Thanksgiving Tips and Tricks
You did your shopping early, you got your invites out and you’ve already started laying out all your decorations; this year, you are prepared for an epic Thanksgiving. However, no matter how prepared you may be for turkey day, you know some big problem will pop up. But, no biggie! With the helpful tips below you’ll be able to smooth over any lumps or bumps that may come your way. Read on and enjoy!
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Want to be extra prepared for your Thanksgiving feast? Food Network[1] to the rescue! Check out their 10 tips to help you to save money, time and emergency this holiday. Get ready to eat, drink and enjoy!
1. Ice Chest As a Fridge
In the lead-up to the big feast, refrigerator real estate is precious. Clear out those space-hogging bottles of dressing and pickles, and stow them in the garage in a cooler filled with ice packs. Other genius plays with this wonder box: Use it to brine your turkey overnight (make sure to add plenty of ice). Or treat it like a warming drawer — it's insulated, after all. Line it with aluminum foil, add some folded towels and fill it with hot dishes as they come out of the oven. (Employ common sense here and don’t melt your cooler.)
2. Pennies As Pie Weights
To prevent your pie shell from puffing up during baking, experts recommend filling the bottom with pie weights, but you can also use dried beans, uncooked rice, gravel — even screws or pennies (just line the dough with foil first).
3. Aluminum Foil As a Roasting Rack
The point of a rack is to hold your bird above the pan so heat can circulate evenly. Who says it has to be made of wire or cost a lot of money? If you don't have the store-bought variety, crumple some sheets of foil into thick ropes and wrap them in coils on the bottom of your pan. Or go biodegradable and place the bird on a bed of halved onions, carrots and celery.
4. Slow Cooker As Mashed Potato Keeper
5. Measuring Cup As a Fat Separator
The secret to great gravy is skimmed — not greasy — pan drippings. If you're without a fat separator, pour your drippings into a large heatproof measuring cup and pop it in the freezer. As the drippings cool, the fat will rise to the top and solidify, making it easy to skim off with a spoon.
6. Thermos As a Gravy Warmer
If it works for minestrone, it'll work for your bourbon gravy. Decant to a gravy boat just before serving.
7. Salad Bar As a Sous Chef
Shave hours off your prep time by picking up ingredients from the supermarket salad bar that are already cleaned and ready to go — think chopped onions, trimmed beans, sliced bell peppers, hard-boiled eggs and even crumbled bacon.
8. Kitchen Cabinets As a Cookbook Stand
Minimize clutter in the kitchen, eliminate flipping back and forth, and protect that fancy computer tablet that you just know is going to get damaged in the cooking chaos by making copies and printouts of the recipes you'll be cooking for the feast. Then, on game day, take a note from FN food stylists and tape them at eye level to the doors of your kitchen cabinets. They'll be easy to read and follow, and you can make notes on the fly — and even arrange them in order of your cooking prep.
9. Chicken Broth As a Turkey Reviver
Overcooked the bird? Before you spirit that platter of dried-out breast meat to the table, drizzle it with a little warm chicken broth. It'll help moisten the meat and add flavor. This is also a good trick for perking up slices that have gone from room temp to cold.
10. Corkscrew As a Guest Deflector
To keep well-meaning family and friends out of the kitchen during the final flurry of cooking, come up with a few tasks they can do to help. Opening the wine, filling water glasses (which you have placed outside of the kitchen), hanging coats and herding children will all be appreciated — and will guarantee you time to focus when you need it most.
Make your Thanksgiving get together one to remember with the helpful tips above. But, once the party is over and everyone goes home danger can set in. Slippery turkey juice or Jell-O on the floor can cause an unplanned fall that could leave you hurt and unable to reach for help. With no one around to help, how will you ensure an accident doesn’t turn devastating? The answer is simple and it starts with three little words: Life Alert Protection. While wearing their lightweight, waterproof emergency pendant, you can summon an emergency medical response fast with just one touch of a button. No matter if you encounter a home invasion, a home fire or even a serious fall, Life Alert’s dispatch team will send you the proper authorities fast, 24/7. Fill up on great personal protection this Thanksgiving by getting Life Alert Protection today! Call 1-800-513-2934 for a free Life Alert brochure.
Works Cited:
1. “10 Sanity-Saving Thanksgiving Tips, Tricks and Hacks.” The Food Network. <https://www.foodnetwork.com/thanksgiving/thanksgiving-how-tos/sanity-saving-thanksgiving-tips-tricks-and-hacks >.