|
Planning a Christmas holiday dinner or for that matter, any
large gathering really isn't as daunting as it may first appear,
especially when you realize that the more thought and
consideration you can give to the prep-work and the meal, the
easier it will be. The key is to do as much work ahead of time
as you can, so you and your guests can enjoy yourselves the day
of the party.
To help you create a reduced-stress dinner, here are some great
tips for making your next holiday function a memorable and
enjoyable time.
1. Decide how many guests you plan on inviting at least two to
three weeks beforehand. Basic fact - the more notice you can
give your guests, especially during the busy holiday season, the
more likely you will receive positive responses to your
invitations. Be sure to assess how much space you have, both at
the table and in your home when planning your guest list.
2. If you want to invite more guests than your table will seat,
consider a buffet, using your dining table as the serving area.
For a buffet, make sure to divide all the food into small
portions and bring them to the table from a warm oven as needed
that way everything stays warm and tastes at its best.
3. Compose your menu well ahead of time to give yourself plenty
of breathing room to obtain any obscure or difficult to find
ingredients. When thinking about how much to cook, plan on each
person eating one and a half to two pounds of food.
4. Take your menu and put the different tasks and preparation
steps into a to-do list format. This will prevent you from
forgetting anything along the way, and will also allow you to
better time things.
5. Make your big list of non-perishable items and head to the
grocery store a week ahead. Most items, with the exception of
salad greens and some fruit, will keep for a week, and you will
miss the brunt of the last minute crowd. For those items that
won't keep, pick them up two days before your dinner party.
Because you did the bulk of your shopping early, you will be
able to pick up the few perishable items you need and use the express checkout! Don't worry about having too little food
because most of your guests will have eyes far larger than their
stomachs. Don't worry about overdoing it either - who doesn't
love a warmed leftover turkey on a Kaiser with seasoned
mayonnaise the next day!
6. If you are trying a new recipe, now is the time to test it
out. You don't want a recipe that isn't quite as tasty as it
sounded, or that doesn't quite cooperate like the instructions
said it should, to rear its ugly head the day of your gathering.
7. To save yourself even more trouble, serve foods that don't
need to be cooked. Foods such as salad, crudités, stuffed
jalapenos, dips, cheese and crackers, and fresh fruit are always
winners, and will save valuable oven and counter space.
8. Clean out as much of the refrigerator as possible and make
for lots of shelf space about one week ahead. The more free
space you have in the fridge, the more you can fill it with food
prepared ahead of time, leaving you less to do the day of your
event.
9. Decorate your home two days ahead, and if your party guests
will be sitting at a table for dinner, get the table ready. This
will give you enough time to buy or borrow things you may need.
If you are having furniture brought in for additional seating,
get this done two days before as well. You don't want to risk
the delivery van not showing or showing late when you have
guests and dinner ready to go!
10. Peel and cut all vegetables two days before. Carrots and
potatoes can be stored in ice water in the fridge; onions,
celery and other vegetables must be kept dry and wrapped well in
plastic wrap or zipper seal bags.
11. Many baked items freeze quite well when tightly sealed with
plastic wrap. Prepare cookie dough and pre-bake cakes in
advance, wrap them tightly, and put them in the freezer.
Pre-bake your pies and wrap tightly in plastic wrap as well. The
morning of your party, pull out your cakes and decorate as
needed, allowing them to defrost throughout the day. Just before
you sit down for your holiday meal, place any pies or cookies
that need baking in the oven to bake or warm. Most pre-cooked
frozen pies will take about 45 minutes to warm completely, which
will usually have them ready just as your guests are getting to
dessert.
12. Make as many dishes the day before as you can. Start
prepping your meat of choice for the meal - start brining your
turkey or rub down your roast beef with your dry rub. Seasoning your meats
(excluding seafood) with your favorite dry
rub the day before really allows your rub
to
penetrate the meat and bring out the flavors.
I hope these tips help you as much as I have found them to have
helped me over the years. There really is nothing like feeling
in control when hosting a dinner party, and not having to worry
about what is going to happen next!
Happy Holidays to all!
About the author:
Joe Johnson is a founding partner with Caroline's
Rub - Fine Spice
Creations, where he is in charge of product promotion and
development, and where he serves as the executive chef.
|