Every year we participate in a big get together for Thanksgiving but this year it is just the two of us. (DD and I) for Thanksgiving. We are not planning to go out of town and hope to have a stress free holiday. We are not big eaters and would love to hear about your special plans/recipes/menu items for Thanksgiving. Daughters only request is apple pie. I was thinking of finding some individual size recipe instead of buying or baking a large pie. Please share your plans to make your holiday unique and special. Our intention is to have a relaxing weekend. Make a nice dinner together that’s not too overwhelming. Maybe do a little shopping, put up the Christmas tree, and go for a holiday walk at the local botanical gardens that is all lit up for the holidays. Go to the movie theater. (It’s been a long time.) Just have a relaxing weekend without any pressures. Maybe make one day a spa/relaxation day. DD intention is to relax before the prep for college final exams begins. I might take time to relax and start writing out my holiday cards. I don’t like to leave things till last minute.
If you D’s only request is apple pie, make/get the apple pie! So traditional to eat a pie on Thanksgiving! Freeze the leftovers in individual pieces or one of you bring to work on Monday and it will get scooped up!
We get together with family about 45 minutes away. Pretty traditional foods. Football. Really nothing unique and special. Sometimes, I think that’s why it’s so good - it’s traditionally simple!
We actually tend to do little shopping this weekend. If the weather allows, we will spend some time outdoors - walking, maybe a 5k, small town local window shopping, but not necessarily for the holidays. All 3 kids will be “home”.
Even “slow” weekends tend to fill up with activity by the time we get there!!!
We always went to the movies . I also like the Christmas lights idea.
I know it’s early and Halloween is this coming weekend and then we set the clocks back one hour before going to bed Saturday night. A friend mentioned her plans and then I started to think how to make it a relaxing and enjoyable long weekend. But you are right traditional but simple works well. Time to look for some new and interesting recipes online and come up with some interesting ideas. Will be careful not to overbook the weekend.
It should be easy to make an individual apple crumble with a crust. Make a crust and put it in a small dish, put in your apples and crumble topping.
Plans? I’m suppose to have plans? Actually neither of my kids have plans to come here. Hoping one of my relatives decides to have thanksgiving at her house but she’s way too disorganized to plan anything until the week before. Happens every year. They could come to my house but they don’t want to so I’ll wait for them to figure it out.
I don’t really care. If nothing else we can stay home, eat and watch football.
^^Us too, deb! I think this is the first year in a very long time, we have no plans (yet). Although my cousins who live only a half hour away are so last minute, that many times we get an invite two weeks before! If not, then it will be only 4 of us. That hasn’t happened in many years that it would be just the 4 of us, BUT with so much stress during the year, I feel like it’ll be a very comfortable, casual weekend with lots of eating & football watching! And long walks, hopefully with decent weather.
My older S graduated college this past year and will come home and my younger S is a college sophomore and I think one of my older son’s roommates will be driving both boys home!!
My boys have both been learning to cook, so I’ll put them to work! 
I actually like going to my cousins because some of them are vegetarian or vegan so they always have lots of yummy & unusual side dishes, along with a (real) turkey for the rest of us!
The following has been our new favorite “apple pie”.
(great for just two with a few leftovers for the next day)
www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/vanilla-bean-tarte-tatin-51264460
easy peasy and fabulous
Vanilla Bean Tarte Tatin
ALISON ROMAN BON APPÉTIT MARCH 2015
Ingredients
5 Pink Lady or other crisp apples (about 2 pounds), peeled
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
1 sheet frozen puff pastry (one 14-ounce package or half of a 17.3-ounce package), thawed
All-purpose flour (for surface)
Preparation
Preheat oven to 425°. Cut apples as close to core as possible into three lobes; set aside. Scatter half of sugar in a heavy 9" skillet and scrape in vanilla seeds; discard pod. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until sugar is melted and starting to caramelize, 6–8 minutes (if using a cast-iron skillet, test the color of the caramel by spooning some onto a white plate. It should be pale amber). Add remaining sugar and cook until all sugar is dissolved and has taken on a deep amber color.
Stir in butter, vinegar, and salt. Place apples cut side down in skillet and cook until they start giving up some of their juices and shrink slightly, 5–8 minutes. Carefully turn apples over and scoot them together so they overlap slightly. (The apples will shrink more as they bake, so they need to be tightly packed from the beginning.) Remove from heat. Gently roll out puff pastry on a lightly floured work surface just to smooth out creases; cut into a round that will fit snugly and flush inside skillet. Drape puff pastry over apples and transfer skillet to oven.
Bake until pastry is puffed and starting to brown in spots, 20–25 minutes. Reduce heat to 350° and bake until apples are tender and pastry is golden brown and cooked all the way through, 20–25 minutes longer. Let rest 5 minutes before inverting onto a platter.
Make the Tarte, a half turkey breast, a vegetable side with a nice side stuffing. Personally I couldnt imagine a nicer Thanksgiving ( if it was just D and I)
Am I the only one who doesn’t seem to worry about planning these holiday meals/invitations way ahead of time? Other people in my family will ask me WAY in advance what I’m planning for a meal or a holiday get together - like weeks ahead! Seriously, I can decide on a dish or dishes just days before the event - or less! Nothing wrong of course with planning way ahead if that’s your thing but I sometimes feel “foreign” in our family that I don’t know October 10th what I’m making November 26!!!
Another alternative to turkey is to have individual Cornish hens, which you can stuff. Any leftovers of your individual hens can be the basis of the next day’s lunch.
H and I are going to travel several hours to married daughter’s where we will be joined by her H and our new grandchild, as well as her mother-in-law. Engaged son will be at his future in laws’ – absolutely fine by me, I always told my kids that I never wanted holidays to be a source of family stress, just hoped to see them several times a year whenever they want to see us! I really think I would be fine being just with H or even on my own, would just plan something cozy and enjoyable and low fuss. Not a fan of eating out on this holiday – consider it a homey one.
I am excited to see Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade (in person, not on TV).
I will be traveling a couple of hours to the Eastern shore of Maryland. Kids will come in Wednesday, we will cook and travel Thursday, spend the night til Friday, and make our way back home sometime Friday. Then we will just relax til I have to drop son off at airport VERY early Sunday morning. I will likely make spinach or crab dip, and apple pie, along with muffins or something for Friday morning. We will order sushi and Chinese food one night, because kids love it. If the weather is nice, my older son and I may go hiking along the Potomac River, on one of our favorite trails. My mom may also come visit, which will make things a little more interesting, but I’m ok with that.
Every year we get together about 20 to 30 of us and do a potluck so this year just the two of us will be nice. I am actually looking forward to it because there will be no formalities. I like the idea of an apple tarte. Going to make sure we go for long walks and make a simple meal with easy cleanup. Just a nice mother/daughter weekend. I will look up some new vegetable side recipes so that DD feels like she has a nice holiday dinner. I was thinking of looking at the local volunteering opportunities that both of us could help with over the holiday. I like to plan things ahead of time so that we always have something to look forward to. Maybe make salon appointments beforehand. If possible I prefer to shop online. Not really a fan of the crowded malls. Before that we have other events to attend so between now and then we will be quite busy.
We tried a nice Cranberry Quinoa that had the influence of traditional Thankskiving but g;uten free for a freind. This was 4 servings.
Ingredients
2 cups water
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup white quinoa, uncooked
3 tablespoons thinly sliced green onions
1 tablespoon Vegetable Oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Directions
Bring water, cranberries and salt to a boil in medium saucepan. Add quinoa; reduce heat to low. Cover and cook 15 to 20 minutes or until water is absorbed.
Stir in green onions, oil and lemon juice.
@singersmom07 I have never tried or made quinoa before but your recipe seems simple enough. So basically I cook quinoa the way one cooks rice. I like zesty and citrusy stuff made with fresh herbs. (cilantro/coriander/mint)
Just want to second the idea of Cornish hens.
I always make cranberry sauce, but will try the new recipe by singers mom, above. Have you tried it with fresh cranberries?
What I love about Thanksgiving is the “traditionalness” of it, so I don’t really menu plan weeks in advance, either. I love reading magazine articles about the holiday, though, so if I come across an interesting recipe, I might add it that year. Mostly, it’s the same core menu. OP, sounds like you have a great weekend planned as an alternative to the busy family gathering. If you are looking to volunteer, I’m sure someplace in your area is serving Thanksgiving dinner for the needy. They would appreciate the extra hands, especially since you don’t have a houseful of people to worry about being home for as well. You could schedule your own dinner around when you are volunteering. Whatever you do, enjoy the time with your daughter.
I like cranberry,orange relish. It’s super simple, especially if you have a food processor (which we don’t). You can also just use a sharp knife and cut everything up yourself. It only requires a thin-skinned orange, 1 cup sugar and 12 oz. fresh cranberries. The recipe is on foodnetwork and other sites. The easy way without a food processor was to take the orange & wash it very well. Get the bowl you plan to mix and store it in, halve the orange, remove seeds and squeeze the juice from the orange into the bowl (so you don’t waste it). Don’t work too hard at it, since the whole orange will eventually end up in the relish.
Finely dice half of the orange, rind and all with a sharp knife. Add to your container. Rinse cranberries. Finely dice half of the cranberries, about the same size as the orange pieces in your bowl and add to the bowl. Add about 1/3 cup of sugar and mix well. Repeat with the other half of the orange and remaining cranberries. Again, add 1/3 cup of sugar and then sweeten to taste. Refrigerate for a few hours or longer. Makes about 3 cups.
I love Thanksgiving because it’s all about cooking and eating. Together, of course. We usually check to see if friends are at loose ends and want to join.
I do like to think in advance about new recipes. Or mix it up. One year, I made roast beef and did the turkey thing at Christmas. Another time- us and the kids only- we did Tofurkey, which was the worst and we still laugh. (Epic fail.)
But I do plan to do the REI outdoors thing on Fri, the Black Friday alternative.
I am with lookingforward and JAM113, I pretty much stick to traditional when it comes to Thanksgiving. Last year , it was just my husband , youngest daughter and I. I still made all the foods we normally have , but it smaller quantities.
We are all about the sides ( although I really LOVE a good turkey )
This year, we will have one more daughter here and possibly my step-daughter and her mother . This is a big stretch for us since the ex has been a thorn in our sides for the last twenty years. That is another story in itself .
Have you ever tried roasted carrots as a side dish ?
I got one of those free holiday recipe booklets a few years ago from Williams Sonoma. This is a super easy way to make carrots and you can certainly scale down the recipe ( but the leftovers are great if you happen to make turkey soup )
I found a link for it :
http://www.tastebook.com/recipes/3071917-Maple-glazed-autumn-carrots-with-garlic-cloves
As a side note, I have never been able to find yellow carrots , so I use all regular carrots and if you don’t have or want to get real maple syrup , you can skip it 