New ideas to try this Thanksgiving

Experts advise buying the largest turkey you can cook and store. Leftover meat can be frozen in recipe sized packages, defrosted and used over a period of time in everything from turkey strogonoff to turkey curry salad.

For a different snack food at holiday parties, put the peanuts away and substitute cool, plucked-from-the-stem grapes. Guests will enjoy snacking on a few single grapes as much if not more than the ubiquitous peanuts.

A Thanksgiving centerpiece is easy to do with so many colorful fruits of the harvest season. Select a sample of fall gourds and squash, mound them in a basket and let them spill out on the table. If you need more and have room, add colorful fall leaves or evergreen sprays for softness.