Financial expert on how to have a fancy yet budget-friendly Thanksgiving

SAN DIEGO (NBC, KYMA) - Hosting a Thanksgiving dinner can be fun and stressful, especially if money's tight, but a financial expert is offering advice for keeping costs down while still making the holiday special.

If customers are feeling a bit financially overwhelmed by their shopping list, it's time to change it up and make it more affordable.

"The key is to not try to make it overly fancy by using ingredients you don't usually have around and instead just sticking with the basics," said Kimberly Palmer, a personal finance expert at NerdWallet.

Palmer says there are ways to make this Thanksgiving feel special without gobbling up your savings.

"Like stuffing, you can make that feel a little fancier by adding dried cranberries on top, for example.

Instead of going through a list of other ways to fancy up their Thanksgiving on a budget, Palmer has something better for customers: Tell AI what you have in your pantry and the suggestions might surprise them.

"I actually tried this and it worked really well for me," Palmer shared. "We were having an early Friendsgiving and I had a box of stuffing, and then I had various dried fruits, and that's how I got the idea to add the dried cranberries to the stuffing, and everyone thought it was delicious if I do say so myself...so I thought it worked out pretty well."

Here are a few more money-saving ideas and strategies:

• Consider a potluck: You take care of the turkey and everyone else brings a side dish to share.
• Shop and compare: Stores may have different sales, so be ready to make multiple stops if it's not too much out of your way.
• Have a list and stick to it: This can be harder than you think as stores will do what they can to get them to buy items outside of your list.
• Have a plan to transform your leftovers: AI can also help you with that.

"Because often we have so much food after Thanksgiving. So turning that turkey into a casserole or a soup that can be a way just of making sure we're avoiding food waste," Palmer expressed.

Decorations can also help give Thanksgiving a more elegant feel. Customers can find some good ones at discount stores. Also consider using softer light like candles for dinner for a more intimate feel, distinguishing it from an everyday meal.