. As the years progressed my brother and I would even put together a lot of these dishes on our own.

For me, Thanksgiving is still about so many of those dishes and flavors. I am a traditionalist, and don’t do too much meddling with the established favorites.

Sliced herb roasted turkey breast.

Here is a list of 5 things to think about this week as you start to put together your Thanksgiving plans.

1. Plan ahead- making a grocery list is just the start. For the last couple years I’ve created sort of an itinerary of my tasks and necessary prep work I want to accomplish on the days leading up to Thursday…this is super helpful in staying organized, especially if you are entertaining a crowd. (example: Tuesday Night: go to liquor store for beer, wine and bourbon Wednesday Morning: Whole Foods Wednesday Evening: make pie crust for strawberry rhubarb pie, make strawberry-rhubarb filling, make chicken liver pate, etc.)

2. Think about your food lineup for the entire day- some people focus on the dinner, but Thanksgiving is generally an all-day affair.  So make sure you have snacks and appetizers ready to roll for your hungry guests and family members. If you are like me and like to start the party early, make sure you are combating the booze with food (and also water!).

3. For dinner, follow the 1-2-5-2 rule- These numbers may seem confusing so let me explain!

1 roast or protein (ex: duck fat roasted turkey breast with a cranberry-apple-bacon stuffing, herb-crusted prime rib, etc.)

2 sauce options (ex: giblet gravy, cranberry sauce, horseradish sauce, etc.)

5 side items - that includes at least one green vegetable…whether or not you choose to cover that green vegetable in cheese or cook with pork fat is totally up to you! (example: bacon-roasted Brussels sprouts with caramelized onions, goat cheese-mashed potatoes, Yorkshire pudding, oyster stuffing, roasted asparagus with a lemon vinaigrette, etc.)

A traditional warm apple pie.

2 dessert options…this may seem extravagant but people love sweet things (just ask Sugar Dish!!). Also, some people prefer fruit flavors, while others prefer chocolate flavors (example: strawberry-rhubarb pie, Nutella and white chocolate bread pudding, pumpkin pie with a salted crust, etc.)

4. Stay ahead of clean-up- During my experience working in a professional kitchen, it became clear that good chefs/cooks kept their stations and workspaces clean. Do dishes, clean mixing bowls, and wipe cutting boards and counters as you go. This will also help to ensure that your end of the day cleanup will not be nearly as daunting.

5. Ask for help- Preparing a holiday meal can be a big undertaking…it’s totally fine to ask friends or relatives to bring an appetizer, side, drink and/or a dessert to share.

In closing I’d like to give a big thanks to Sugar Dish for “encouraging” me to contribute to her blog this week…now back to your regularly scheduled sugary programs. Wishing you all a happy and tasty Thanksgiving!

Our 2013 Thanksgiving place setting, compliments of Sugar Dish.
Each guest shared what we were thankful for during our meal.