I’m a proponent of minimum-labor Thanksgivings, primarily because I do the cooking.

We usually have only immediate family, if that, so the turkey this year is a Jenny-O oven-ready “cook in the bag” turkey breast. Everyone likes it. Some years I cook a regular turkey breast on the Weber. Been a long time since I’ve done a whole bird. Nobody around here is much on dark meat.

Regular boil-and-mash potatoes. This year I’m trying red potatoes with skins on, but I saw some steam-in-the-bag-then-mash potato chunks at the store that would be a lot easier. I made a note.

Dressing is Pepperidge Farm seasoned dressing cubes mixed with Cream of Chicken soup. That’s it. Microwaved, then put in the oven for a bit to crisp it up. Never sees the inside of a bird. A big favorite, and not just on Thanksgiving.

Gravy comes out of a can or jar. The turkey comes with some, but I like the other stuff better.

Vegetables? Could be anything in different years. My son, the only guest this year, doesn’t think much of vegetables, but likes carrots. My wife likes asparagus, and I found some steam-in-the-bag asparagus for her. I’ll eat the carrots. If it was just my wife and me, sometimes I make the traditional green-bean casserole.

Cranberry-orange relish from Trader Joe’s. Some years we use our Sunbeam grinder attachment and make our own.

A fruit assortment of apples and grapes from the Nob Hill produce section.

Dessert is frozen cherry pie and pecan pie, baked in the oven here. There are lots of places here to get fresh-baked pies, but again, I’m lazy. Ice cream available on request.

Sparkling apple juice to drink.