Frugal feasts for Thanksgiving

November 20, 2009 -- With Thanksgiving less than a week away, planning the big meal is already under way in many households.

This is the weekend many people will be out shopping for their Thanksgiving dinners.

Serving a lot of people can be pricey and time-consuming.

That's why we've compiled tips and deals to help you have a festive feast that's still frugal.

Thanksgiving just wouldn't be the same without those staples everyone loves!

But putting all those sides on the table can "gobble up" your holiday budget.

For ideas on creating a Thanksgiving dinner that's easy on you and your pocketbook we had chef Christina DiMacali whip up some of her favorite recipes so we could compare them to some cheap and easy shortcuts.

On the menu, pumpkin pie, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, and stuffing!

Once Christina worked her kitchen magic, it was time for our taste-test.

Can you cut corners without sacrificing flavor?

In the end, most of our taste-testers agreed: they wouldn't turn down the "easy", "instant recipe" dishes.

But, side-by-side, they could tell the difference between the "cheats" and those made-from-scratch.

No matter what your cooking style, I found plenty of Thanksgiving staples on sale, when I scoured this week's supermarket circulars.

Stores like ShopRite, ACME, and Pathmark had Thanksgiving turkey giveaways if you spent a certain amount of money over the past few weeks. But even if you didn't, turkey's still a good buy.

Wegman's and Genuardi's have it for 49-cents a pound. It's 88 or 89 cents at Superfresh, Pathmark, and Giant. And $1.49 at ShopRite and ACME.

Sweet potatoes are about 50-cents a pound at several stores.

Many stores have Stove Top stuffing for a dollar or less.

Just about every ad has cranberry sauce for a buck.

And you can pick up pumpkin pies from Sara Lee or Mrs. Smith for about $2 each.

ShopRite

turkey 1.49/lb ($.30 w/ $300 prev. purch)
sweet potatoes 2.49 for 5-lb box
stuffing Arnold bag $2.50
canned veggies GG 4 for $2
cranberry sauce SR 3 for $2

Superfresh
turkey .88/lb (or $.26 with cert.)
sweet potatoes $2.48 5-lb. bag
stuffing Arnold bag $2.50/ST $1
canned veggies Amer. Choice 5 for $3
cranberry sauce Ocean Spray $.99
pumpkin pie Mrs. Smith $2.50

Pathmark
turkey .88/lb (.26 w/ cert.)
sweet potatoes $2.47 5-lb bag
stuffing Home Pride $2.49/ST $.99
canned veggies GG frozen$.80 box
cranberry sauce Ocean Spray $.99
pumpkin pie mrs. Smith $2

Genuardi's
turkey Safeway $.47/lb
sweet potatoes lg. yams 2 for $1
stuffing Arnold $2.50/ST $1.50
pumpkin pie Mrs. Smith $2.99

Acme
turkey $1.49 (free w/ cert)
sweet potatoes $.88/lb.
stuffing ST 4/$5 -- © 1 free
canned veggies DelMonte $.50 (buy 6)
cranberry sauce Acme $1
pumpkin pie Sara Lee $3.99

Giant
turkey $.89 (free w/ cert)
sweet potatoes $.49/lb.
stuffing ST 4 for $5
canned veggies DelMonte 3 for $2
cranberry sauce ocean Spray $1
pumpkin pie Mrs. Smith $2.50

Wegman's turkey $.49/lb.
stuffing St $.99/Wegman's $.89
canned veggies Wegman's $.39
cranberry sauce Wegman's $.79
pumpkin pie Sara Lee $1.99

LINK: www.CYPlate.com

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