As I mentioned in our Sunday newsletter yesterday, today I’m going to share a streamlined Thanksgiving menu for four. My reasoning is that there are thousands of full spread menus out there, but many of you are observing the holiday with just your nuclear families during this unusual year.
We’ll be sharing our Thanksgiving meal with our American neighbors and dividing the work between us, and eating a little earlier in the day than we normally do so as to leave time in the evening to talk with friends and family back in the States (we are six hours ahead of Eastern time).
Here’s our menu that includes our must-have family favorites, with links to the recipes:
- Turkey breast–when we have a larger group, we’ll deep fry a turkey in true Southern fashion. For a medium-sized group, you can cook a turkey breast. For a family of four, unless you truly love turkey leftovers, I recommend a roasted chicken.
- Mashed potatoes–my husband always makes these and uses an unconscionable about of butter, cream, salt, and pepper. I try not to watch so I don’t feel guilty when eating them!
- Green bean casserole–this is our favorite recipe; it’s much better than the recipe on the can of french fried onions. It’s also sized for four (I use an 8×8 pyrex dish).
- Macaroni and cheese–if you’ve been a reader for any length of time, you know that this is my family’s absolute favorite mac and cheese recipe, and I have to make it all the time. If you halve this recipe, it will be perfect for four in another 8×8 dish.
- Cranberry orange relish (recipe below)–this is kind of like a chutney and is always on our table at Thanksgiving. For a family of four, you can freeze half of it and then enjoy the rest at Christmas. This is my mother’s recipe so I always love to include it in our family’s celebration as a way to remember her.
- Rolls–these are optional in my opinion, especially if you already have mashed potatoes and macaroni & cheese on your table, but my kids always want me to make them. Here’s the recipe. You can also buy them for a shortcut!
Cranberry Orange Relish
This tart cranberry chutney is perfect with turkey or other poultry
Ingredients
- 1 bag fresh cranberries, washed
- 1 orange washed and quartered (leave peel on)
- 1 package cranberry jello (use orange if cranberry is unavailable)
- 1 cup sugar
Instructions
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Place half of the cranberries, half of the orange, half of the jello, and 1/2 c sugar in the bowl of a food processor and lightly pulse until orange and cranberries are in small pieces.
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Repeat with second half of ingredients. Stir entire recipe together in bowl and store in refrigerator.
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The flavors meld best if this is made a day or two ahead of time. It also freezes well if you have leftovers.
This is the verse I have on the big chalkboard in our front hallway; it seems perfect for this week:
“Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.” Psalm 100:4-5
We’ll be back on Wednesday; until then, thanks for stopping by.
