Why Martha Stewart Is Canceling Her Thanksgiving Dinner This Year
No matter how many Thanksgiving shopping tips, strategies, and secrets you think you know, the truth is that Thanksgiving is challenging for everyone — even absolute entertaining mavens. In fact, Martha Stewart recently announced on "The Kelly Clarkson Show" that she will not be hosting the holiday at her home this year. As the arbiter of domesticity, many people look to Stewart for Thanksgiving inspiration, particularly in home decor and menu creation. However, Stewart explained that a combination of illness and being a bit "turkeyed out" put an end to her typical holiday plans.
The TV star and author originally intended to host Thanksgiving festivities at her home, but Stewart's plans were thwarted by the cold and flu season. When one guest fell ill, a slew of cancellations followed, leading her to declare, "We're not doing Thanksgiving." Instead, Stewart plans to attend holiday functions at the homes of her friends, where she'll partake in a "tasting" of their Thanksgiving feasts. As humorously expressed by Kelly Clarkson, the prospect of Stewart sampling other chefs' culinary creations is quite stressful. Stewart's reply? "Oh, I hope so."
How many turkeys is too many?
While cancellations are a perfectly valid reason to rethink one's Thanksgiving plans, Martha Stewart shared another factor in her decision to halt her holiday happenings. As the host of many popular TV shows — including the latest addition, "Martha Cooks" — Stewart frequently prepares food on-air to share her immense culinary knowledge. This year was no exception, with Stewart telling Kelly Clarkson that she'd already cooked approximately "14 turkeys" on TV in the lead-up to the holiday.
Clarkson quickly agreed that 14 was a massive number of turkeys to prepare. In its most basic form, the process of cooking a turkey is quite daunting, but Stewart — whose first Thanksgiving turkey was reportedly a disaster — takes it to another level. The talented chef's favorite method includes applying butter to parchment paper and wrapping it around the turkey, as well as making sausage pear stuffing, adding yet another step to the process. Stewart's bold decision demonstrates that while the holidays are important, prioritizing one's sanity and well-being is even more crucial.