Not long after getting married, my Hubby and I started celebrating Practice Thanksgiving.
What’s Practice Thanksgiving?
It’s a family tradition that we made up.
But there were good reasons for us to celebrate this tradition. And I think you might want to adopt a Practice Thanksgiving for your family, too.
Here’s why.
You Should Try The New Tradition of Practice Thanksgiving
The Best Pans
After lots of practice cooking, I finally realized that the very best pans are these. Don’t let the low price fool you. These things last for years and years.
Since I started using this type of cookware, my food comes out better than ever!
What Is Practice Thanksgiving?
Each year, on the Thursday before Thanksgiving (or, to be honest, the day we find that we have the fewest sports and activities), we have Practice Thanksgiving at our home.
We spend Thanksgiving Day with our bigger families, and this gives us a way to share a special meal with just our kids.
We have our favorite Thanksgiving foods and share what we’re thankful for.
But there are other reasons we love to have Practice Thanksgiving.
The Price Is Right!
First of all, turkey is cheap this time of year. When we were first married, stores would literally give you a free turkey if you spent $10 on groceries.
And newlyweds love them some free groceries!
(Oh, let’s be honest. Everyone loves free groceries!)
You can grab a couple of turkeys at a great price.
And if your family is holding a Thanksgiving Pot Luck dinner, someone else might be making the turkey already. Which means you can enjoy cheap meat at your meal this week…and free meat a the meal on Thanksgiving!
By the way, this Thanksgiving Pot Luck Signup Sheet will make that meal a lot smoother!
You Get To Practice (Duh)
You might not need practice eating the delicious foods of Thanksgiving.
But a newlywed wife sure needs some practice on her recipes!
Who wants to show up to the family meal with a dish you haven’t tried before…only to learn that the recipe was terrible (because no one would eat it!).
Embarrassing!
Instead, try the new recipe in the comfort of your own home.
You and your family might love it…or it could become a joke you’ll always remember. 😉
The Menu
Turkey (surprise, right??).
Here are a few pics to show you my secret trick to a super juicy bird:
Pinch up the skin near the open cavity.
Using kitchen shears like mine (or a knife, don’t cut yourself), cut slips in the skin only.
Run your finger up under the skin to loosen it away from the meat. This is where you’ll slide your herb butter.
Thanksgiving Turkey
This juicy, oven roasted turkey recipe is so easy…but they'll never know! Roast the perfect turkey this year with no special materials required!
Ingredients
- 10 lb turkey (This recipe should work without ingredient adjustments for most birds 8 to 14 pounds. Please note that the cooking time will change depending on size!)
- 1/4 c butter, softened
- 1/2 t salt
- 1/4 t pepper
- 1 t garlic powder
- 1 t onion flakes
- 1 t sage
- 1 t thyme
- 1 t rosemary
- 1 med pear or apple, halved
- 1 med onion, halved
- 2 cloves garlic, halved
Instructions
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Mix your butter with half of each of these seasonings: salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion flakes, sage, thyme, and rosemary together in a small bowl.
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Here's the secret to a juicy bird! Pinch up the skin attached to the breasts near the open cavity. Using a knife or kitchen shears, cut slits in the skin. Slide chunks of the butter beneath the skin in 2-4 different slits.
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If you like, you can cut slits on the other side of the turkey breast and add more butter there.
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Place your apple or pear halves, onion halves, and garlic cloves inside the turkey cavity.
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Sprinkle the rest of the seasonings over the top of the bird.
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Make a tinfoil tent over the bird.
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Bake your turkey at 325F for 15 minutes per pound. (That's 2 1/2 hours for a 10 lb bird.)
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Baste every 20-30 minutes.
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When there is just one hour left of bake time, remove the tinfoil for beautifully browned skin.
Mashed Potatoes
My Grandma’s Stuffing
Rolls (I like to make these ahead of time. I bake them for just 5 minutes so they keep their shape. After that, I flash freeze them on a cookie sheet. Then I don’t have to spend all day in the kitchen watching dough rise while I have so many other things to do!)
Carrots
Corn
Olives and Sweet Pickles
Cranberry Sauce from the can
Our family looks forward to these foods one week before Thanksgiving each year.
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A Thanksgiving Tradition
Practice Thanksgiving has become a tradition our whole family looks forward to each year.
And I love hearing what everyone is thankful for in our small family setting!
Want more ideas?
I still have to bring more food to our family potlucks on Thanksgiving Day. So I often turn to one of these tasty side dishes.
You will definitely want to check out 10 Amazing Side Dishes for Your Thanksgiving Pot Luck for a lot more tasty recipes.
What is a must have for your Thanksgiving meal?
I'm Jamie, and I want to help you afford a beautiful life with your family. 
I’ve always thought about doing a practice run! Great idea. I don’t think you can ever have too many meals with family where you eat good food and celebrate all we have to be thankful for.
This is actually quite brilliant! But, to me, mostly because of the “the rest of the family isn’t there” bit. Growing up, we used to go to my dad’s parents’ house for Thanksgiving and spend the whole day there with that side of the family. While there weren’t a lot of people, it was a very, very long day. Right before I went into high school, we moved far away from family, and had to start having Thanksgivings with just the three of us (my mom, my dad, and me). And Thanksgivings were better from there on out. More foods we actually wanted to eat, more things to keep ourselves occupied during the day along with making sure all the food would be done at the right time, and just…better. I don’t mind family, I really don’t, but I don’t like gatherings. So having a more “intimate” holiday was a fantastic thing.
Also, it meant we had lasagna for Thanksgiving one year, and that was awesome, too. xD
I’m not that fond of turkey so I rarely make it, even for the holidays. I’m definitely going to check out those side dishes for a potluck as that’s exactly what I’m doing for Thanksgiving.
Oh, do check them out. I’ve been craving those foods ever since I found those recipes!
I adore Thanksgiving dinner and would be very happy with any excuse to eat it more than once – and a practice run is always a good idea! I was lucky to have two Thanksgivings this year – we celebrate Canadian Thanksgiving in October (because I was born in Canada, although I now live in the UK) and our American friend invited us for Thanksgiving last Thursday. Love your menu – it sounds absolutely delicious. Thank you for being a part of the Hearth and Soul Hop, Jamie!