A Simplified Thanksgiving Dinner Party

A Simplified Thanksgiving Gathering

Last year we had a simple Thanksgiving dinner party at home. Our niece was with us for the holiday, and a good friend of my husband’s came over for dinner. Our niece was finishing her first semester of college, so I wanted to make the long weekend extra cozy and inviting. I shared my full menu with recipes here, but never shared the decorations or how the meal turned out.

Cooking a Thanksgiving meal does not have to be extravagant. I didn’t have time for a full turkey and with only four people, it seemed like too much work. I was also on a tight budget last autumn, but I still wanted to make a full Thanksgiving meal. I came up with a simplified menu that still included all of the traditions but was also minimized for a small gathering on a budget.

Don’t get me wrong, this is still a pretty big meal and takes time and effort, but it is a more low-key version. Instead of a full turkey I baked a turkey en croute. Instead of making intensive vegetable casseroles I made some roasted veggie sides. Instead of baking many appetizers I made a charcuterie board and popped a brie in the oven with puff pastry. Still all the trimmings of a holiday fest, only slightly less work.

My family is huge, so most of our holidays include a lot of people. They’re so big that we do it potluck style. Christmas Eve is the one night of the year where I go all out with a more expensive and intensive menu. I wanted this Thanksgiving to feel special for our guests and for us, starting with the decorations.

 

Simple Thanksgiving Decorations 

The best decorations, in my opinion, are those that are timeless and are made to last. I don’t like disposable decor that is only used once. I adore the tradition of taking out memorable and beloved decorations year after year. Reusing them is not just better for the environment, it also heightens the holiday traditions we love.

But here is the key to a wonderful holiday; surrounding yourself with good people. It really is not about the things. You can use paper plates. You don’t need decorations to have a good time when you’re enjoying a meal with people who you enjoy being around. If you choose to decorate, use what you already have and only add what you will eventually re-use.

One of the easiest and budget friendly ways to transform a dining space is by using a nice linen tablecloth. It doesn’t have to be expensive. I picked this one up a few years ago at HomeGoods for about $16 and reuse it every fall. The matching napkin set was $9.99.

A nice tablecloth can add a fun splash of color and style, while also hiding mix-matched furniture or folding tables. Our dining room table is a wooden folding table from Ikea. Would you have guessed? Adding a tablecloth makes it look like a formal dining table. If you are setting up multiple tables of various styles, tablecloths can make them match.

The napkin rings were a Christmas gift from my mom several years ago. When I requested napkin rings, I asked for ones with a gold pattern that could be used for autumn holidays, Christmas, New Years and Easter. I didn’t want to have to have ones that were just for one day a year.

The “Welcome to our patch” silverware holders was something I picked up on clearance about five years ago. When I do buy something new, I ask myself if it is something that I will reuse over and over again for years to come.

For the centerpiece I used a thrifted cornucopia basket (that I found at Goodwill a few years ago) and reused mini pumpkins and gourds from our Halloween decor.

The dishware was my thrifted Memory Lane set that I take out every autumn. My grandmother has a Thanksgiving set with turkeys that she has reused for decades. When I saw the country scenes and acorns adorning the Memory Lane set in Goodwill, it evoked that same homey feeling. I’ve been adding to my thrifted collection ever since. I like that they are now a part of our traditions and I also use them for our annual Harvest Picnic every year.

The big pumpkin bowl and the four matching mini pumpkin bowls were the only new pieces I added to our holiday table. Since I was a teenager, I’ve admired pumpkin bowls set at place settings in magazines. While out Christmas shopping, I stopped into World Market. These were on clearance and I loved the color.

The brass candlestick holders used to be my dad’s. He gave them to me when he bought new holiday decor. The candlesticks were found in the for-free room at our local dump, believe it or not.

And as for the hutch, the felt pie garland was one that I made a few years ago and I still adore it. You can find the felt pie garland tutorial here. 

The Menu

The appetizers and starters

Charcuterie is an easy appetizer. Guests can snack away while you’re cooking and enjoy conversation over yummy finger foods. All you need is a soft cheese, a hard cheese and some crackers. If you have nuts or dried fruit, they make a lovely garnish. To go all out, add some meats like pepperoni, salami, or prosciutto. Sometimes I’ll add some fresh orange slices, mini sweet peppers or cucumbers. Savory sides like pickles and olives pair nicely. I like providing savory and sweet options.

 

A pumpkin baked brie is another simple, but outstanding appetizer idea. A wheel of brie can be a little pricey, so it is not a requirement. But if you want to give this recipe a try, it’s easy to do and tastes incredible. This is my recipe, however, I now use Bon Maman pumpkin spread instead of the spread I shared in this post.

 

A traditional soup would more likely be a bisque of some kind or a squash soup, but instead I made Matthew’s favorite, cheddar broccoli soup. You can find my recipe here. 

The Sides

A good Thanksgiving meal includes a mashed potato or sweet potato and a vegetable option. I made creamy mashed potatoes the day before to warm up the day of and for vegetables I made glazed carrots and roasted Brussel sprouts. I also made homemade cranberry sauce the day before and the canned variety as if Matthew’s preference. He likes the canned one shaped like the can and not mashed. It’s his tradition though so I’m happy to provide it.

I also had stuffing (the boxed variety) left over from my turkey en croute main dish and homemade gravy. Jarred gravy is fine. You can find my cranberry sauce, gravy and turkey en croute recipes here.

The Main Dish

As I mentioned before, making a whole turkey just wasn’t in the cards. I picked up some turkey breast at an affordable price and wrapped it with stuffing and puff pastry. It is such a cozy and delicious dish. It feels extra fancy, but it is really simple and affordable to make. It also serves up to six.

Overall, this was a meal that I felt very proud of.

Dessert

I did make pies, but you really don’t have to. If you want a pie, you can buy one at any grocery store or farm stand this time of year. However, pies are my specialty. I adore making them. The pie crust was made with Matthew’s grandmother’s recipe. Matthew prefers apple, but it doesn’t feel like Thanksgiving to me without pumpkin pie, so I made both.

I made these the day before so I didn’t have to worry about it the day of. I try to cook and prep as much as I can the day before a dinner gathering so that I can spend more time with my guests while they are here.

It was a beautiful and slightly simplified version of a Thanksgiving meal. After dinner we played games like Sequence and enjoyed dessert. We sipped on hot mulled apple cider while watching a movie. It was a low key and cozy Thanksgiving weekend at home.