T-Day dish dilemma
This year, my parents and older brother are flying out and my little brother is coming over too, along with my husband. That should be about it, so 6. Which isn't that many people. My dilemma is that my husband is VERY specific about what dishes he wants to have (childhood favorites) and my family has their favorites too. (None of which overlap on anyone's lists.) I know it is my house and I can do whatever I want, but I also want to please everyone. I am not a huge fan of my husband's must-have dishes (I mean, they are okay, but nothing fabulous--like green bean casserole and baked beans (not together!)). I am of the mindset of always wanting to try new things. Not do anything drastic like get rid of the turkey, but substitute one usual side dish for something new. But with only 6 or so people having dinner I don't NEED to make a ton of food, don't necessarily WANT to because I don't want anything to go to waste (not that it would, but...) and I don't feel like we need mounds and mounds of food with 30 different dishes. Here's a general rundown: Husband: Family: Me: Turkey Turkey Turkey Stuffing Stuffing Stuffing Mashed Potatoes Mashed Potatoes Mashed Pot. Gravy Gravy Green Bean Cass Carrot Soufflee Salad Baked Beans Brocolli Cass. thing Sweet pot See, it isn't a lot of extra dishes, but they add up and they aren't really small dishes and are hard to make in smaller quantities... Any thoughts? |
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| Maybe make a list of your family favorites and his family favorites and each of you pick one item from their list. You could then add a new dish and who knows, maybe it will turn out to be the newest family favorite! |
| Maybe you could try making some assorted appetizer type dishes so people could nibble and try different things. One year I made these little mushroom-onion quiches (mini muffin pan size) with cream cheese crust and they were so delicious. I should've made more!!
Sharon |
| When are your parents coming in, Steph? Will your Mom be helping you in the kitchen or are you all on our own? If your Mom will be helping you, this list shouldn't be too hard.
I think, if it were me, this first year that everyone is together, I'd try to do it all. But, I like to make everybody happy and it sometimes makes me crazy!  
The broccoli casserole and green bean casserole can be made ahead of time and just put into the oven on the day of. That will help with prep work. Also, you can cook your potatoes the day before. So, while the turkey is in the oven, you'll have time to make the carrot thing and the potatoe dishes. Next year, I'd make everybody choose a favorite and then throw in a new one I wanted to try. That's what we do now. When we make the menu, everyone gets to choose one dish (besides the obvious, turkey, dressing & gravy). |
Thanks, guys. All good suggestions. I guess I'll probably end up making everything  Although the stuff I cook from my husband's side he says they don't taste like his mom's--so I've told him, why don't you wait til she comes out for Christmas and she can make them for you then...
My parents are coming the Tuesday before T-day, so my mom'll be here to help me...I just don't want to have a million and a half dishes in the fridge, etc... And the 'only pick one' idea won't work, because these are favorites they they can't live without!! Has anyone else ever heard of baked beans for Thanksgiving?! |
| Perhaps it's time for everyone to "bring their own..."
Then again, your husband would probably just get in your way making his beans while you tried to cook, huh?  |
Quote: Then again, your husband would probably just get in your way making his beans while you tried to cook, huh?
For sure! No, better to keep him out of the kitchen until it is time to clean up! I love to cook, so that's not really the issue. just the fact that I have to cook a bunch of stuff that I don't like!! |
| It's time to explain,
"With two families here each with their own favorite menu, I couldn't make everything. So I've selected a dish from each family and added one new one. This represents the coming together of two families and a beginning of a third." If you phrase it better than I, their emotions should overcome their disappointment in not seeing their favorite dish. |
| Baked beans on Thanksgiving is just wrong. So strike that from the menu. There's only 5 of us for Thanksgiving this year and we decided we needed only one potato dish and that's mashed. Ix-nay on the sweet taties. Maybe you could be really nice and make "the other" dishes on Friday to go with the leftovers. Of course, since we have decided against baked beans and sweet potatoes, that leaves only the carrot souffle!!
SheepieBoss's suggestion was very diplomatic and true. You become more of a "blended" family when you marry and should incorporate traditions from both sides, as well as making your own. |
Thats a weird one however my families weird too. Its a tradition on my side of the family that they have beans with the sauerkraut on New Years day. It's supposed to be good luck. I think its a deadly combination. I never eat that together. Probably why I have bad luck.  |
| What did you end up doing, Steph? |
| *Sigh* I made everything...
And really, the dishes don't take very long to make each so it didn't add that much time to anything, and it made my husband SO happy to have the baked beans and the green bean casserole...made ME so happy to have sweet potatoes, and my brothers were bummed because I decided not to make the brocolli casserole or the carrot souffle...But there was a ton of food, a good amount for leftovers, the turkey was the best we've had in years (I think because we used my oven which is even in temp (my parents is very unpredictable) and we had a great time... BUT...I told my husband that since he never thinks that what I make (even when I follow the recipe to the exact measurement and use the exact brands, etc) that it never tastes like his mom's--that SHE is cooking Christmas dinner this year (they are visiting for Christmas week)... |
| How do you make carrot souffle. I never had that.Do you like it?
I like to try different food. Get sick of the same old thing. |
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