If my guest list includes kids, then there’s a good chance I may need to help a parent or two accommodate their picky eaters. I can then store the pins with the rest of my holiday servingware so I don’t have to come up with new labels every year. The pins stay in place so that everyone can easily tell which label belongs to which dish. Write “gluten-free,” “vegan,” and the like on a pin, then clip it to the lip of a dish. I used to get asked these questions every year about my Thanksgiving buffet: “Which stuffing is the gluten-free one?” “Do these potatoes have butter in them?” “Is this the vegan gravy?” Usually, I didn’t know the answers, because in my haste to get everything ready, I lost track of where I’d put each dish.Ī few years ago, a crafty cousin of mine came up with an easy way to preempt those questions and keep the buffet line moving: by labeling each serving dish with a clothespin.Īll it takes is a Sharpie and a spring-loaded clothespin. Here are five items that have helped solve several of my Thanksgiving-prep blind spots-and that I’ll definitely have on hand this year and in years to come. So I started taking notes to remind Future Me about the stuff I usually forget. I started hosting my extended family’s Thanksgiving feast six years ago, and every year since, a moment always comes when I’ve realized I don’t have a certain something that might make my job easier, and just as importantly, that would allow more of my guests to enjoy their holiday meal. With so much focus on sides, pies, and of course, that dang bird, it’s easy to let the little things-the accessories and accoutrements that can keep things running smoothly-slip through the cracks. Whether you’re cooking the entire meal yourself or running point on a multi-person potluck, there’s an overwhelming number of dishes to prepare and a lot of pressure to make sure they live up to your family’s traditions and your guests’ expectations. It is also, for those who plan and cook it, a massive undertaking. Thanksgiving dinner is one of the loveliest occasions of the holiday season.

Pot luck dinner clip art