Thanksgiving Dinner for One
It’s a sad truth that sometimes, despite our best efforts, we may find ourselves alone on Thanksgiving or the holidays, so I have decided to share how to make a Thanksgiving dinner for one that will be both delicious and incredibly easy as it only uses one sheet pan, and once you’re done it will hopefully help you forget about the fact that you are alone on the holidays.
I get it, I live alone myself and do understand the struggles that can occur when you have to cook for yourself without wasting a ton of money, but I manage to survive and I think you can too.
For this dinner, I’ll be taking some of the classic components of a traditional Thanksgiving dinner, that being turkey, stuffing/dressing, potatoes, and Brussels sprouts and doing them in a smaller way. (If you love gravy or cranberry sauce, then I’m afraid you’re out of luck here.)
Obviously doing a whole turkey for yourself is a lot to ask for, so instead we will be working with a tiny but delicious Cornish game hen which, coincidentally, can be found near the frozen turkeys at your grocery store.
Let’s get cooking!
One Sheet Pan Thanksgiving Dinner for One
For the Cornish Game Hen:
1 Cornish Game Hen, fully thawed
Vegetable oil
Salt and Pepper
For the Stuffing:
1 cup of cubed stale bread
1/4 of an onion, finely chopped
1/2 a carrot, finely chopped
1/2 a stalk of celery, finely chopped
2 teaspoons of minced sage leaves
2 tablespoons of melted butter
1 egg
1/3 cup of chicken broth/stock
Salt and Pepper
For the Potatoes:
1/4 pound of Yukon Gold Potatoes, cut into quarters
Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper
2 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon of minced rosemary leaves
For the Brussels sprouts :
1/4 pound of Brussels Sprouts
Olive oil
Salt and Pepper
Step 1: Prepare the Cornish Game Hen
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and line a baking sheet with heavy duty aluminum foil.
Pat the Cornish game hen all over with a paper towel, rub the skin with vegetable oil, then season all over with salt and pepper. Lay the hen breast-side up in the prepared pan while you make the other components.
Step 2: Make the Stuffing
(I’ll never understand why we only eat stuffing on Thanksgiving, for me it’s one of the best parts of the meal!)
In a medium bowl, toss the stale bread, onion, carrot, celery, and sage together.
Add the melted butter, egg, salt and pepper, and the chicken broth. Stir to combine, then pile the stuffing onto one side of the sheet pan next to the hen, making sure to spread the stuffing into an even layer.
Step 3: Prepare the Potatoes
Toss the potatoes with some olive oil, salt, pepper, the sliced garlic, and the rosemary.
Spread the potatoes in an even layer onto one corner of the baking sheet, opposite side of where the stuffing is, then set aside.
Step 4: Prepare the Sprouts
Cut off the stems of the Brussels sprouts, then peel off the dark green outer leaves until only the bright green leaves remain. Cut the Brussels sprouts in half, quarters if larger than a golf ball, then lay onto the empty space on the sheet pan and toss with olive oil, salt and pepper.
Step 5: Roast
Place the entire sheet pan into the oven and roast everything for 50-60 minutes, or until the Cornish hen reaches a minimal internal temperature of 165 degrees. You may need to toss the stuffing, potatoes and sprouts about halfway through.
And there you have it, a simple and delicious way to celebrate Thanksgiving on your own.
