It is possible to put together a Simple Thanksgiving Dinner Menu, cook the whole meal in one day, and have everything taste delicious!
Follow these steps to see how I set up my menu for the day and the timeline that I followed to make sure we had a simple, but tasty Thanksgiving meal!
Weeknight-easy
Beginner-friendly
You’ll Learn: How to simplify traditional holiday cooking and feel confident pulling off an approachable dinner
Worth It: Real-life tested, this menu lets you enjoy the day
Bonus: Scheduled pancake break
Step 1: Choose your Thanksgiving dinner recipes
I wanted to keep my Thanksgiving dinner menu very simple so I stuck to the basics. I used some of my own recipes, but many are from other blogs.
- Dry Brine Turkey with Herb Butter – my go to turkey recipe for a moist, juicy and delicious turkey!
- For a smaller Thanksgiving I recommend my Slow Cooker Turkey Breast with Gravy or learn How to Roast a Turkey Breast in the oven
- Make Ahead Turkey Gravy – save yourself time and stress on Thanksgiving day by making this super flavorful gravy a few days early!
- Mashed Potatoes – My recipe for Easy Creamy Mashed Potatoes made in one pot! OR save yourself time and skip the peeling with this Mashed Red Potato recipe
- Stuffing – a classic Recipe by The Girl Who Ate Everything or for something a little more exciting try my Italian Sausage Stuffing recipe.
- Apple Cranberry Sauce – easy, fast and delicious!! I also like to serve a can of jellied cranberry
- Brussels Sprouts – My recipe for Crispy Maple Bacon Brussels Sprouts or this Cheesy Brussels Sprouts recipe
- Charcuterie Board Appetizer – Follow my guide to make an epic charcuterie board! or use this guide to make a Fall Charcuterie Board
To accompanying this simple Thanksgiving dinner menu I asked my guests to please bring alcohol and dessert. If you want to add some other items to your menu I recommend the following:
- Many people like to serve macaroni and cheese at their Thanksgiving tables this One Pot White Cheddar Mac and Cheese is SO creamy and delicious and simple to make. I also always make this Classic Baked Macaroni and Cheese.
- Prepare Apple Cider Sangria or Cranberry Kentucky Mules for a festive fall cocktail to serve with your appetizers
- For an easy dessert that will be a hit with all of your guides try these Pumpkin Pie Bars or this Easy Apple Tart with Caramel Drizzle
Step 2: Gather the Ingredients for your Simple Thanksgiving Dinner Menu
I got our 12.85 lb turkey from Butcher Box. The rest of the ingredients were easy to grab from local grocery stores.
Then, I made sure to double check my ingredients first thing in the morning and sent Amy out with a list of anything that I missed.
Be sure to defrost your turkey a few days prior to cooking! It took our bird about two and a half days in the refrigerator to defrost.
You should allow 24 hours of defrost time per 5 lbs of turkey.
Step 3: Plan it out
Beyond picking my recipes and gathering my ingredients there were a couple of other things that I did to prepare for cooking my simple Thanksgiving dinner.
First, I chose which serving dishes I wanted to assign to each dish. Then, I figured out roughly how long it would take to cook each item so that I would have enough oven space and so that the turkey would be cooked in time.
My to do lists are my lifesavers. I made lots of lists to prepare to cook our Thanksgiving dinner. Then, on the actual day I was ready to get down to business and cook!
Step 4: Cook your Thanksgiving Meal
- 7AM – CUBE BREAD FOR STUFFING AND PLACE IN THE OVEN TO DRY IT OUT
- 8AM TO 10AM – PREP ANY OTHER SIDE DISHES
- This is when I roast brussles sprouts and make mashed potatoes. Those are 2 sides that I don’t like making ahead of time.
- 8AM TO 12PM – BAKE STUFFING AND ANY SIDES YOU PREPPED THE DAY BEFORE
- Cover baked sides tightly with foil after baking and leave at room temperature so they can be easily warmed later.
- 11:30AM – PREP TURKEY TO BAKE
- Fill with oranges, onions and herbs. Rub herbed butter under the skin.
- 12PM TO 1PM – DEPENDING ON ITS SIZE – TURKEY GOES INTO THE OVEN
- 1PM TO 4:30PM – BABYSIT THE TURKEY, BASTING REGULARLY
- This is a good time to get yourself showered, dressed and ready. Assign someone else to babysit your turkey while you get ready.
- 3PM – PUT OUT APPETIZERS
- 3:30PM – GUESTS ARRIVE
- 4PM – START WARMING UP STOVETOP ITEMS
- I warm gravy, mashed potatoes, creamed corn and maple bacon brussels at this time.
- 4:30PM ISH – TURKEY COMES OUT OF THE OVEN ANY SIDES THAT NEED TO BE WARMED GO INTO THE OVEN
- Let turkey rest for 20 minutes before carving. Arrange on a platter and garnish with fresh herbs.
- Place sides in the oven to warm. These sides should be fully cooked and just need warming.
- 5PM – DINNER IS SERVED!
Step 5: Enjoy!!!
The last step is pretty simple! Enjoy the meal that you worked on all day.
I hope this helps you plan for a simple and delicious Thanksgiving dinner with loved ones! Remember that its all about giving thanks and spending time with those you love.
You can find the full recipe below. If you make this recipe, please rate and review it in the comments, or share it with me on Instagram!
Email Recipe for Later
Recipe
Simple Thanksgiving Dinner Menu
Ingredients
- 1 turkey
Instructions
- Select the recipes from the list above and follow instructions as written.
- Use the timeline to help you plan thanksgiving day
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
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