Thanksgiving is just around the corner and Christmas will follow shortly. Even though most of us will celebrate the holidays very differently this year due to the ongoing pandemic, we would still like to make it festive and prepare our delicious recipes that we have been waiting for all year long. Perhaps we will not be able to get together with all of our family members under the same roof or even at the same time, but nevertheless planning an entire holiday meal can be stressful and overwhelming. Especially in these emotionally trying times, it is so essential to have fun with our loved ones without added stress. It is important to enjoy each other’s company without worrying about last minute details, and being able to sit down and sip on a nice drink (of course 6-8 feet apart) instead of laboring in our kitchen and missing out on precious time and fun conversations. So, we put together a guide to help you efficiently prepare for your holiday meals without going crazy in the process.

1. Start planning - 1-2 weeks before the actual holiday

• Most of us have some staple recipes which we always prepare for a specific holiday but we are always on the lookout for new additions to the traditional repertoire. First, go through your old recipes and decide on what is a must, which dish you “cannot live without”. Start searching in magazines or online for festive, healthy, or new dishes you would like to complement this year’s holiday feast with. Last year we added a delicious brussel sprout recipe and ditched our usual rum raison carrot dish. Not that we did not like the latter, but it was time to change it up a little bit and also go with something healthier.

• Make a list of your chosen menu and prepare your shopping list. It is best to divide your ingredients into two categories. The first one should include all your non-perishable items, the other should list the perishable ingredients, which you can buy a couple of days before the specific holiday.

2. Start your shopping - a week before or the week of the actual holiday

• With Covid lurking around, shopping is a bit more challenging than what we are used to, and some ingredients are not always available. So do your shopping early in case you do not find what you need right away. First, get all your non-perishable items. Also, make sure you have your special candles and your seasonal decorations - except for fresh flowers.

• A couple of day before the actual holiday is the time to grab all those perishable items. I know that here in the USA stores are actually open on thanksgiving or the 24th of December but honestly I cringe when I see people trying to buy their entire meal the day of a holiday. The only reason to be in a grocery store on a holiday is for emergency shopping, which you can easily avoid by following our advice. It is good to buy your fresh flowers a couple of days before the big dinner as it sometimes takes a day or two for flowers to open up and bloom beautifully in your home.

3. Finish decorating - two days before the holiday dinner

• If you host more people than you can comfortably accommodate in your house or apartment, figure out how many extra chairs and perhaps folding tables you will need. Try to pick it up from friends or a rental place on time - at least a day before. You do not want to worry about setting everything up on the day of your dinner party.

• Make sure your table clothes are washed and ready to go, which is best to do a day or two before. Set it all up, so in the morning of the party you do not have to rush around and worry about laundry and ironing.

4. Start prepping and cooking - one day before the holiday dinner

• Let’s say you are preparing a Thanksgiving feast. I would prepare most of the dishes the day before the dinner, for example: stuffing, mashed potatoes, fresh cranberry sauce, and all the desserts. Yes, that includes our famous pumpkin cheesecake pie as well, see recipe here. I also clean and cut any veggies or other raw ingredients that needs preparation for the next day, except meats. Just make sure you cover it all up tight and store it in your refrigerator, so they stay crispy and fresh.

• Set your table or tables up with decorations but hold on with the plates, silverware and glasses until the day of, so everything stays clean and dust-free. Go through your serving dishes and serving utensils to make sure you have one for each dish on the table. Decide in advance which serving dish will hold a specific food, you can even put sticky notes on the plates to make it easier to remember in the last minute rush.

5. The day of the holiday

• Unless you are making meat that has to be marinated in advance, I always prepare my meat dishes in the morning of the actual dinner. For example, if you are entertaining for Thanksgiving, I start out with my turkey in the morning, especially because my kids hate to see me wrestle with the bird while cleaning it in the sink; somehow it makes them want to become a vegetarian, so I try to do this unpleasant task before anyone wakes up. I usually set my cleaned turkey into it’s baking dish but do not season it until I am actually ready to bake it. Make sure you leave enough time for your meat to cook and sit before serving. I calculate the baking time in accordance with the size of the bird and add an extra hour for resting the meat or for any unforeseen issues. Shit can happen to anyone in the kitchen, especially when you are making multiple dishes.

• While your turkey is cooking, it is time to set your table with your plates and silverware and wipe your wine glasses clean of any water spots. Love a sparkly glass!

• When your table is ready, you can start prepping and cooking any other food that has to be made fresh. Rolls, roasted veggies, fresh salads and such. Do not forget to put your dishes you have made the day before into the oven on time to warm up. A list comes handy here too with all your dishes and warm up times to keep you on track.

• We are not huge fans of appetizers when we are serving a large and diverse meal, but if you want to make sure people are not starving until the bird is ready to carve, try to serve appetizers that are easy to pick up with a toothpick, or can be individually served. This year is a big no-no for chips and dips, or cheese plates that everyone has to cut for themselves, or anything else that can be touched by multiple people. Let’s try to be safe.

• Instead of placing dishes in the middle of the table, I like to set up my dishes on the kitchen island or the kitchen bar, or on a separate table for easy serving and safe food handling. If you have food warmers or electric gridles, use them to keep food warm throughout the night. Otherwise, old fashioned aluminum foil will do.

We are not even sure if we will be able to be with our extended family for this holiday season, but we will still make our favorite dishes, even if it is only for two people. We all love the holidays but we understand that this year will be much harder for many of you.

If we can help with special ideas or recipes, or if you just need an uplifting chat, please feel free to reach out to us for 1-1 coaching here or at doubletake.lifestyle@yahoo.com. Have a beautiful, loving, and safe holiday season!