Okay, so the big day is here. You've got to get your dinner for 8 or 10 people together. Hopefully you prepared everything ahead of time according to schedule, and now it's just a matter of putting all those things together. If not...good luck.
This schedule is assuming a late lunch at around 2-3 pm. You can adjust timing according to what time you want to serve your meal. The pivotal part is the turkey and when it reaches a temperature of 170 degrees in the deepest part of the thigh. That will determine your dinner time and the timing of most of the other dishes.
8 a.m. - Rise and shine. If you haven't made your pies yet, hop to it!
9 a.m. - Preheat your oven to 500 degrees. Rinse and pat your turkey dry. MAKE SURE YOU REMOVE THE GIBLET BAG! The follow the additional directions below.
9:15 a.m. - Prepare the giblets for your gravy, if desire. See recipe link below. This takes time, so be sure to prep the giblets now for the preparation of the gravy later on in the day.
9:30 a.m. - Place turkey in the oven. Mix dressing ingredients and put in crock, turn on high.
10:00 a.m. - Turn the oven temp down to 375 degrees.
10:30 a.m. - If you're using the upside down method, flip your turkey breast side up now.
10:35 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. - Relax with a glass of wine and your family. Make your plan of attack for Black Friday.
12:30 p.m. - Take the rolls out of the fridge to rise (or if you didn't make them yesterday, make them now).
12:35 p.m. - Go back and relax some more (if you made your rolls ahead of time).
1:00 p.m. - Check your turkey temp with a meat thermometer. Shouuld register 170 degrees in the deepest part of the thigh. If not, keep cooking and check in 30 minutes.
1:30 p.m. - Check your turkey again. If it's ready, remove it from the oven. If not, keep baking until temp is reached. Then place your sweet potatoes in the oven. Reduce the oven temp to 350 and bake per recipe.
1:35 p.m. - Put potatoes on to boil. Cook for 20 minutes or until fork tender. Mash per directions below. Check on the dressing. If it's getting set in the center, like a custard pie, turn it to low to keep warm.
1:45 p.m. - Melt 3 T each butter and olive oil in a large skillet. Add the green beans, the sliced onion and mushrooms to pan. Sprinkle with 1 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp black pepper. Saute for about 10 minutes or until onions are translucent and beans are crunchy/tender. Remove to serving plate and keep warm.
1:55 p.m. - Drain potatoes. Mash with 1/3 cup milk, 1/3 cup cream, 1/2 stick butter. Salt and pepper to taste. Adjust wet ingredients per your desire.
2:05 p.m. - Remove the sweet potatoes from the oven and put the rolls in. Bake per directions.
2:10 p.m. - Make gravy per recipe below.
2:15 p.m. - Make sure you have everything out on the buffet table. You should have prepared: cranberry sauce, dressing, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, turkey, rolls and pies.
2:25 p.m. - Have everyone serve themselves, buffet style.
3:25 p.m. - Make everyone else clean up, and you sit down with a nice glass of wine and rest. You've had a busy day.
Giblet Gravy: I never make the stuff, I get the Campbell's gravy in a jar. But here's a link to a recipe that's pretty much exactly like my mom makes, so if your Thanksgiving turkey and dressing just isn't the same without giblet gravy, give this a try.
http://southernfood.about.com/od/gravyrecipes/r/bl60722b.htm
TIPS FOR YOUR TURKEY:
I like to bake my turkey upside down for the first hour. It keeps the turkey breast very moist, but it's not always that pretty. So instead, this time we're just going to rub the turkey all over with olive oil. Sprinkle with black pepper, seasoned salt and garlice powder (if available). The to seal the skin and keep the bird moist, we're placing 1/2 stick of butter inside the cavity and baking at 500 degrees for the first 30-45 minutes. This should sear the skin so that the buttery steam moistens the breast from the inside out. A 16 lb bird shouuld fully cook in 3.5 to 4 hours, but always time your sides to your bird. Nothings worse than having all your sides turn cold because your turkey wasn't done in time.
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