What are your tips for cooking Thanksgiving dinner with one oven?

do the turkey first since it take that longest amount of time cook a day early and let slow roast

I've only ever had one oven. The turkey goes in the oven with the dressing inside the turkey and any extra dressing can fit in the oven in a baking dish even on the other shelf but not until about an hour before the turkey is due to be done or the dish of dressing will get too dry. Put the potatoes in a large pan on the stove cut in small pieces ready to cook, drain and mash. Also do a good vegetable on the stove as well or even in the microwave for that one. Get your rolls ready and they go in the oven as soon as the bird comes out and will be done when the bird is cut and on the serving plate. Do up your cramberries into dishes and have them ready in the refridgerator and get the pies precut as well. All a piece of cake that can be done and all ready to be served on time.

Keep it basted and don't burn it or let it get dry.

first of all, sit down and relax, plan out everything your going to fix, with that many people, you'll gets lots of offers for help, don't be shy, for really its part of the fun for you all to work together, just keep in mind how blessed you are to have family and friends to have a get together. Good luck and have fun and all your guest's will be telling everyone what a great hostess you are.

I do it this way, when my turkey is done I take it out and let it rest with foil on top.. before it is carved., I throw all of the sides that need to bake and heat in the oven.. Ex. Green Bean Cassarole, Sweet Potato Cassarole, Broccoli and Cheese Bake. Cauliflower Bake.. II time my potatos so they are ready to mash when the Turkey comes out to rest..I have my gravy boiling and thickening also.I microwave any vegtables I did earlier with butter sauce. Then I start carving the turkey. The turkey is carved, the gravy hot ,the mashed potatos hot, and all of the baked sides hot. It definatly can work just time everything!

Go to the supermarket and ask to talk to the manager. Or you can talk to any of the clerks. Ask them to help you find the following: 1.Turkeys that are already cooked, pop into the oven to warm....be SURE to read the directions. 2.Dressing/stuffing in a box, just add water...read the directions. 3. Sweet potatoes in a can, just heat and serve. 4. Canned cranberry sauce or jellied berries. Be sure to keep this in the fridge until ready to serve. 5. Canned black olives, and a jar of green olives. Serve on the side. 6. Gravy in a jar...heat and serve over the dressing and turkey. 7. In the freezer section at the supermarket you will find all kinds of pies. Read the directions on the containers. The standard pies for Thanksgiving are pumpkin, pecan, and mince. Or anything else your family likes. 8. You can order party trays from the deli if you need them. They have a booklet to look through to choose the trays. Be sure to order a day or so ahead of time. ``````````````````````````````````````... On Thanksgiving morning, we all gather around the TV and watch the Macy's parade. I like to serve a sweet roll with coffee or hot chocolate.

All you need is one oven. Turkey goes in. Most everything else can be cooked on the stove top. Anything that needs to go in the oven can be baked while the turkey is out sitting for half n hour. Prepare what can be prepared the day before. Especially pies, they can be baked before and just reheated the day off. Relax you'll be fine.

I would prepare a lot of the dishes the day before. Assemble whatever casseroles and dressing you are going to cook on Thanksgiving, and cover them and store in refrigerator. If you don't want to assemble your dressing the day before - assemble it while the turkey is cooking. If you are making pumpkin or pecan pie make it the day before and cook, then cover and store in refrigerator. If you are making a cake - cook it the day before. If you are going to bake a ham to go along with the turkey - you can cook it the day before and store in refrigerator. You can serve the ham chilled - chilled ham is really good. On Thanksgiving day cook your turkey. About thirty minutes before the turkey is done - remove the casseroles and dressing from the refrigerator. When the turkey is done, remove it from the oven. Cover the turkey securely with aluminum foil - this is good for a juicy turkey and lets the turkey cool some for easier carving. Put your casseroles and dressing into oven and cook. Since you may have several dishes cooking in oven at same time the cook time will prob take longer than usual. Kept an eye on them. Once the casseroles and dressing are done - remove from oven and cover with foil. Now you can bake your rolls. While your turkey and casseroles are cooking this will give you time to prepare things you are cooking on stove top.

I have been making my own Thanksgiving meals since I was 18 and I've never had two ovens so don't worry! Last year, I wrote a blog post about preparing for Thanksgiving that you will find useful: http://blog.vendorbar.com/2009/11/theme-parties-thanksgiving.html Things I forgot to mention in the post: For me, the salad dressing could also be made the day before. Also, once you peel the potatoes put them in the pot with water to prevent browning until you are ready to cook them. Your family is coming into town and while they are not bringing anything, do hesitate to ask them for help. It is your holiday too! If you have an extra set of hands (or two), you can get through the mundane tasks (like peeling potatoes) faster and actually enjoy the day too. Last year, I still got to watch the Macy's parade, the Purina dog show and some football by following the advice I give in this blog post. Hope this helps and good luck! You'll do great! Sara Owner, VendorBar.com