Making/Cooking/Prepping Ahead…

[WildflowerMom]

For big meals (holidays or any gathering at all), what do you do to get ahead? 
 

for example, my dressing calls for an onion and bell pepper chopped so I did that this weekend and froze it.   Also, I’ll prepare my dressing the day before and actually cook it on Thursday morning.  
 

I get overwhelmed easily by all the cooking/baking, so what is your go-to for streamlining for big meals? 

[Pawz4me]

I have a whole oven full of sweet potatoes baking right now. We're going to a relative's home for our main Thanksgiving meal, but there'll be plenty of eating happening here this week, too. And sweet potatoes are so easy to reheat in the microwave.

[KatieJ]

I do as much as I can!

last week I baked dinner rolls

today I will do cheese torte (Dh family recipes he adores)

maybe an  apple pie (Dh prefers mine)

Mashed potatoes tomorrow, and I may even cook the sweet potatoes as I prefer them mashed..easily reheated. 

Wednesday I’ll prep the sausage, onions and celery for the dressing

Wednesday I plan to get my table mostly ready (we are now retired and living in a much smaller home..I just need to know how I am going to seat 18 people)

Thursday am will just be turkey, dressing and gravy. I’ll be popping potatoes into my oven when Turkey comes out.

my DIL is bringing the other sides . My DD is doing desserts and games at her house later..

[Annie G]

For me it’s all the dishes that accumulate…that’s what stresses and sucks the fun out of hosting. 
I’m a huge list person and I have things every day this week that I’ll do to get ahead. For instance, I have pie dough made and chilling. One of the Thursday pies is lemon meringue so I just finished zesting the lemons and juicing them, putting the amount I need in a small jar. So I was able to wash the micro plane, cutting board, juicer, and knife today.  When I make the pie I won’t have to measure the juice or zest. Keeps me from making mistakes. 
For the next few days I’ll do bits and pieces of the prep work, in small spurts between other things. It’s not less time than doing it all on Thursday but spreading out the time on my feet with hands washing dishes and such means Thursday will be easier. 

[WildflowerMom]

46 minutes ago, Pawz4me said:

I have a whole oven full of sweet potatoes baking right now. We're going to a relative's home for our main Thanksgiving meal, but there'll be plenty of eating happening here this week, too. And sweet potatoes are so easy to reheat in the microwave.

Ok, so I’m doing sweet potato soufflé….  It has an egg in it.   Marshmallows go on top.   Could I make it tomorrow (Tuesday) sans marshmallows and actually *bake* it on Thursday morning?   Will it matter that an egg is in it in the fridge that long? 

[WildflowerMom]

What about Mac n cheese?  Can I grate the cheese tomorrow and just store it in the fridge until I need it Thursday to make it?   
 

I’m scared stuff will go bad if it sits in the fridge, uncooked.  

[Pawz4me]

17 minutes ago, WildflowerMom said:

Ok, so I’m doing sweet potato soufflé….  It has an egg in it.   Marshmallows go on top.   Could I make it tomorrow (Tuesday) sans marshmallows and actually *bake* it on Thursday morning?   Will it matter that an egg is in it in the fridge that long? 

I think it would be fine.

[regentrude]

I make a chart what goes into the oven/on the stove at what time and in which pan/pot.

The only things I make ahead are the cranberry sauce and the pie dough so it can chill overnight. 

[regentrude]

35 minutes ago, WildflowerMom said:

What about Mac n cheese?  Can I grate the cheese tomorrow and just store it in the fridge until I need it Thursday to make it?   
 

I’m scared stuff will go bad if it sits in the fridge, uncooked.  

The cheese is sitting in the fridge uncooked right now ;)

[WildflowerMom]

Just now, regentrude said:

The cheese is sitting in the fridge uncooked right now 😉

Yes, yes it is.  🤣

I’ll go ahead and grate it, possibly today!  That feels like taking a big step to me, lol! 

 

[regentrude]

38 minutes ago, WildflowerMom said:

Ok, so I’m doing sweet potato soufflé….  It has an egg in it.   Marshmallows go on top.   Could I make it tomorrow (Tuesday) sans marshmallows and actually *bake* it on Thursday morning?   Will it matter that an egg is in it in the fridge that long? 

I find that sweet potatoes oxidize and don't stay as nice once they're cooked. I don't like to cook those ahead.

[Arcadia]

1 hour ago, WildflowerMom said:

For big meals (holidays or any gathering at all), what do you do to get ahead? 

I mobilize my kids to help and since they like shredded cheese, they get to grate and put them into ziplock bags for the fridge. I usually have shredded cheese in my fridge and they stay nice in ziplock bags. My DS18 can be a little picky so we use the double zipper/seal ziplock bags for those he is picky about.

[marbel]

51 minutes ago, WildflowerMom said:

What about Mac n cheese?  Can I grate the cheese tomorrow and just store it in the fridge until I need it Thursday to make it?   
 

I’m scared stuff will go bad if it sits in the fridge, uncooked.  

Grated cheese does go bad more quickly than blocks, but if you wrap it airtight it should be ok. It may stick together a bit because it's not treated like pre-shredded cheese. If you have fridge space, I'd suggest making the Mac and cheese tomorrow and reheat on Thursday. 

[HomeAgain]

We have a system in place:

Tuesday: pie & cheesecake made and set aside, both cranberry sauces made

Wednesday: macaroni noodles made, sweet potatoes baked, turkey breast brined

Thursday morning: smoke the turkey, do the prep for cheeses, onions, shallots, garlic, green beans, make the gravy.  Scoop the inside of the sweet potatoes and mix with cheese/herbs before restuffing

Thursday, 1-2 hours before eating: potatoes, make the cheese sauce/put it with the noodles/bake, heat the cranberry sauce & gravy, make the salad, Throw the sweet potatoes under the broiler for a few minutes after the mac & cheese and green beans are done.

 

[PeterPan]

51 minutes ago, WildflowerMom said:

What about Mac n cheese?  Can I grate the cheese tomorrow and just store it in the fridge until I need it Thursday to make it?   
 

I’m scared stuff will go bad if it sits in the fridge, uncooked.  

I always take my list and google each thing and "make ahead" to see what steps can be done ahead. Yes, as long as the egg is put into a COLD mixture you should be fine to refrigerate it.

Your food actually tastes BETTER when prepped ahead like this because there are chemical reactions that happen that cause deliciousness. It's why leftovers always taste better the next day. 🙂

I'm hoping to mooch this year and not make Thanksgiving at all. Usually I prep almost every dish ahead with a list of what goes in what crockpot, etc. The day of, I wake up and put the cinnamon rolls into the oven, start the turkey, assemble the wet/dry mixtures for things like corn casserole, pop things in the oven at the specified time. So no prep at all, just working the plan, assembling and putting things in at the right times. The noodles I cook day of, yes. 

For the cinnamon rolls, I buy frozen dough, put in the buttered pan and let thaw in the frig, let rise, then bake. Easy peasy to have cinnamon rolls to start the day right. 😁

[math teacher]

I'll be traveling 2 and a half hours away, so I am the dessert maker. Tomorrow, I'll probably make the cookies and maybe one of the cakes, then I'll just finish up Wednesday. These are the things I am making:

Pumpkin Pie

Creamy Cranberry Coffee Cake

Carrot Cake

Sugar free Four Layer Delight for my mom

Vanilla Chip Maple Cookies

Praline Apple Cake

[Grace Hopper]

Like others have said, I look at the overall to do list and then schedule a few things to do each day in the 3-4 days ahead of time. 
 

As for food, I consider what items are fine to make ahead. Pies sit well and imo dressing actually tastes better the day after it’s made than it does in the same day. Mashed potatoes can be made ahead, loaded into a crock pot and refrigerated, then put on to reheat in the morning. I like to make the gravy a day ahead using drippings from roasted turkey legs/wings, so I’m not stuck stirring a pot with my back to guests when they start to arrive. Everyone seems to enjoy anticipating a delicious Turkey coming out of the fryer or oven, but gravy making is kinda grunt work. I love having it out of the way. Plus that way there’s opportunity to redo it if I mess it up (because for me, gravy making isn’t foolproof😂).

I will also set my dining table(s) days ahead of time with the plates, napkins, utensils and glassware, because that’s one of my favorite parts and I don’t want it done by someone else at the last minute. I drape a clean light tablecloth or bedsheet over all of it when done to keep the dust off til dining day. If I need to use the breakfast table (which is daily use here) due to more guests than can sit at other dining tables, I at least pull out everything and put it in a crate near the table so it can be set quickly. 
 

When all the kids were home I’d also think about what housekeeping chores might need to be done and made sure they each had their assignments. They could see that I was doing a lot and they were always happy to help. Even little kids can drag around a laundry basket and pick up stuff that can be stashed in a closet or bedroom and then properly put away later. 
 

In a nutshell, re food, I make ahead anything that tastes better after melding for a day, items that take a long time in the oven (baked desserts and casserole-ish dishes), and anything that takes focused time and attention (ie, items with a roux). 

[Grace Hopper]

1 hour ago, WildflowerMom said:

What about Mac n cheese?  Can I grate the cheese tomorrow and just store it in the fridge until I need it Thursday to make it?   
 

I’m scared stuff will go bad if it sits in the fridge, uncooked.  

Oh gosh yes. For graduation parties I made several pans of mac n cheese and even froze them for a week, reheated and served at the open house. They tasted just fine. Just maybe cook the noodles more al dente than all the way soft. 
 

eta I realize you were just asking about the cheese. But truly, you could make the whole dish ahead of time. 

Edited November 20, 2023 by Grace Hopper

[Amira]

We’ve started on pies, but that’s because we want to eat them now.  We had a sour cream apple pie last week (dd’s favorite) and there’s a carrot pie  in the oven now.  I’ve had the recipe for years and dd and I decided to make it today.  We’ll make several more pies through the week.  I’ll do the roll dough on Wednesday, and the cranberries (is it a chutney?  A salad?  A relish? There’s not a good word in English for it). We made peach-strawberry jam today too, for the rolls.

[fairfarmhand]

2 hours ago, WildflowerMom said:

Ok, so I’m doing sweet potato soufflé….  It has an egg in it.   Marshmallows go on top.   Could I make it tomorrow (Tuesday) sans marshmallows and actually *bake* it on Thursday morning?   Will it matter that an egg is in it in the fridge that long? 

Does it make a difference if the egg is in the shell or not? I don't think so. 

 

[regentrude]

4 minutes ago, fairfarmhand said:

Does it make a difference if the egg is in the shell or not? I don't think so. 

Makes a huge difference.  Eggs in shell keep for many weeks. Eggs outside shell, I wouldn't keep more than a day or two.

[Bootsie]

2 hours ago, WildflowerMom said:

What about Mac n cheese?  Can I grate the cheese tomorrow and just store it in the fridge until I need it Thursday to make it?   
 

I’m scared stuff will go bad if it sits in the fridge, uncooked.  

There should not be a problem with grating cheese ahead of time--cheese can be eaten without cooking; it does not need to be heated to be safe.  You just need to make sure that your utensils are all clean, any cutting board you use is clean, and that you store it in a clean container that will not have anything like raw turkey juices dripping on it.  From a food safety standpoint, the greatest risk of grating cheese and then not using it for several days is cross-contaimination.  And for freshness, oxygen is the enemy of cheese, so make sure that it will store better/longer with the least amount of exposure as possible.  

[Carrie12345]

The absolute best thing happened last year and will continue going forward. Dh smoked the turkey outside.

I have used a separate electric toaster before to free up the oven schedule, but now I don’t have to think about the bird at all!

[marbel]

I don't cook too much ahead because I don't have fridge space for a turkey, multiple side dishes, and a pie or two, along with all the other fridge stuff. I wish I had made the pumpkin cupcakes earlier and stuck them in the freezer, but I did not, and the freezer is full of other stuff, so I'll bake those Wednesday morning. Fortunately we are a small group, and my kids and husband have their parts to play, so it will all work out! 

[Faith-manor]

I try to do a lot of mise en place ahead of time, place in baggies or bowls in the fridge. I label them for which dish they are earmarked. I am making cookie dough and pumpkin muffin batter tonight, and freezing, then will get it out to thaw Wednesday afternoon, and make them after my three hoodlums (oh, excuse me, grandsons 😁) go to bed because these hoodlums make everything more difficult as they want to "help" and have far to many ideas of how to improve everything. (According to N, all things in the world are improved with more sugar. 🙄)

I will let them help decorate the cookies Thursday morning.

We are keeping it simple this year though so that makes all the prep easier.

[Annie G]

3 hours ago, HomeAgain said:

We have a system in place:

Tuesday: pie & cheesecake made and set aside, both cranberry sauces made

Wednesday: macaroni noodles made, sweet potatoes baked, turkey breast brined

Thursday morning: smoke the turkey, do the prep for cheeses, onions, shallots, garlic, green beans, make the gravy.  Scoop the inside of the sweet potatoes and mix with cheese/herbs before restuffing

Thursday, 1-2 hours before eating: potatoes, make the cheese sauce/put it with the noodles/bake, heat the cranberry sauce & gravy, make the salad, Throw the sweet potatoes under the broiler for a few minutes after the mac & cheese and green beans are done.

 

Never occurred to me to cook the macaroni ahead of time- thanks for that idea! We like my baked Mac and cheese the day after it’s baked but fresh out of the oven it’s much more creamy and we don’t want to miss that.  It making noodles ahead?! Awesome. 

[catz]

Well this is kind of a long story, but we're going out of town for a few days starting tomorrow and are going out on Thanksgiving.  But we are having our college student and young adult home next weekend and I didn't want to have to run errands or cook too much.  

I have a big ham in the fridge ready to throw in the oven.   I froze a batch of cinnamon rolls ready to defrost and bake yesterday.  Today I put together a potato casserole I threw in the freezer, very close to this recipe.  I have carrots to roast and stuff to throw together a cabbage salad.  

https://thecozycook.com/twice-baked-potato-casserole/

[athena1277]

We are traveling to my mil’s house for the day, so I’m not doing much until Wednesday.  Then I need to make jello salad, pumpkin pie, and starting sweet potato casserole (I found a recipe similar to what I have made in the past that explains how to do most of it in advance).  

[popmom]

11 hours ago, WildflowerMom said:

Ok, so I’m doing sweet potato soufflé….  It has an egg in it.   Marshmallows go on top.   Could I make it tomorrow (Tuesday) sans marshmallows and actually *bake* it on Thursday morning?   Will it matter that an egg is in it in the fridge that long? 

I was just telling dd26 that she can make my sweet potato casserole ahead of time. I bake the sweet potatoes and mix up the casserole with eggs and milk the night before Thanksgiving. I pop it in the fridge and bake it with the topping in the morning. My topping is a pecan praline though. You just have to give it a little extra time to account for it being cold going in to the oven. There is no difference in the taste or quality at all.

Edited November 21, 2023 by popmom