I’m hosting my first Thanksgiving at our new home! And that means a chance to combine traditions with new ideas, one of my favorite things to do. This year, I’m breaking it all down in my Host a Holiday Dinner series, starting with part one: menu brainstorming.
Initial Brainstorming
When I get ready to make a big meal, the first thing I do is gather a lot of information. In this case, Thanksgiving is a holiday filled with major traditions, but it also offers the opportunity to introduce some fun and new dishes into the mix. I’m starting by gathering ideas dish by dish. I’m leaving out the main course, because we are making a traditional turkey, but everything else is fair game.
When I start planning a fancy meal, I like to layout all my options and then make selections to see what works well together. I always try to mix and match a few combinations before settling on the final menu. I’m excited to try to incorporate some of these dishes from fellow bloggers into my menu this year!
Menu Brainstorming: Hors D’ouevres
These are the first impression for the guests, so I want to make sure they are tasty and fun. It’s always a good idea for everything in this category to be bite sized and finger food. I don’t want anything too messy, but I do want a few fun treats to kick off the meal.
Gruyere Gougeres (Cheese Puffs) from The Missing Lokness
Cranberry Goat Cheese Bruschetta from Melanie Cooks
Creamed Corn Casserole Cups from Bite Sized Kitchen
Maple Bacon Butternut Squash Skewers from Bite Sized Kitchen
Bruschetta with Pesto and Sundried Tomatoes from Lavender & Macarons
Menu Brainstorming: Seated Appetizers
Here’s the soups and salads. For Thanksgiving, I may decide to skip a seated appetizer course entirely, but I like to collect a few ideas just in case. I love fall seasonal soups because of their creamy textures, and fall salads are always a fun blend of fruits and nuts.
Roasted Kabocha Squash Soup from Drive Me Hungry
Roasted Pumpkin Soup from Lemon Baby
Apple Arugula Salad from Eat With Clarity
Spicy Butternut Squash Soup from Bite of Healthy
Thanksgiving Spinach Salad from Kalyn’s Kitchen
Menu Brainstorming: Bread Service
Bread is my favorite food group, so it’s always fun to come up with an interesting bread to serve with a fancy dinner. I like to considering what kind of infused butter could go with each of these. And of course, I have to consider gluten free options to make sure the whole family is covered!
Garlic Bread Rolls from The Flour Handprint
Cheddar Cheese Biscuits from Greedy Eats
Instant Pot Pumpkin Rolls from Herbivore Cucina
Cranberry Walnut Pumpkin Spice Bread from Three Olives Branch
Gluten-Free Herbs de Provence Buns from Healthy World Cuisine
Menu Brainstorming: Stuffing
My favorite part of any good Thanksgiving dinner is the stuffing, so I’m not going to skip out on considering some fun options for this category. I love that you can basically put anything in stuffing, as long as there’s some stale bread. You can’t beat that!
Blueberry Stuffing from Brooklyn Farm Girl
Chorizo Cornbread Stuffing from Cooking With Curls
Southern Cornbread Dressing from Everyday Eileen
Cranberry Pecan Stuffing from Striped Spatula
Butternut Squash Stuffing with Bacon from Went Here 8 This
Menu Brainstorming: Potatoes
If we don’t serve traditional buttery mashed potatoes with plenty of garlic, I’ll probably get in trouble! But that doesn’t mean I can’t brainstorm some fun alternatives. Maybe we;ll have two potato dishes, or maybe it will inspire me to doctor up the traditional mashed ones a little more.
Rustic Potato and Brussels Sprouts Au Gratin from Nourish
Next Level Mashed Potatoes from Crave the Good
Instant Pot Roasted Potatoes from The Belly Rules the Mind
Roasted Potatoes with Goat Cheese from Hezzi D’s
Potato Gratin with Aged Gouda from Biscuits and Burlap
Menu Brainstorming: Sweet Potatoes
Sweet potatoes are like dessert but as part of the main course, which is brilliant. You know I couldn’t leave that out! But I am considering some savory presentations, or even something really unique like these puffs. I feel like I can have a lot of fun with experimenting in this category.
Sweet Potato Souffle with Pecans from Daily Appetite
Crispy Roasted Sweet Potatoes from All That’s Jas
Healthy Sweet Potato Casserole from Byte Sized Nutrition
Cinnamon Honey Glazed Sweet Potatoes from Dancing Through the Rain
Sweet Potato Puffs from 2 Cookin’ Mamas
Menu Brainstorming: Veggie Sides
Thanksgiving can get a little carried away when it comes to rich and heavy sides, but I can balance it out a little with a few vegetables. Or I could make my veggies rich and heavy too. In any case, there probably should be some healthy-ish stuff on the table, whether it’s in a casserole or not.
Roasted Butternut Squash from Grandbaby Cakes
Honey Glazed Hasselback Butternut Squash from Curry Trail
Maple Balsamic Roasted Brussels Sprouts from Kristine’s Kitchen
Paleo Cauliflower Gratin from I Heart Umami
Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Pomegranate and Pecans from Sunkissed Kitchen
Menu Brainstorming: Cranberry Sauce
I’ll admit, I’m a jellied cranberry sauce from a can type of person. But I have been experimenting with jams and relishes a lot more lately. Maybe it’s time to take a chance and come up with a fun homemade version of the traditional condiment. Maybe I’ll keep a can on hand for nostalgia too, though.
Mojito Cranberry Sauce from We Are Not Martha
Blackberry Chia Cranberry Sauce from Crumb Top Baking
Apple Cranberry Sauce from Rhubarbians
Mulled Wine Cranberry Sauce from Striped Spatula
Cranberry Sauce with Port and Orange from Slow the Cook Down
Menu Brainstorming: Dessert
We’ve made it to dessert! It’s my favorite course, but sometimes I get so carried away with the rest of the meal that no one has any room left for sweet treats. I’m thinking of making some of these throughout the fall, since I won’t be able to have them all for Thanksgiving.
Apple Cider Donuts from Cupcake Project
Nantucket Cranberry Pie from What a Girl Eats
Concord Grape Pie from Upstate Ramblings
Pecan Pie Cheesecake Bars from The Unlikely Baker
Sweet Potato Cake from the Itsy Bitsy Kitchen
Menu Brainstorming: Cocktails
And finally, for the most important part of any meal, probably: the drinks. The perfect cocktail can tie together all the dishes of any meal. I always like to have a signature cocktail for each course, so I may get to try out a few of these!
Cider Sangria from Snappy Gourmet
Cranberry Sage Moscow Mule from Serena Bakes
Cranberry Orange Whiskey Cocktail from Crowded Kitchen
Cranberry Ginger Margarita from Mom’s Dinner
Spiced Apple Beer Punch from All That’s Jas
I am actually hosting this year for my family and this gives me so many dish ideas to work from. Thanks for sharing.
How fun! Good luck, and I hope you get to try a few of these out.
I’ve never planned or made a large meal for any kind of gathering, just brought apps or side dishes to others’ events. But this is giving me such inspiration for whenever I DO get to host something of my own!
It’s fun but can be overwhelming! Hopefully you’ll get some ideas even for bring-along side dishes if you’re not hosting soon.
We attend a Thanksgiving celebration with my husband’s side of the family in early November, and then a smaller Thanksgiving celebration with my sisters and kids. Generally, my brother-in-law provides turkey, stuffing, and potatoes, and everyone brings a couple of dishes. Thanks for the great ideas, I like to bring one dessert and one nontraditional side.
That sounds like a lot of fun! There are definitely a few fun dessert and side ideas here, so I hope you find one that you and your family love.
So many awesome and yummy ideas for the holiday season!! Some of these combinations would be so amazing to share with friends and loved ones!!
Kileen
cute & little
Thank you! I’m excited to start combining them together to see what works. I’m sure your family will love any you might try too!
How nice to have so many recipe options in one place!! I LOVE hosting holidays — sadly our current apartment is far too small in the living area, but our next place will surely have room. Bookmarking this for future reference. 🙂
Glad to hear it! I get it, we are so excited to finally have the space to host after years of apartment living. I hope you’ll get the chance to host again soon and try a few of these dishes.