10 Simple Ways of Keeping your Thanksgiving Dinner Under $50 for your Family
Nov 21
“It’s the most wonderful time of the year,” says a lot of the singers in the world. It most likely was not sung by the people in the kitchen. Of course, a few glasses of good wine and the whole show becomes good entertainment and the turkey might get burned. So, let’s put that out of our minds and focus on saving the day and keeping the costs down.
Let’s start with a menu. Not everyone has the time to write one down and then to go shopping. Most of us fly by the seat of our pants. If you have guests coming that are just family and friends, the first thing to do is organize! Write down what you want at the dinner and then distribute that menu among the family. Meaning, Uncle Bob and Aunt Mary are to bring the green bean casserole and Sister Sarah is to bring the mashed potatoes and gravy and so on and so forth. That way no one is cooking too long and the cost is shared among everyone.
That leaves you with the Turkey to slow roast in the oven all night with your tasty stuffing. To keep the costs down on that, but not lose the quality of taste, you make it all homemade. No store bought stuffing or flavor packets; it’s all going to be you. Pull out the cook book and let’s rock and roll with this money saving idea.
Turkey and stuffing
Two of the easiest things on this earth to cook and mix, so don’t panic. Put the oven on 200 degrees with a lid over it. Put a couple cups of water in the bottom of the roaster and place that turkey in the pan. You can leave it frozen, because you are going to slow cook it overnight. Did you buy the turkey on sale? Most grocery stores during this time will reduce the cost of the turkey for family time such as these.
The stuffing is easy to make from scratch and you save the cost of those expensive box stuffing’s that taste like cardboard. You will need one onion, one stalk of celery and the spices from the cook book. Don’t forget the chicken stock, which you can choose most any of the cans in the store. If you don’t have any, you can wait until morning and use the juice from the turkey in the oven. Mix in a nice ½ pound of uncooked breakfast sausage…. Not the link kind. Mix in the spices and all the ingredients and you have dressing for the dinner at pennies on the dollar.
See how easy that was
- Menu
- Share the menu with family and friends. Get them to bring dinner items too.
- Make it a potluck
- You make the main dish
- Cooking from scratch not only tastes better, is healthier, but also cheaper.
- Find the turkey on one sale for the season.
- Don’t just buy flavor packets. In the long run, having the seasoning on hand will cost you pennies and can be used for other meals too.
- Make the dressing from scratch. All you have to do is toast some bread and tear it to bite sized pieces.
- You don’t have to buy the stock. You can get it from the turkeys drippings in the morning.
- 10. The celery is usually not very much. You can even buy extra so you don’t have to make several trips to the store for later.
Everyone is bringing a dish and you have the main course under control. You saved money, made a plan, and you didn’t lose your mind over a holiday that you’re supposed to be enjoying. Eat well and healthy for the season on the way.
About the Author:
Blair Thomas is an electronic payment expert, who loves all things finance and planning. He is also the co-founder of eMerchantBroker.com, the #1 credit repair merchant account company in the country. But when he’s not running his business he’s more than likely exploring his other passions; music, mountain biking and camping. If you would like to see what he’s up to, check him out on Facebook.
