How are your plans for Thanksgiving coming? Getting all of the plans together?

We know it's going to cost more than in the past. The average cost has hit a new all-time high, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation, to over $50 for a family of 10.

I was talking with our friends at Consumers Energy, about how much it actually costs to cook all of the goodies we have on Thanksgiving, and I was stunned. It's low!

I love useless pieces of information, so this is fascinating for me. According to Consumers Energy, it will cost 43 cents to cook an entire Thanksgiving meal for 12 guests using a natural gas oven and stove, or $1.70 using an electric oven and stove. Say that again? I said, 43 cents by natural gas, $1.70 by electricity, to cook your entire meal!

Let me break it down for you. For a family of 12, friends, whoever.....

• Roast stuffed turkey: 28 cents in a natural gas oven; $1.05 in an electric oven.
• Large pan of mashed potatoes: 2 cents on a natural gas stove; 9 cents on an electric stove.
• Giblet gravy cooked on the stove: Less than 1 cent using natural gas; 4 cents using electricity.
• Homemade baked dinner rolls: 3 cents in a natural gas oven; 13 cents in an electric oven.
• Vegetable casserole: 3 cents in a natural gas oven; 13 cents in an electric oven.
• Two baked pumpkin pies: 7 cents in a natural gas oven; 26 cents in an electric oven.
Consumers Energy offers these tips to get even more energy value while cooking:
• Use glass and ceramic dishes. They hold heat well and allow you to lower the oven temperature by 25 degrees.
• Keep the oven door closed. The temperature drops 25 to 75 degrees each time the oven door is opened, so monitor cooking time and peek through the oven window, if possible, to check on your food.
• Use your microwave for defrosting and cooking small portions.
• Plan to bake more than one dish or cook an entire meal in the oven to save energy.
• Using roasting bags reduces cooking time in the oven by nearly half.

Wow, who knew. Bring on the drumstick!
If you need more information on more ways to save on energy, go to www.ConsumersEnergy.com/energyanswers.

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