https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Wed, 24 Jun 2026 18:09:24 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-381424 Tue, 06 Nov 2012 12:37:39 +0000 lovehoneybee 381424@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Never by myself. When I was 15 me, my brother and his wife all cooked together (for some reason that year it was just the 3 of us and their baby). </p> <p>I had one year in my early 20s where my then-roommate (who was a chef) cooked, and every year since we've gone to DH's aunt's cabin on the Chesapeake Bay. She does the bulk of the cooking, but MIL and I have been slowly taking it over from her (she's thrilled). Last year I did all the breads and desserts and MIL did the potatoes (regular &amp; sweet potato), stuffing and cranberry sauce. This year I'll do breads and desserts and maybe bring another side or two, just have to figure out what... </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-381296 Tue, 06 Nov 2012 11:55:38 +0000 PrincessBaby 381296@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Last year was my first, but DH did the turkey...He has this infrared oil-less fryer and he "fries" the turkey in there and it's so good!!! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-381226 Tue, 06 Nov 2012 11:25:27 +0000 Alivoo01 381226@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Nope, but hubby claims he makes a mean turkey. We've been together for 6 years and I still have yet to see this turkey! haha!</p> <p>Hubby's uncle makes Thanksgiving lunch and we all go over there. We'll bring a dish to contribute, but normally, he has more than plenty of food as is! Then we go over to his Aunt's house and she's got her own thing going so we house hop while stuffing our faces at each place. Talk about food coma galore! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-381210 Tue, 06 Nov 2012 11:20:31 +0000 mrsjyw 381210@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Yep -- we host every year (not this year) and everyone brings something; but one year i made the turkey, stuffing, pumpkin pie, green bean casserole... it was a lot of work, but totally worth it! it turned out really well! :) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-381203 Tue, 06 Nov 2012 11:18:56 +0000 phdmommy 381203@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I did one year. It was so much work and preparation, but my family said it was one of the best turkeys ever! :) The only small catastrophe we had was the roasted pecans caught on fire :) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-381198 Tue, 06 Nov 2012 11:17:25 +0000 ladyfingers 381198@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Yep! Just for 4 people though :) I've cooked it 2 years in a row now, I love it but I still haven't quite mastered the turkey! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380888 Tue, 06 Nov 2012 09:50:35 +0000 BKCaribBaby 380888@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>This will be my third year in a row cooking Thanksgiving dinner. I started to realize that I wanted to eat food that I really liked, so I just started cooking it. We host in our tiny apartment, but I like to do it. It saves me from having to go to my in-laws. :) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380793 Tue, 06 Nov 2012 09:06:39 +0000 mamabolt 380793@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I did it for the first time last year! I loved it, would love to do it again but we are going to DH's aunt's this year. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380784 Tue, 06 Nov 2012 09:00:39 +0000 yoursilverlining 380784@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I cook Thanksgiving every year for a local home for homeless veterans; my mom hosts Thanksgiving every year and won’t cede power! </p> <p>IMO, it’s not *hard* to make a full Thanksgiving dinner on your own; but you do have to plan and map out everything. Stuffing can be made the night before, turkey you just throw in the oven and let the oven do the work, you can prep your potatoes the night before, cranberry sauce and pies can all be made several days ahead of time. I roast winter veggies (squash, yam, etc.) and prep those the night before and they roast at the same time the turkey cooks. I also make mac and cheese; which I prep the night before (shred the cheese and cook the noodles) and then just make the cheese sauce and put everything together in the morning. Green bean casserole can be put together the night before and just cooked the morning of. It’s not so daunting if you divide up your tasks. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380771 Tue, 06 Nov 2012 08:48:29 +0000 Adira 380771@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Yes! We did it for the first time last year! Although, we only made the turkey - everyone else brought food and helped make stuff. It turned out really well! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380766 Tue, 06 Nov 2012 08:44:19 +0000 mediagirl 380766@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Oh yeah. I cook almost every year unless we visit my parents, then Mom cooks. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380761 Tue, 06 Nov 2012 08:42:19 +0000 Smurfette 380761@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Nope! Grandma does the turkey and stuffing. Now that we have more people, my Uncle fries another turkey. We all bring a dish though. I can't imagine cooking for 30 alone. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380706 Tue, 06 Nov 2012 07:11:02 +0000 Bookish 380706@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@aprk: Thanks, I will! :)<br /> @babyjmama: Thank you! I was going to try a recipe that called for covering the turkey, these would be much easier to mess with. :) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380694 Tue, 06 Nov 2012 06:55:25 +0000 boiledpnut 380694@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I've cooked it several times. DH and I try to do a post-Thanksgiving meal for all our friends that didn't get a good dinner too. I love to cook, so it's a lot of fun for us. I'd love to fry a turkey this year, but I think DH wants to smoke one. We'll see what happens! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380667 Tue, 06 Nov 2012 06:10:43 +0000 heffalump 380667@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>No. My parents never did a big traditional thanksgiving. We have a big brunch with about 60 people so my mom will just get a premade turkey because she has no time to cook dinner, she has company over all day long, and we'd eat leftovers from brunch. </p> <p>Now we go over to my inlaws for dinner. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380621 Tue, 06 Nov 2012 01:09:46 +0000 BoogieBea 380621@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My parents never celebrated thanksgiving. We always went over to my parents' friends house and ate with them and all their relatives. Their kids thought we were actually one of entire cousins for a long time. Now, I celebrate with my husband's family and we all make a dish. My husband and I always make one of the turkeys. There's always 2. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380616 Tue, 06 Nov 2012 01:03:51 +0000 Mrs. Superhero 380616@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I roasted the turkey this year (Canadian, we already had thanksgiving) and it was deeelicious. I once did a whole dinner for my friends, but not a full turkey, just the breasts. So, I've done all the pieces but not at once? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380566 Mon, 05 Nov 2012 23:40:09 +0000 Mrs. High Heels 380566@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Yes - I love doing it!! I cook it every year! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380527 Mon, 05 Nov 2012 22:55:03 +0000 Mrs. Bee 380527@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>yes twice! the first time all by myself in college and i must say that it turned out fantastic! the second time my mom helped, and it was awesome. it was so much fun.... wish we had tons of family near so we could have thanksgiving together! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380493 Mon, 05 Nov 2012 22:27:07 +0000 Weagle 380493@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I cooked Thanksgiving dinner for all of my flatmates while I was studying abroad in Spain. It was fun to share our American holiday. I've never cooked the entire thing since. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380487 Mon, 05 Nov 2012 22:24:06 +0000 Arden 380487@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Yes. I've cooked it every year since I was 15. I'm the cook of my family, and the last three years I cooked it for both my family and the inlaws. This year it's just us and my grandparents though. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380480 Mon, 05 Nov 2012 22:17:53 +0000 Freckles 380480@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Yes, i did! Last year we used Alton Brown's method and while i'm not the biggest fan of his recipes, his method surprisingly worked! Never have i had a juicier turkey.</p> <p>I made turkey, rustic bread-leek-mushroom stuffing, cranberry sauce, garlic mashed potatoes, roasted yams and carrots, and a salad. Oh, and gravy from scratch...it was my first big turkey dinner ever...nothing canned or from a box! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380466 Mon, 05 Nov 2012 22:07:58 +0000 doodlepoodle 380466@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Bookworm: I highly suggest the bags that you can cook the turkey in, it's pretty fail safe! I can't remember what brand they are? Reynolds? Glad? Hmm..hang on...ah! Reynolds:<br /> <a href="http://compare.ebay.com/like/350627299220?var=lv&#038;ltyp=AllFixedPriceItemTypes&#038;var=sbar" rel="nofollow">http://compare.ebay.com/like/350627299220?var=lv&#038;ltyp=AllFixedPriceItemTypes&#038;var=sbar</a></p> <p>I will mix softened butter and lots of herbs, garlic and dried onion flakes then make that the rub for the turkey (inside and out) and it give it really awesome flavor! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380464 Mon, 05 Nov 2012 22:07:49 +0000 mrs. wagon 380464@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Made my first turkey last year! It was so successful, I made another one at Christmas!! </p> <p>We're usually Thanksgiving orphans so we have a bunch of other Thanksgiving orphans over, and usually I ask one of the foodies to take care of the turkey, but last year I decided to take it on myself. I was really really happy with the way it turned out. I used a Martha Stewart recipe that uses butter, white wine, and a cheesecloth. </p> <p>We also made apple pies-- Wagon Sr. is famous for his. (He cooks NOTHING else. Just apple pies and steaks on the grill.) Everything else was brought by our friends. I love a good potluck. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380459 Mon, 05 Nov 2012 22:05:46 +0000 doodlepoodle 380459@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Pepper: Same here! DH and I have hosted for the last 4 years, this is our 5th. I hope to continue this! </p> <p>It started because I worked at a bank and always had to work the day after Thanksgiving and didn't want to have to travel all over the state and our families get along just fine so it works out well for us. Oh, and I LOVE to cook and honestly the only person who is better than I am is my Dad and he doesn't want to do a big meal like that anymore so it guarantees that we get a kickass meal ;-) (if I do say so myself...) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380457 Mon, 05 Nov 2012 22:05:13 +0000 aprk 380457@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Bookworm: yay! You'll be great :) have fun </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380444 Mon, 05 Nov 2012 21:58:45 +0000 Bookish 380444@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@cram88: @aprk: first year for me, too! We're having 9 people over, so I'm pretty terrified! Crossing my fingers that I don't ruin the turkey!! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380438 Mon, 05 Nov 2012 21:56:24 +0000 Honeybee 380438@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We've done Thanksgiving dinner the last 7 years in a row. This is the first year we're not cooking Thanksgiving dinner (we'll be at my parents' housr instead) and I'm a little sad about it. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380433 Mon, 05 Nov 2012 21:54:43 +0000 Baby Boy Mom 380433@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Only once when we didn't go to family/friends. It was not super successful. :( </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/so-have-you-ever-cooked-thanksgiving-dinner#post-380426 Mon, 05 Nov 2012 21:48:42 +0000 littlecasita1122 380426@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We have hosted for the last two years so both our families can celebrate together and we don't have to choose which parents we're spending the holiday with. My in-laws are trying to convince us to let them host this year since we have LO now but I would still rather host and be at my own house instead of dealing with traveling! We had 14 at our house last year. Takes a lot of planning and prep work but I love it. </p>