How to Host a Thanksgiving Dinner Party

If you’ve never hosted a Thanksgiving dinner party or you’re searching for tips to streamline the process, this guide provides helpful tips to prepare for the Holiday. Need help with planning? If the answer is yes, you’ve come to the right place! Learn how to host a stress-free Thanksgiving for the whole family.

Organizing your Thanksgiving Dinner Party

A Thanksgiving dinner party can be completely stress-free with good planning. It starts by taking a moment to go over your to-do list the week before Thanksgiving.

In addition, if you need help keeping your recipes in order use a recipe binder. Check out my tutorial to learn how to make a DIY recipe binder.

Plan your Thanksgiving Dinner menu. If you need a system to keep you on track, create a dinner schedule for Thanksgiving Day. A schedule will help you understand how long it takes to cook each dish. Also, the schedule provides enough time to finish cooking before dinner time. If possible, order your turkey a few weeks in advance. Of course, turkey is completely optional. Especially if you have a small amount of guests. Prime rib is another option. Remember to coordinate with your guests if they are bringing food.

Be aware of dietary restrictions like gluten-free, dairy-free, etc. Be aware of dietary restrictions like gluten-free, dairy-free, etc. Danielle Walker has several gluten-free cookbooks, including a cookbook for celebrations.

One of the most important things to do is to check your kitchen cabinets and refrigerator. Write down the recipes you plan to make for dinner. Create a grocery list with the ingredients you need. Vegetables, spices, turkey, brine, and herbs are a few items to look for at the supermarket.

Thanksgiving Party Invitations

To make a lasting impression, send invitations to your loved ones. Invitations serve as a reminder to your guests. Knowing how many people are attending the party in advance makes planning easier. You can find Thanksgiving invitation templates in Microsoft Word. Edit the template and have them printed at your local copy and print store.

Another option is to send an online invitation. This option saves travel time. Better yet, you can skip the trip to the Post Office!

Weekend Preparation

After you complete your shopping trip, you can focus on seasonal decor. Figure out which rooms you would like to decorate. There are some beautiful fall themes that you can incorporate into your decor. I recommend decorations with pumpkins, fall leaves, or autumn colors. However, there needs to be enough space for food and dinnerware. Seasonal decor is perfect for creating a warm and inviting atmosphere.

Next, choose dinnerware that matches your decor. Fall dish sets or white dinner plates work best. If possible, use serving dishes that you can bake in the oven. My favorites are ceramic pans, pie pans, and oven-safe ceramic bowls. In addition, you can bake side dishes like homemade macaroni and cheese in ceramic serving pans. These pans are both beautiful and functional.

If this is your first time hosting Thanksgiving, you may need to buy a dinnerware set. In addition, I like to add centerpieces or table runners to create a table setting fit for a Thanksgiving party. You can find beautiful yet affordable holiday tablecloths or dishes at HomeGoods and T.J.Maxx.

Once you have everything you need, it’s time to set the table. If you do this the weekend before Thanksgiving, you won’t have to worry about doing it during the holiday. To set the table, decide if you prefer a runner or tablecloth. If you want to display a centerpiece, you can use gourds or pumpkins. Another option is to use a dining table candle centerpiece.

Next, set the plates and decorative napkins on the table. Have enough silverware and glasses for each guest. Put the napkins in rings. All of these small details make a statement.

Next, set the plates and decorative napkins on the table. Have enough silverware for each guest. Set out enough glasses for everyone. Put the napkins in rings. All of these small details make a statement.

Three Days Before Thanksgiving Dinner

After setting the table, it’s time to add the final touches to the dining room. If you need to use a table extender, put it in a place that’s easy to find. Make sure you have enough chairs for each guest. You may need a kid’s table that’s low enough for them to reach.

Once you finish organizing the dining room, it’s time to finish decorating. Anything with leaves or autumn colors works well. If you have a fall-themed welcome mat or wreath, this is a great time to bring it out. Traditional Thanksgiving decor creates a cozy, comforting vibe that will make your family feel at home.

Another task to complete on Monday is washing the holiday dishes. You will be so glad that you did this ahead of time. This is especially important if you don’t have a dishwasher. I know from experience that hand washing and drying dishes can take a long time. Your holiday dinnerware set collects dust and other particles throughout the year. Remember to clean the dishes before your Thanksgiving dinner party.

Two Days before the Dinner Party

Tuesday is the first day of food preparation. Peeling and chopping vegetables takes a lot of time. It’s best to peel the potatoes at once. Chop them and store the potatoes inside an air-tight food storage container filled with water. I keep chopped potatoes in the fridge and cook them on the day of the Thanksgiving dinner party.

In addition, you’ll want to chop all the vegetables beforehand. This provides enough time to focus on cooking the main course on Thursday.

Next, remove anything that doesn’t need to be in the fridge. Eat your leftovers and move food into smaller containers or Ziplock bags. It’s essential to have enough space in your fridge.

If you plan to bake a cake for dessert, bake and freeze the cake layers ahead of time, or bake and decorate the cake ahead of time and freeze it. As long as you cover the entire cake with plastic wrap the cake will keep in the freezer. A pumpkin cake or spice cake is a delightful treat that can add a festive touch.

You can start working on homemade cookie dough a month before the party. You can make the cookie dough and freeze it in large Ziplock bags. I like to do this with chocolate chip and peanut butter cookies. After mixing the dough, use a cookie scoop to put the cookie dough into the bag. Then freeze it. Bake the cookies the day before or the day of Thanksgiving.

There is nothing better than freshly baked homemade cookies! Your family will enjoy every bite.

The Day Before Thanksgiving

No dinner party is complete without dessert. Figure out how long it’s going to take to make it. If your dessert requires a topping like caramel sauce, you should make it the day before. Store it inside a mason jar.

Most importantly, your guests will be excited to enjoy a sweet treat. Check to see how much refrigerator space you have. Another option is to make no-bake cookies or bread on Thanksgiving Day because they don’t require refrigeration. Fortunately, you’ll have more refrigerator space on the day of your Thanksgiving party because some family members take leftovers.

If your family is tired of eating pumpkin pie but still enjoys pumpkin flavor, you can make pumpkin cookies. In addition, you can also make pumpkin bread, cake, or cheesecake!

Another option is to make sweet potato pie instead. It’s delicious comfort food that will impress your family.

Season the turkey the day before Thanksgiving. This allows the turkey to absorb those flavors. If you have never roasted a turkey before, remember to remove the unnecessary parts inside of the turkey. Also, you can use a brine and rub kit to season the turkey.

If you have an air fryer, you can use it to roast nuts and vegetables. An air-fryer makes it possible to have fewer side dishes in your oven.

Thanksgiving Dinner Party

On the day of your Thanksgiving dinner party, start working on the main dish. Roast the turkey first because it takes the longest to cook. Also, the turkey takes up a lot of space in the oven. Cooking the turkey first will free up the oven space later in the day. Then start baking your side dishes like stuffing or casseroles.

Cranberry is a part of every traditional Thanksgiving. For better flavor, use frozen cranberries instead of canned ones.

I like to cook sweet potatoes in my Crock-Pot. It’s one of the easiest ways to cook them. Plus, you don’t need to use any special equipment like a potato masher. After you put the sweet potatoes in the Crock-Pot add your butter and spices. Cook on High for 3 hours. The potatoes may finish cooking before then.

In addition, you can also cook red potatoes the same way. Chop the potatoes into small pieces. Then add butter and season them to your liking.

While the potatoes are in the slow cooker you can focus on making the salad or green beans. When roasting green beans with the air fryer, remember to toss them in oil before transferring them to the basket.

Success Tip: After cooking your vegetables, use the keep warm feature on your Crock-Pot or Air Fryer.

Once everything is cooked, bring out serving dishes and silverware. Once dinner is served, you can finally enjoy eating that delicious Thanksgiving feast!

Thanksgiving Party Ideas

Here are some ideas for your party. You can give out special party favors to your guests. The party favors can be a simple gift your guest can take home. Treats like bags of specialty popcorn, candy, or holiday dessert jars.

In addition, remember to create a great playlist to keep the party going strong. Here are a few more party ideas that you can use. After handing out party favors to your guests, you can have everyone pull out a name from a Secret Santa jar. Your guests will have something exciting to bring to your next holiday party!

Feel free to take the festivities outdoors. Set up a projector in your backyard so everyone can watch a good movie.

Thanksgiving Hot Cocoa Bar

Finally, the last Thanksgiving party idea is to create a hot cocoa bar for your guests. To create a hot cocoa bar, search for the best spot in the kitchen to set up. Usually, it’s easier to set it up near a coffee machine or tea kettle.

Next, place a few coffee mugs on the counter or a mug shelf. Then put marshmallows, crushed candy canes, and hot cocoa mix into separate jars. The hot cocoa bar will create a warm and cozy atmosphere for your Thanksgiving get-together. These special touches will leave a lasting impression.

Now you know how to host a spectacular Thanksgiving dinner party!

To discover more cookie recipes to make for Thanksgiving, try making these brown sugar cinnamon cookies.