When thawing your Dream Dinner Holiday Sides, separate the individual frozen dishes from one another and place them toward the front of your refrigerator shelf for best air circulation.

A note about cooking instructions:

The recommended cooking time for the turkey could take as long
as 4 ½ hours. However, oven temperature calibration varies between models or may be slightly different in older ovens. These factors, as well as variation in the weight of the turkey may result in a shorter or longer cooking time.

To ensure a flawless Thanksgiving Dinner be sure to use a thermometer to check the temperature of your turkey. Check it once about 2 1/2 hours into the cooking time to gauge how quickly it is reaching the desired temperature. Once it reaches an internal minimum temperature of 165°F it is done.

Dream Dinners Holiday Turkey Cooking Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 325°F
2. Remove turkey from packaging, place in shallow pan and
   add 1-cup water.
3. Loosely cover with foil and cook 2 1/2 hours. Using meat thermometer, check temp. When at 135 degrees, remove foil and cook for an additional 30 min. or until internal temp. reaches 150 degrees. Turkey will continue to cook as it rests for 20 min covered with foil.
4. Once you remove your turkey, cover in foil to hold the heat and let it rest for 20 minutes (165 degrees) before carving.

Here is a great cooking time line for your entire Dream Dinners Holiday dinner:

• 3 – 5 days before: Thaw all items in refrigerator
• 5 hrs before: Preheat oven and bake Turkey (using cooking instructions above)
• 1 1/2 hr before: Bake biscuits
• 1 hr before: Bake Mashed Potatoes and Sweet Potatoes
• 1 hr before: Remove foil from Turkey and continue baking 30 min.
• 45 min before: Bake Stuffing
• 30 min before: Bake Green Bean Dish
• 30 min before: Remove Turkey from oven and let rest covered with foil
• 15 min before: Heat Gravy
• 10 min before: Slice Turkey
• 5 min before: Place Cranberry Orange Relish in serving dish

Note about leftovers:
Leftover turkey should be refrigerated in containers within 2 hours of roasting. Leftovers may be kept 3 to 4 days. Leftover turkey may be frozen 3 to 4 months.

As always, if you have any questions, please contact your local store or customerservice@dreamdinners.com

Do not  thaw biscuits . Bake them from frozen.

If you already have it thawed the chicken mixture you can cook it in your crock pot on low for 4 -6 hours or high 2 – 3 hours, baking the biscuits in the oven just like above. 

Crock Pot Temperatures:  You should check you crock pot during cooking to verify the cooking temperatures.  Low setting should cook foods in 4 hours to 160 – 180 degrees.  High should cook the food to 160 – 200 in 3 hours. Not all crock pots cook at those even temperatures and knowing your crock pot temp will help you adjust your cooking times.

Enjoy!

Holiday Roasted Turkey This spectacular, simple-to-prepare turkey will raise your dinner to an entirely new level of distinction. The bone has been removed, so it’s easy to carve, and by keeping the skin intact, it remains juicy and flavorful. Better yet, easy to prepare and serve doesn’t mean you skimp on quantity. This cut of turkey is the equivalent of a 16 to 20lb whole turkey! Available in the Fast Lane category on our menu.

Holiday Family Favorite Side Dishes – Pick 3 Order the side-dish combination that works best for you! Combine our turkey with a selection of our sides and you’ll serve the ideal dinner, personalized to your family’s tastes, time and budget. We’re offering choices from among 5 side-dish options, including 3 different mashed potato seasonings.

Ordering is easy. 1.First, print a copy of this page and identify the side dishes you want.  2.Second, online today, or during your October session, place an order for the Holiday Family Favorite Side Dishes. 3.One order gives you a choice of 3 items from the list below. (Bring the printed version with you to your November session.)

Green Bean Casserole We think you’ll find this to be a big hit at your holiday table! Young and old alike will enjoy the creaminess of adding Alfredo sauce and Parmesan cheese to these green beans, combined with the surprising crunch of water chestnuts. All this topped off with bread crumbs and sliced almonds to make an overall wonderful Holiday dish!

Mashed Potatoes We think we’ve solved the only problem with mashed potatoes and that is there are never enough! This year we’re providing you with 5 pounds of mashed potatoes and letting you personalize them with your choice of seasoning. •Cheesy Mashed Potatoes •Gorgonzola Mashed Potatoes •Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Sweet Potatoes The holiday dinner in many parts of the country isn’t complete without sweet potatoes. You’ll find the ease of the already chopped and ready to bake sweet potatoes perfect for this busy time of the year. We offer two seasonal choices. •Brown Sugar and Pecans or Savory Sweet Potatoes

Savory Stuffing You combine the traditional bread, celery, butter and spices with sausage, apples, cranberries and pecans to make this stuffing really something very special. You can add all or just a few of the above ingredients to personalize this recipe for you and your family.

Gravy, Cranberry Sauce and Biscuits This combination will round out your meal, leaving you with time to sit back and enjoy this special time with family and friends. A sparkling bowl of jewel-colored cranberry sauce is a must for the holiday table. (We’ve added a little orange flavor to give it some zest.) We finish with savory gravy and pearl onions, plus 12 home-style flaky biscuits.

http://dreamdinners.com/main.php?static=ms_holiday_menu

2. Take it slowly, try one of these ways every week.

3. Leave the salt out of your Dream Dinners when assembling them.  Choose foods lower in sodium and ask your grocer or supermarket to offer more low-sodium foods.

4. Make foods from scratch whenever possible with fresh foods, whole grains and low-fat dairy products.

5.  Request no salt in your meals when eating out or traveling.

6. Take the salt shaker off the dinner table. If you salt foods in cooking or at the table, add small amounts. Learn to use, lemon zest, spices and herbs, rather than salt, to enhance the flavor of food.

7.  When planning side dishes, consider that fresh and most plain frozen vegetables are low in sodium.

8.  When selecting canned foods, select those prepared with reduced or no sodium.

9.  Remember that fresh fish, poultry, and meat are lower in sodium than most canned and processed ones.

10. Many manufactured  frozen dinners, packaged mixes, canned soups, and salad dressings contain a considerable amount of sodium.

11. Remember that condiments such as soy and many other sauces, pickles, and olives are high in sodium. Ketchup and mustard, when eaten in large amounts, can also contribute significant amounts of sodium to the diet. Choose lower sodium varieties.

12. Choose fresh fruits and vegetables as a lower sodium alternative to salted snack foods.

http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20110607/LIVING/706079981/1042/LIVING02

One hour on High is equal to 1 1/2 to 2 hrs of cooking time on Low.

Always cook with the lid on and dont lift the lid for the first 2 hr of cooking.

Cut your vegetables in larger pieces than you would if cooking on stove top.  They benefit from slow cooking to develop a richer flavor and will shrink.   I like at the smallest, a 2 inch raw cut of any vegetable.

Fresh herbs should only be added at the last 5 – 10 min of cooking, the flavors will dissipate if you slow cook them.  It is best to use dried herbs and add them when you start the cooking. They simmer and hydrate into the dish, imparting richer flavor.

Only add milk, cream or sour cream in the last 15 – 20 min of cooking time or it can break down and separate.

When cooking frozen meats or dinner add 1 cup of room temp or warm liquid to thaw food evenly before it begins to cook. I like using stock, beer, red or white wine depending on what the dinner is.

I like to add a cup or so of beans, barley or other fiber rich grains to what ever dinner I am cooking. Its easy and we all need more fiber!

Always fill the crock 1/2 to 3/4 full. 

Allow to cool to room temperature before cleaning the crock or the lid.  Water on a hot surface can cause it to break.

Crock Pot Temperatures:  You should check you crock pot during cooking to verify the cooking temperatures.  Low setting should cook foods in 4 hours to 160 – 180 degrees.  High should cook the food to 160 – 200 in 3 hours. Not all crock pots cook at those even temperatures and knowing your crock pot temp will help you adjust your cooking times and settings

In my crock pot, I sprayed the crock with non-stick cooking spray, add the potatoes, drain the thawed chicken and layer on potatoes, cover with sauce. Bake low 4 – 6 hr. Cover with topping bag of cheese and more bacon and served.  Yum!