Up until 2 1/2 years ago when I was working, I had such long hours on the job that I had to do almost the entire meal on Thanksgiving and again on Christmas day, as well as all the cleaning of my then disaster house the day before. I have always strived to start early with holiday meal cleaning and prep, but it never ended up happening because there never seemed to be enough time. In past years, I would enjoy cooking everything from scratch for the first few hours, but doing all of it myself and on the holiday. It became absolutely exhausting and I was wiped out by mealtime as was my holiday spirit! Then all the cleanup after would still be left. Even though I’m not working now, I live with variable energy from chronic illnesses. I’ve always dreamed of making this easier by starting to prepare everything the week ahead (both cooking and cleaning) but there was never time for it. So with O365’s help I’ve been gradually getting better at working ahead. After a few google searches, I’ve learned that SO much of it can be done ahead of time. Cranberry sauce, pie crusts, whole pies, stuffing, the gravy, etc can all be made ahead and reheated on the holiday! Several of these things such as pie crusts can even be made and frozen ahead. You all probably know this, but I wasn’t familiar with all that can be done to work ahead. This year we celebrated with my daughter and son in law at their house with his parents. I brought several dishes. I made most everything ahead this year and prepped ingredients for others. It was much easier. Here’s my list of how I did things that I’ll save for next year; I hope it helps someone!

Posted by Christianne Collins at 2024-11-29 02:45:04 UTC