Thanksgiving is one of the best dinner parties of the year, and what many love about the holiday are all of the traditions. For some that may include a house full of friends, children, parents and aunts and uncles all gathered together spending the day preparing and enjoying recipes that are old family favorites.

For others it may be a first Thanksgiving away from home, feeling independent and ambitious, experimenting with a few recipes for the first time. Whether you find yourself hosting a house full of guests, or planning your first Thanksgiving dinner for two, try forming some new culinary traditions of your own. Here are some menu and recipe ideas to get you on your way!

A Note on Planning
Try to make as many dishes as possible ahead of time. Nobody wants to be stuck in a steaming kitchen all day away from what really counts, friends and family. Not to mention a large turkey will take up just about all of your precious oven space. Items that are easily prepared ahead of time include breads and rolls, soups, cranberry sauces, casseroles, side dishes and desserts.

The dough for breads and rolls can be made days or weeks ahead of time, allowed to rise once, shaped and frozen. When ready to bake, thaw the dough, give it its second rise and bake. Soups can also be made days or weeks ahead of time, frozen, and reheated when ready to serve. Cranberry sauces can usually be made a week in advance and refrigerated in a non-reactive container. Casseroles and side dishes can be made 1 to 2 days ahead of time and refrigerated. Desserts should be made the day before and refrigerated.

My First Thanksgiving
If this is the first Thanksgiving dinner you're preparing, you'll want to keep it simple or you will be overwhelmed! Roasting a whole turkey is a big enough job in itself! Besides the turkey, you can make a couple of side dishes and a dessert. For the remainder of the meal, have your guests bring the bread, a few more side dishes and appetizers or purchase ready made ones. If you plan on purchasing ready-made items be sure to order them ahead of time; you don't want be running all over town looking for a bakery that's open and actually has a few dinner rolls left! This menu will feed 6 to 8 people generously.

Have your guests bring or purchase:
Appetizers like a vegetable platter with a dip or spread
Dinner rolls
One or two vegetable side dishes like green beans or brussel sprouts
Cranberry Sauce
A dessert like Pumpkin Pie or Apple Pie

Nice n' Spicy
If the spark of red pepper is something that gets you going or if sausage and cornbread make you swoon, this Cajun inspired menu is for you. It has a great mix of spicy seafood with some great down home classics that will feed around 8 to 10 people.

Dinner at Grandma's
This includes everyone's favorites, and will feed every last cousin (not for family gatherings of less than 15).

A Squeeze of Citrus
This is for those of you who can't seem to get enough of them: oranges, tangerines, lemons and limes. Throw in a bit of pineapple and you've got a refreshing tropical inspired feast! You'll have enough food for about 6 people.

Simple and Elegant
Not up to roasting a turkey? You don't have to! This festive menu puts the focus on quick and easy turkey tenderloins. With interesting and beautiful side dishes, you won't even miss the big whole turkey! This menu will feed 4 to 6 people.

So if you're planning your first Thanksgiving menu, or just considering some new ideas, it's never too late to form a few new traditions of your own.