3 Questions To Ask Yourself Before Planning Your Holiday Meal

The difference between taking the time to really plan your holiday meal, and flying by the seat of your pants, is that the first way will typically result in an amazing dinner and a great time with family and friends.  The second way, not so much.  You're bound to feel the stress, frustration and quite possibly end up serving a less than splendid meal. Failing to plan wisely will inevitably lead you to spending way beyond your budget, in both money and time.  In order to avoid this undesirable outcome, there are three points you must focus on; your time, your guests, and your skills.

How Much Time Do I Have?

Christmas tree. (Photo credit: Christopher S. Penn)

It's quite likely that the first time the phrase 'time is money' was uttered was during preparations for a holiday gathering. Being aware of how much time you have to prepare your holiday meal is of the utmost importance. If you don't get a good idea of how much time you can spend on the feast, you could end up having to skip parts of the menu.  Or you could end up spending extra money to change your menu to speed things up to fit the time you have.  So, be completely honest with yourself when you figure out how much time you have. No, you do not possess super powers.  It's better to get that straight right now so you aren't trying to magically bend and stretch time later.

Yes, you have to realistically figure out how much time you have. But, there's more. You also have to know how much time the food takes to go from store to table.  If you have ten hours you can spend to prepare your holiday feast, and the menu takes twenty hours to shop, cook, and serve, something's got to give. If you think you can squeeze twenty hours worth of food preparation into ten hours, then you are a magician and don't need any help from me!  However, if you're not a magician and you're still going to try this trick at home, it's quite likely you will find yourself rushing around spending valuable time trying to gather ingredients to substitute for menu items you wanted to have but ran out of time to prepare. This could put a huge burden on your time, your money, and your sanity. Don't make the mistake of under-estimating how much time it takes to prepare for your feast and celebration.

What Do My Guests Want And Need?

You would think this is a no-brainer, but you would be surprised how something so simple can make such a big difference in the way your holiday feast turns out.  For instance, do your guests like to snack, mingle, chat, and then snack some more?  If so, why not focus on that approach rather than a huge sit-down meal?  After all that nibbling and mingling, if you lead your guests to a big seven course dinner, you may be putting a halt to the fun and putting your huge meal away untouched. However, if your guests are the kind who like to come in, sit down, and dig into a big meal, then by all means skip all the appetizers and get your meal on the table.  This keeps you from wasting money preparing a bunch of snacks when it's the meal everyone is looking forward to anyway.

Knowing your guests also means knowing their likes and dislikes. This doesn't mean you have to cater all your dishes to individual tastes, but try to reach a general consensus so you don't feel like you're running a restaurant, or spending money like a restaurant. Skip the rosemary potatoes if your guests are lukewarm with their responses when asked.  And, yes, I did say ask.  It's quite appropriate when you issue an invitation to a dinner to ask your guests if they have any preferences, dietary needs, or even allergies.  Go ahead and be specific and tell them what you plan to have on the menu and if anything could cause a problem.  It's all part of being a good host.

Crab served. Christmas dinner. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Where Do My Skills Fit In?

There is nothing more frustrating than trying to cook an over-the-top meal and dumping it into the trash just because you reached way beyond your skills. Avoid creating culinary disasters by knowing your abilities. You don't want to spend a lot of money, or time, on a holiday meal that is a vision of loveliness in the foodie magazine but has no basis in reality in your kitchen. The holiday meal is no time to experiment.  Find trusted recipes and use them.  If you want to try something new, stay within your range of skills and try them out beforehand if possible.  If you're the least bit nervous, stick with what you know. Your guests will always appreciate your tried-and-true dishes.

By being aware of your time, knowing your guests, and being true to your skill set, not only will you have a great holiday meal, you will also keep your budget intact. And that all leads to a fun, relaxing holiday celebration for everyone, including you!

Cooking Tips for An Easter Dinner That Will Impress Without the Stress

Easter is another one of those days that brings friends and family together. There are many great dishes and plans that can be made for Easter dinner depending on where in the world you may be celebrating. Just remember to try to avoid making plans for Easter dinner that are contingent upon the weather to work because it never seems to do exactly the opposite of what you plan for, no matter where in the country you may be.

A dozen boiled eggs in a saucepan. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)With so many dyed eggs around it would be a shame not to incorporate them into the meals that are being prepared for your Easter menu. There are many ways to do that and a favorite in my house is deviled eggs. In addition to deviled eggs which are excellent appetizers, you can also chop the eggs up and include them in potato salad, egg salad, or chicken salad (which also happens to make excellent finger sandwiches for a light appetizer). You may also use boiled eggs in the making of cornbread dressing and/or giblet gravy, which are both popular Easter dishes in some southern states.

The good news is that there are plenty of dishes that go wonderfully well with eggs. If you like ham this is a great dish to serve with dressing, to make ham salad with later, and to simply have along with your favorite egg recipe. Ham is relatively simple to make as the hard part is often waiting on it to be finished. If you want super simplicity the only thing you really need to do to have an excellent ham dinner is pour a can of Coca-Cola over the ham, cover it in aluminum foil, and bake it for the necessary duration. This is really yummy, and it really can't get any easier than that though there are plenty of more complicated ham recipes available.

You will want to offer plenty of side dishes to compliment your main dish. Popular favorites are vegetables, macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes, dressing, sweet potato casserole, and rolls. These are all relatively simple to prepare, not very time consuming and can also be delegated to guests if you'd like without too terribly much fuss. You'll also want to have a few appetizers on hand for the time before dinner is ready and a couple of desserts for the perfect finish (as if those chocolate bunnies from the Easter basket's are not enough)!

A salad platter. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)For those looking for fare that is a little lighter on Easter, I recommend offering big salads, several different steamed veggies (there should be some good fresh spring greens, asparagus, and the like available right now), and offer fruit as a dessert, as well as a raw veggie platter along with the appetizers. Easter is a day to celebrate and you shouldn't leave family members who are dieting to dread their lack of healthy eating options. You'll also find yourself surprised by those who, given the option, will eat the healthier foods if they are available.

Make sure you offer plenty of drink options as well. If you are hosting Easter dinner at your home, in addition to these cooking ideas I also suggest offering a place for your guests to change clothes if necessary. Many people come wearing their Sunday best and while it was great for church services and photo opportunities they don't often fare too well with gravy, butter, or grass stains.

Of course you could skip all the advice above and go for a down-home hoe down of a barbecue for the Easter holiday that in some parts of the country signals the approach of Spring. If it's warm enough outside, barbecues are often appealing because they limit a good bit of the mess to the great outdoors and give the kids involved a great place to run, play, and let off steam.

Have a very happy Easter, and be sure to check back later this week for some tasty Easter recipe ideas!

Cooking for Two on Valentine's Day

There are many holidays that are meant to be a celebration of family, friends, and memories. Valentine's day is a holiday that is meant to be a celebration of love. While that love can relate to family and friends it is quite often interpreted as a celebration of romantic love. While it would be nice if we could all go out and enjoy dinner together each Valentine's Day at our favorite restaurant that is not always a possibility. After all, someone has to prepare and serve the foods, put on the productions we see, and drive us to and from those locations or any number of other important features. There is also, of course, the little matter of the fact that for many of us, Valentine's Day falls a day or two prior to payday.

Image by Mundoo via FlickrDon't despair however - cooking for two is a great romantic option for that special day, and can be a lot of fun if you pour your heart and soul into the meal planning and preparations. It is even more fun if you do it together! Great Valentine's Day favorites include dishes that we don't eat every day such as steak and lobster, streak and shrimp, well steak and pretty much anything but also include foods that are believed to be aphrodisiacs such as oysters, truffles, chocolate (ever wonder why the stores fill with boxes of chocolate around Valentine's Day?), and asparagus.

If this isn't your style or you just want a nice romantic dinner you might want to brush up on your seafood recipes such as shrimp scampi, roasted salmon, lasagna, chicken alfredo, and countless other favorites that you and the love of your life may share. If nothing else seems appealing go through your sweetie's personal list of favorites and cook something that is a personal favorite for them. Even if it's chicken and dumplings they'll appreciate the effort and that you put his or her favorite on the table. It's almost always the thought that counts and he or she will appreciate the thought that you put into the meal.

Dessert is also very important when it comes to preparing the perfect Valentine's Day feast. While you do not want anything so heavy that you can't move afterwards, a light dessert of chocolate soufflé, or cheesecake is an excellent ending to a beautiful meal. You want to be prepared to do a little moving around afterwards - whether swinging on the front porch or dancing in the den to get the blood flowing and work off those extra calories. Of course both of these things can be a great prelude to other romantic activities that work off some serious calories!

Image by Viterxo13 via FlickrIn addition to cooking your favorite meal for two for your Valentine's Day celebration of love you will also want to set the mood for the evening with a nice setting. Get out the formal table cloth, the good China, the formal silver, and light a few candles in the room. Have champagne on ice and some romantic music playing in the CD player. If you have a fireplace be sure to light a fire so that there is a warm glow in the room. You want your dinner to be an event rather than just another meal in your daily life!

Perhaps the most important thing about making your Valentine's Day cooking worthy of a romantic event is to send the little ones (if you have any) off to a sitter or home with the grandparents for an evening. It makes the preparation and enjoyment of a meal much more enjoyable if you are able to do both without constant interruptions from those children you adore. It is good to have time alone and important for sanity and for relationship building with the person you are supposed to be sharing your life with.

Making your Valentine's Day dinner special for the two of you will help create many wonderful memories that you can share in the months and years to come.