{"id":419,"date":"2014-10-06T16:47:45","date_gmt":"2014-10-06T16:47:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/worldwidehomefurnishingsinc.com\/blog\/?p=419"},"modified":"2014-10-06T16:47:45","modified_gmt":"2014-10-06T16:47:45","slug":"how-to-host-the-perfect-thanksgiving-dinner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worldwidehomefurnishingsinc.com\/blog\/how-to-host-the-perfect-thanksgiving-dinner\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Host The Perfect Thanksgiving Dinner"},"content":{"rendered":"

Thanksgiving is right around the corner!<\/h2>\n

Our Canadian friends celebrate next week and if you\u2019re in the United States, you\u2019ve got about six weeks to plan!<\/p>\n

Hosting a Thanksgiving dinner can be stressful whether it\u2019s your first or fifteenth time around.<\/p>\n

With the chaos of cooking, cleaning and accommodating your in-laws (let\u2019s not forget the rambunctious children and screaming babies), keeping your stress levels low takes a bit of planning ahead.<\/p>\n

Luckily, we\u2019re here to walk you through it so you can have the perfect Thanksgiving!<\/p>\n

Proper Meal Preparation
\n<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\"Thanksgiving<\/a><\/p>\n

Preparation is your only salvation to making it through the perfect Thanksgiving dinner. The more you can prepare ahead of time, the better.<\/p>\n

1 Week Before: <\/strong>Set the menu, look at your recipes and make a list of all the grocery items you\u2019ll need to make it happen. Also make a list of how many pots, pans and serving dishes you\u2019ll need. A roaster pan with a solid bottom is important, so be sure it\u2019s at the top of your list. Confirm if any of your guests plan to bring anything so you don\u2019t work overtime on the same dish.<\/p>\n

Three Days Before: <\/strong>If you\u2019ve bought a frozen turkey, now is usually a good time to defrost it properly (one day in the fridge for every 5lbs.) It\u2019s also a good time to hit the stores and pick up everything you need for dinner; this way you\u2019ll avoid the rush of last-minute groceries.<\/p>\n

One Day Before: <\/strong>Get small yet detailed jobs out of the way like making the cranberry sauce. You can also wash and trim salad greens and green beans to be stored in the crisper. Bake your apple pie too; one less job for Thanksgiving Day.<\/p>\n

Thanksgiving Day: <\/strong>Put your turkey in the oven first thing in the morning. This way you can keep an eye on it while you work on other tasks. A great time saving tip is to carve the turkey before your guests arrive, placing dark and white meat in separate pans. Simply reheat in the oven before they arrive.<\/p>\n

One Hour Before:\u00a0<\/strong>Cook and prepare your potatoes, assemble vegetable dishes, make the gravy and set the table. Don\u2019t forget to pat yourself on the back, too! In our long experience with Thanksgiving dinners, we\u2019ve learnt that wine helps \ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n

The Table Setting
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\"holiday<\/a>

Credit: Carmen Rodriguez www.flickr.com\/photos\/carmenherbs\/<\/p><\/div>\n

Although you might be dreaming of an elaborate Martha Stewart-esque table setting, it\u2019s not practical when you\u2019re having more than ten guests for dinner (elbowroom is important!)<\/p>\n

The trick is to keep it simple.<\/p>\n

Choose a solid tablecloth in deep purple, orange, brown or red and use your very best China to make a statement. Offset the tablecloth with brightly colored napkins and put out place cards to eliminate seating confusion.<\/p>\n

!nspire tip: Place your centerpieces and candles on side tables and hutches in your dining room rather than on the dining table. That way to can create that gorgeous fall ambience we always imagine when thinking of thanksgiving dinners, and there\u2019s enough room at the table to pass platters and gravy boats without getting burned. \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

The Spread<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Rather than serve every dinner separately, use your kitchen table or side table to lay the food out in a buffet style; this way guests can help themselves, taking the guesswork out of food and portion preferences.<\/p>\n

If you have time, put festive labels on each dish so that vegetarians and those with food sensitivities can make the right choices.<\/p>\n

Use beautiful serving ware that matches your table setting in terms of colours and feel.<\/p>\n

!nspire tip: To get the conversation flowing at the dinner table, raise your glass and suggest everyone go around say what they are thankful for. It sounds cheesy, but it\u2019s such a lovely tradition that embraces the true essence of Thanksgiving. If you have a big enough group, someone is bound to cry, but in a good way!<\/em><\/p>\n

Get Cozy<\/strong><\/h3>\n

There\u2019s nothing worse than eating a hearty Thanksgiving meal then having to sit around a table with a full belly for three hours. It\u2019s important to make your guests feel at home.<\/p>\n

Once dinner comes to an end, lead your guests into your living room or sitting room for tea and dessert.<\/p>\n

Scour the room and be sure you have enough seating to accommodate everyone. Side tables and coffee tables are important too, as guests will need a spot to set down their coffee and dessert.<\/p>\n

Consider investing in pieces like the Houston Double Tray Ottoman<\/a> before your dinner party. It serves as a cocktail table, footstool and extra seating for guests; a must-have option if you tend to host.<\/p>\n

The final step? Breathe! But until then, we\u2019ll leave you to your planning. Remember, Thanksgiving only comes once a year, so give yourself plenty of time to plan if you\u2019re playing host! Enjoy \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Thanksgiving is right around the corner! Our Canadian friends celebrate next week and if you\u2019re in the United States, you\u2019ve got about six weeks to plan! Hosting a Thanksgiving dinner can be stressful whether it\u2019s your first or fifteenth time around. With the chaos of cooking, cleaning and accommodating your in-laws (let\u2019s not forget the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":420,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-419","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-trends","8":"entry"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldwidehomefurnishingsinc.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/419","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldwidehomefurnishingsinc.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldwidehomefurnishingsinc.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldwidehomefurnishingsinc.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldwidehomefurnishingsinc.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=419"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/worldwidehomefurnishingsinc.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/419\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldwidehomefurnishingsinc.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/420"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldwidehomefurnishingsinc.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=419"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldwidehomefurnishingsinc.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=419"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldwidehomefurnishingsinc.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=419"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}