Which Dishes Are Most Essential On Thanksgiving?

As we get ready to enjoy turkey day, it's hard to ignore the many mentions of rising grocery prices and how it will affect the holiday experience. Finance Buzz reports many may be editing their Thanksgiving feast down to the essentials, but what exactly are those?

In a survey of 1,200 adults, Finance Buzz asked respondents to list the six "most essential" Thanksgiving foods. In first place is unsurprisingly turkey, but it's interesting to note that a third of people didn't agree. In the No. 2 spot is the stuffing—gravy, rolls, cranberry sauce, and sweet potatoes rounded out the rest of the "essential" plate. Essential desserts are in their own category, and 45% of people chose pumpkin as the most essential pie. Apple pie came in second, beating out sweet potato by just two percent.

In addition to the essentials, the survey also addressed the recalentado. For the non-spanish speakers, recalentado is how we refer to leftovers (reheated). The survey found that more than 50% of people eat leftovers for two to three days after Thanksgiving and more than one in 10 people spend a full week or more eating leftovers throughout the winter holidays.

I want to confidently proclaim that there is no shame in the leftovers game. I commend the people who get creative and turn their leftovers into some fantastic new dish. My go-to is putting a random mix of those essential Thanksgiving plate leftovers into a tortilla to create some delicious Thanksgiving leftover tacos. Otherwise, it's all going on a plate and straight into the microwave. For those of you who think leftovers are gross, this is damn sure not your time of the year so just step aside for the rest of us.

What would be on your essential Thanksgiving plate? And what are you doing with those leftovers?