Full Thanksgiving Menu Guaranteed to Get Everyone Around the Table!

Full Thanksgiving Menu Guaranteed to Get Everyone Around the Table!

Dearests,
​
Thanksgiving is my holiday.  In my family we have always split up the big holidays between us, each of us having a huge dinner and gathering at our houses and mine was Thanksgiving.  I have since moved away to live the expat life in a foreign country but I brought the tradition with me. Now every year I throw a huge Thanksgiving celebration with our friends even though Thanksgiving is not a local tradition and everyone loves it! So, with years of experience under my belt and many different kinds of pallets to please, I can confidently say that I have mastered a Thanksgiving menu that is sure to please and bring everyone you love around the table.  In fact, we now struggle to fit everyone into our place that wants to come over for Thanksgiving dinner.
 
This year, I am going to share with you the menu that I use along with all of my go-to recipes (even my super secret personal recipes I have developed ?) so that you too can create a Thanksgiving meal that is sure to impress.   

Full Thanksgiving Menu:
 
Appetizers:
Taco Dip
Sundried Tomato-Bacon Dip
Veggies & Dip 

Main Course:
Turkey
Pulled Pork
Mashed Potatoes
Perogies
Glazed Carrots
Caesar Salad
Corn
Gravy
Buns
 
Dessert:
Pumpkin Pie
Mini Apple Pies
Cheese & Bread 

Drinks:
Sparkling Wine 
Red & White Wine
Beer
Water (Still & Sparkling)

You can download a free copy of the full menu for you to use for your Thanksgiving meal to make it that extra bit special.  Get it HERE. 

Menu Preview

So let's get started, we have a lot to prepare!

Appetizer Recipes:

I serve the appetizers with cut up pieces of fresh baguette from the local bakery and tortilla chips on the side for dipping.
 
Taco Dip:
Ingredients:

• 1 Cream Cheese
• 1 Large Container Sour Cream
• 1 small container Cottage Cheese
• 1 Package Taco Seasoning
• Shredded Iceberg Lettuce
• Tomatoes - Diced
• Green & Red Pepper - Diced
• 1 Large Block Cheddar Cheese - Shredded
• Taco Chips for Dipping

 
Directions:

• Beat cream with the cottage cheese, adding sour cream to make a nice creamy mixture (usually 1/2 to 3/4 of the large sour cream I use).
• Add just enough of the taco seasoning to taste and mix in.
• Spread Mixture across the bottom of a serving platter.
• Spread a layer of shredded lettuce over top.
• Then Top with other vegetable toppings (you can add more and different veggies if you like)
• Finish with layer of shredded cheese.
• Dip Taco Chips & Enjoy!

 
Sundried Tomato-Bacon Dip:
Ingredients:

• 7 slices of bacon
• 1/2 a 65oz. Container of Garlic Herb Cream Cheese (About half a cup)
• 1/3 Cup Mayonnaise
• 1 Container (8 0z) sour cream
• 1/3 Cup Drained oil-packed Sundried Tomatoes, Patted Dry and Chopped
• 1 tablespoon + 1/2 teaspoon Chopped Fresh Parsley
• 1 tablespoon prepared horseradish
• 1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

 
Directions:

• Cook bacon until crisp and drain on paper towel
• In a bowl whisk cream cheese with mayo until smooth and blended then add sour cream. 
• Stir in sundried tomatoes, parsley, horseradish and pepper flakes.
• Crumble bacon (Reserve 1 tablespoon for top of dip)
• Stir in bacon.
• Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.
• Sprinkle with the remaining bacon and the extra 1/2 teaspoon of parsley and serve.

 
Veggies & Dip:
Easy to put together and a must for your health conscious friends and family. 
 
Ingredients:

• 1 Bag Baby Carrots
• 1 Container Cherry Tomatoes
• 1 Red Bell Pepper
• 1 Yellow Bell Pepper
• 1 Cucumber
• 1 Bundle Of Broccoli
• 1 Large Tub of Sour Cream
• 1 Package of Onion Soup Mix

 
Directions:

• Wash all the vegetables and cut the bell peppers and cucumber into strips.  Cut the broccoli into small bite sized florets. Arrange all of the vegetables onto a serving platter of your choice leaving space in the middle for the bowl of veggie dip.
• Mix the onion soup mix with the sour cream, transfer to a bowl and put in center of vegetable platter.
  • Note* You could use ranch, Italian or vegetable mix instead of the onion soup mix if you prefer.  If you want to make this healthier without losing the taste you can replace the sour cream with Greek yogurt.

Sparkling Wine:

• We offer all of our adult guests a class of cold sparkling wine upon arrival.  Our favorite kind to serve is Cremant Sparkling Wine.
  • Note* Most groceries have non-alcoholic sweet sparkling wine for kids that you could also serve the younger guests. 

I always have all the appetizers set out and ready with napkins, paper or small serving plates for when the guests arrive so that they can already beginning snacking as they chat with the other guests.
 
 
Main Course:
 
Timing here is the key with so much food going out especially since you will be eating the meal family style. 
 
A Couple of Tips to Start*

• I always prepare the pulled pork a day ahead and re-heat. 
• The perogies I make from scratch so I prepare these well before as well so it is just about cooking them.
• I start cooking the Turkey very early in the morning on the day of and then re-heat (if needed) on low heat in the oven ahead of serving. We also carve it ahead of the guests arrival to make service faster and easier.
• I cut and prep all vegetables and have them ready to go in the pots to cook before the guests arrive so its just the finishing touches required.
• I set up a food service table apart from the main eating areas so that everyone can get the food buffet style before sitting down to eat.  This gives you more space on the table, it prevents spilling accidents and saves time.  On the eating table you can leave the basics like, butter, buns, salt & pepper, cranberry sauces etc. for convenience.

 Now onto the main course. 
 
Turkey:
I have tried so many different Turkey recipes and the best hands down that I use every year comes from Gordon Ramsey.  The long resting time he suggests may throw you off but trust me, it's a game changer ensuring a moist & delicious turkey every time!!!!!  See recipe below:

My Secret Pulled Pork Recipe:
There has not been a person that hasn't asked me for this recipe after trying it.  I developed this after many different trials and variations myself.  Now my closest friends are using this recipe themselves.  I don't usually share this with a lot of people but I am going to make an exception this year as it is just too good not to share. 
 
Ingredients:

• 1 Pork Shoulder Roast (Size Dependent on amount of Guests) This recipe is for 4KG Roast
• 4 bay leaves
• 5-6 cloves of garlic (Whole)
• 2 onions (Chopped into slices)
• 1 red chili pepper (Minced)
• 1 large can chopped tomatoes with herbs
• half a bottle of red wine
• half a pint of chicken stock mixed with paprika to taste and about 1/1/2 cups of ketchup
• rock salt and fresh ground pepper to coat the roast

 
Directions:

• In a large roasting pan add all the ingredients except the roast and mix together.
• Stab the roast with a knife generously all over to add more pockets for the flavor to cook into.  Then coat generously with the salt and pepper all over rubbing in with your hands.
• Place the roast into the other ingredients in the pan.  The juices should surround and almost cover the pork. 
• Cook 7-10 hours on low heat (150 degrees) in oven
• Shred pork and take off fat
  • Note* You really need to take your time here to shred into small string like pieces using two forks and make sure to remove all the fat.  This is a long process but worth it.  It usually takes me about 45 mins for a 4KG roast.
• In parallel, take all the cooking juices from the roasting pan and pass through a sieve, and into a pot squishing out all the flavors.  
• Boil on high until concentrated and reduced by about half. Mix cornstarch or potato starch (Approx 1-2 Tablespoons depending on thickness) with some water and mix in until you have reached your desired thickness. Start with less at first and then add more until you reach the sauce consistency you like best.
• Coat the shredded meat in the sauce.
• Enjoy!

 
Mashed Potatoes:
 
Ingredients:

• Large bag of high starch potatoes for mashing
• 2 Cups of Milk
• 4 Sprigs of Thyme
• Whole Nutmeg
• 1/2 Cup of Butter
• Salt & Pepper to Taste

 
Directions:

• Peel, wash and chop into small 1-inch pieces the bag of potatoes and place in large pot.  Cover with water and add about a teaspoon of rock or sea salt. 
• Bring to a boil and cook potatoes through.  You know they are cooked when knife can be easily inserted into potato. Approx 30-40 mins.
• While potatoes are cooking, gently warm the milk in a pot with thyme sprigs.
• Drain potatoes and pass through a ricer or a food mill and add a grating of nutmeg and salt and pepper to taste and add the milk and butter. Mix together using an electric beater until smooth.  Check seasoning and adjust as needed.
• Enjoy!

 
 
Perogies:
This recipe has sentimental value to me as it was passed down to me from my Baba.  Again this one takes quite a bit of time to prepare.  I usually do it up to even a few weeks ahead of Thanksgiving and then freeze the perogies and cook them from frozen the day of.
 
Ingredients:

• 5lb bag of potatoes
• Half a Large Block of Cheddar Cheese (Approx 450 Grams)
• Tablespoon of Butter
• 4 Cups of Flour
• Teaspoon of salt
• Pepper to taste
• 2 Cups of Water

Topping - Optional:

• 4 onions
• 3 packages of bacon
• Large Tub of Sour Cream

 
Directions:

• Peel, wash and chop into small 1-inch pieces the bag of potatoes and place in large pot.  Cover with water and add about a teaspoon of rock or sea salt. 
• Bring to a boil and cook potatoes through.  You know they are cooked when knife can be easily inserted into potato. Approx 30-40 mins.
• In parallel to the potatoes cooking make the dough by mixing the flour, butter, salt and pepper together and slowly adding in the water while mixing the dough with your hands.  Do this until mixed together well and mold into a large ball.
• When potatoes finished cooking, shred the cheese and add into the hot potatoes add some salt and pepper to taste and mash together using a potatoes masher until well mixed and a smooth consistency is achieved.
• Then on a floured surface roll the dough using a rolling pin into a thin layer (Approx 2mm thick), and using a large cup or pastry cutter cut the dough into rounds.  Saving the excess dough by molding it back into a ball and rolling out and cutting into rounds again until all dough is used.
• Shape the filling into little balls to place onto the rounds, fold dough in half and shape the perogies, pinching the edges of the dough to ensure that the filling is enclosed and won't come out during cooking.
• To finish you just boil the perogies until cooked through
  • Note* As mentioned, I freeze mine so I can prep ahead. To freeze make sure that you place the perogies into one layer on a baking sheet and that they are separated.  Put them into the freezer and bring them to freezing then you can put them all together into a freezer bag or airtight container to freeze all together.  Otherwise they will stick together and will fall apart when you go to cook them.
  • I boil these even from freezing until they are cooked through and then I like to fry them for a couple mins on both sides in a pan with a bit of olive oil to brown them and add flavor and texture.
  • I also make a topping to go with the perogies by chopping the onions into small pieces and cooking them with a generous amount of olive oil on low and slow in a pan until cooked through.  While in parallel cutting up the bacon into small bite size pieces and frying until crispy and draining the fat.
  • Then top perogies with onions, bacon and sour cream and devour!

 
Glazed Carrots:
This recipe is also a big hit with the guests and the good news is that this one is fast and easy to make!
 
Ingredients:

• 1 Large Bag of Carrots
• 3 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
• Half a Cup of Salted Butter
• Salt & Pepper to Taste

 
Directions:

• Wash, peel and chop the bag of carrots into small rounds and place into a pot.
• Cover carrots with water and add about a teaspoon of your favorite rock salt.  Bring to a boil until cooked through, when you can easily insert a knife into the carrots.  Approx 20 mins.
• Drain the carrots and put back into the pot
• Add the brown sugar, butter and salt to taste and mix together.
• Enjoy!

Caesar Salad:
This one is also easy as I cheat and buy store bought dressing.  I also prep the lettuce, bacon and cheese in advance so all I need to do at dinner time is mix with the dressing and serve:
 
Ingredients:

• 2 Large Bags of Romaine Lettuce Heads
• 2 Packs of Bacon
• Half a Parmesan Triangle - Shredded
• 2 Packages of Favorite Croutons
• 1-1 1/2 large Caesar Salad Dressing Bottles

 
Directions:

• Wash, dry and chop the romaine lettuce into bite sized pieces.
• Chop the bacon into small pieces, cook until crispy and drain fat.
• Shred the cheese
• Add Lettuce, bacon, cheese and croutons to a large bowl and when ready to serve add dressing to your taste, mix and enjoy.

 
Corn:
I just use frozen corn and follow the package directions to cook.  I add a bit of butter and salt at the end to add flavor before serving.
 
Gravy:
I use the gravy from the turkey as per the instructions from Mr Ramsay.  I put the gravy in a gravy boat to serve on the side so it can be added to the turkey or the potatoes as desired.
 
Buns:
I just buy the freshest looking buns I can find from the bakery the morning of the dinner.  I heat on low in the oven until they are just warm ahead of serving.  I put them in a bowl with a tea towel underneath and covering to keep them warm as long as possible.
 
Drinks:

• Red & White Wine - We buy several bottles of both red and white wine to serve to our guests and go with whatever is our favorite at that time.  For white we tend to use a Riesling as it is nice and light and pairs well with everything.  And for a red with go with a Merlot which a little more deep and flavorful.
• We always have jugs of both still and sparkling water available on the tables with some cut lemon and lime rounds and a couple of sprigs of mint inside. 
• We have a couple different types of sodas also available on hand for the kids or adults not drinking should they want some.

 
Desserts:
 
Both of the following pie recipes I make a day ahead to save time.
 
Pumpkin Pie:
On this recipe I also cheat.  I usually just buy the pie filling and follow the recipe that is on the back of the can.  But it always turns out delicious and the guests love it.  To go with the pie I also buy some whipping cream which I prepare earlier in the day by beating until thick with electric beaters along with some icing sugar and vanilla to taste just enough to convince it that its sweet.
 
Mini Apple Pies:
This recipe is a new addition from last year's dinner but they turned out so good that I will definitely add them again.  This recipe I got from Pinterest and they just look so cute! And they are delicious.  Get the Recipe HERE.

Cheese Assortment:
For the cheese we just buy a mixture of our favorites and cut them into small sized pieces.  We then arrange them on a platter with some grapes, olives, nuts and crackers to serve.  We also cut another baguette to serve on the side.

There you have it, my full Thanksgiving Menu. 
 
I promise you that your guests will love this menu and so will you.  It is sure to bring back all your loved ones around the table every year and that is really the point, to have a wonderful long evening of food and fun with the ones you love!
 
If you want to get the full printable menu and recipe cards for free so that you can use them again and again like I do click HERE and share this with a friend who may also love this, trust me they will thank you!
 

Free Recipe Card Preview ~ 16 Printable Recipes in Total

It is a lot of work to put together but with some planning and prepping ahead it will start to come out like clock work.  And for the one time that it happens per year, I really find that I enjoy putting in all the effort to please and delight those that are closest to me and show them just how much I care about them!
 
Please let me know in the comments how you and your guests liked the recipes and how your Thanksgiving Dinner went.  I really want to connect so please don't hesitate to comment below or email me with any questions that you might have, I would love to hear from you.
 
Happy Thanksgiving! And….
 
Design Your Life.  Be Authentic.  Be You.  Be Sharp.
 
With Love.
​

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Sources:

• Follow Gordan Ramsay on YouTube ~ https://youtu.be/XO5DF8soxwM 
• Key Ingredient. "Mini Apple Pies". https://www.keyingredient.com/recipes/628903842/mini-apple-pies/