Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday—I love the meaning behind it, and well, the food is delicious! But, being married to a guy with a catering background has many advantages. Aside from the fantastic dinners he prepares, he is an artist when it comes to orchestrating stress-proof party planning. It doesn’t faze him one bit if he has to prepare a meal for fifty—that’s a piece of pie to him! So, sure, I glean what I can from him to share with my favorite blog readers, because who needs to worry this time of year, right? It should be filled with fun and giving thanks, not a stress mess ... and oh by the way, did I mention I was thankful that you’re reading this?
So here are five tips to stress-proof Thanksgiving food preparations:
1. Shop with a Game Plan
While your holidays may always include “staple” foods (i.e. turkey, stuffing, potatoes), get a game plan together before you hit the crowded supermarkets! First off, plan your recipes before you go food shopping. Then, make a food shopping list template with sections/aisles of the food store: Dairy, Produce, Deli, Spices, etc. Plug the ingredients you need from your recipes right into the area of the food store; this will make food shopping super simple and efficient!
2. Organize Your Ingredients
To make holiday cooking a whole lot less stressful, organize your ingredients as you unpack them so you know exactly where to find everything you need for the big day. You may even want to label them, so when you’re cooking, it’s 1-2-3! You can use Tupperware to put things together in “mini bins” in your refrigerator and cabinets, and then identify with a label-maker or sticky note!
3. Make One Dish a Star
Instead of trying to create bean casseroles, sweet potato pie, three kinds of stuffing, make one dish a star and keep the others simple, yet delicious! Pick the “star” dish first—this one can be more extravagant or have some meaning (like your grandmother’s famous chestnut stuffing), and for the rest of the side-dishes, just keep them basic but spice them up with 1 additional ingredient (carrots topped with mint, ginger, or thyme).
