Planning a great menu is the stealth approach to being a great cook. What leaves an impression is not only the dishes you can make, but also how they taste, look and feel when assembled into a meal.
The pitfall to avoid is repeating ingredients: If you are serving pecan pie for dessert, don’t put out spiced pecans as an hors d’oeuvre. Both may be delicious, but the pie just won’t be as appealing by the time dessert rolls around. Variety is especially important at Thanksgiving, when you are likely to be serving guests with different tastes, allergies and aversions.
If you’re unsure how to start, think about colors. The basic palette for Thanksgiving is heavy on dishes that are white (mashed potatoes, creamed onions) and brown (turkey, stuffing, gravy). It needs the ruby red of cranberry sauce, the warm orange of pumpkin pie and sweet potatoes, to make it interesting. Add something green and snappy.
Next, think about texture: If you already have a creamy vegetable side dish, add one that’s roasted or caramelized. Finally, throw in a surprising flavor. Be truly daring and add a seriously spicy dish like our fiery sweet potatoes. Pickles and relishes like piccalilli or chutney add a puckery, traditional note.
Fiery Sweet Potatoes
From Julia Moskin
Time: 2 hours
Yield: 10 to 12 servings
Ingredients
5 pounds sweet potatoes
1 cup canned coconut milk
1 tablespoon Thai red curry paste
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon salt
Preparation
1. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Bake potatoes on sheet pan until very soft, about 75 minutes. When cool enough to handle, peel and mash.
2. In a small saucepan, heat coconut milk with curry paste over low heat. Mix coconut milk mixture, half the sugar, half the butter and salt into potatoes. Keep warm until ready to serve, or cover and refrigerate up to two days.
3. At least 30 minutes before serving, heat oven to 425 degrees. Put potatoes in a baking dish, cover with foil and bake 20 minutes. Uncover, dot with remaining butter and sugar and broil until brown and crusty, checking often to prevent scorching.
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