Dealing with the first Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is less than two weeks away, and I am loosing my mind. Its not that I'm busy, or intimidated, just the opposite. This Thanksgiving well be the fourth one Nicole(the better half) and I have hosted since becoming contributing members of society, and we've cooked a whole turkey at least half a dozen times. I consider us a well oiled machine, and last year we hosted my mother, a woman who has basically prepared the bulk of T-day meals on her own for the past fifteen years. She was amazed at how independent Nicole and I were, and sat in the corner feeling like she was somehow letting the universe down by not being busy. I loose my mind over Thanksgiving not because of stress, but at the excitement of putting a ridiculously good meal together for some friends and watching them stuff themselves silly. Its one of those special events, like Superbowl or the yearly Crayfish boil hosted by Paige and Jeff, where we all go overboard.

I know many of us younger folks who are far from home find ourselves hosting our very own Orphan Holidays, and are intermediated by the shear mass of that infant-like 15 pound bird thawing in the sink, and the fear of holding a poor substitute for how Mom does things. But over the past several years Nicole and I have managed to reign in the meal to something that is easy to time, provides little stress, and is relatively light on the wallet. It just takes some planning and restraint, and expects your friends to pull a little bit of the weight. Here are some tips for making your first Thanksgiving a manageable affair. I'll follow up with another entry detailing a great turkey recipe.

• Roast a Chicken: Not necessarily for the Thanksgiving meal (though a good idea for five people or less), but sometime before hand. Its hard to know where to begin with something so large and unprocessed like a turkey, and while a chicken is not quite the same thing I think it helps get over some of the intimidation factor. Roasting a whole chicken helps you realize what goes into preparing a big piece of meat, builds confidence, and makes you think about timing. And is just a good skill to have.
• Bet on Your Friends: Trying to cook every little side dish and dressing yourself on top of the big bird is really hard. and most apartment dwellers will run out of pots, pans, and space before they get halfway through the meal. Ask that your guests bring their own stuff, so you can focus on the big ticket items like the bird, mash potatoes, and gravy. Everyone has specific dishes from their family's holiday table, and its really cool to share these traditions with one another.
  
• Turkey Rules: Chances are you never have had to shop for a turkey. While I'll get to the recipe in another post, there's some tips for grabbing the right size bird. Frozen is fine, just make sure you have several days to let it thaw in the fridge (or run cold water over it for long time). I go with about a pound and a half of turkey per person. Eight ounces is a generous protein serving, but you have to account for the bird's bones, left overs, and gluttons. Another rule of thumb for guessing the cooking time (using my method) is 15-20 minutes for every pound. You want to yank the bird out when you have an internal temperature of 155 degrees Fahrenheit, and the bird will continue to cook the last 1o degrees to the FDAA poultry guideline of 165. Butterball has a fancy site if you can stomach adver-info, found here.
• Got the Gear: Make sure you have enough plates, glasses, forks, knives, etc. to hook up all your guests (unless you're going for a medieval theme). If not, go plastic or get cheap stuff from a place like Target or Ikea. Beyond that, you're going to want an Instaread thermometer, a sharp knife at least 8" long, a big cutting board, one or two long pairs of tongs, a cookie sheet, oven mitts, and one of those throwaway aluminum roasting pans. These are the essentials, and I'm sure you can borrow, steal, or jerry-rig anything else you need.
• Relax: Get drunk, eat too much, have fun. If it is a complete disaster, so what? You've got a funny story and why don't your friends offer to host if they could do better. Perfection is for trophy wives and Martha Stewart, but Thanksgiving is all about giving into your inner fat bastard with friends and family.