Doing Away With Stress on Thanksgiving
Before Thanksgiving Day arrives, clean your home. Everybody wants their home to look great for our family and friends but the same day as the meal is not the day to clean it. If your entire household pitches in and takes a different section of the house, it'll look great in no time.
Decide in advance what you will be serving. This includes what will be cooked and baked for the big day. Shopping will be a little easier with an advanced menu preparation. This will ensure that you have everything and haven't left anything out.
Assign duties. There is no rule set in stone that says mom has to do all of the work. On Thanksgiving Day the kitchen is everyone's place. The kids can even pitch in and peel potatoes or slice up fruits and vegetables for the salad. The younger children can stir and add ingredients prior to cooking, some find this a fun task and they delight in being able to help.
Prepare the table setting. There is no reason to wait until the last minute for this. If your dinner is a buffet style, start by arranging the buffet servers, utensils, sterno jars, and the dinner ware a day or two in advance.
Make your list and check it twice. There is no need for more turkey than you will need. Check your list of people who will be attending the dinner. Make sure that there will be enough turkey for a full serving for each person. This will eliminate the leftovers that seem to take over the refrigerator for at least a week.
Try using disposable pans. Disposable roasting pans are great for roasting the turkey, ham, chicken, and other meats. Nobody wants to worry about washing the dishes after eating such a big meal. Disposable pans come in various sizes including ones perfect for the side dishes and breads. When it's all said and done you can simply throw them in the trash can.
Buy the disposable containers for the leftovers. Some people use the pans they cooked in for storage because they don't have enough storage containers. This is a very bad idea. You will want to choose the smaller containers so there is no space inside the container that is not occupied by food. Once the food is gone in these containers you can throw them away as well.
Is preparing Thanksgiving dinner stressful for you? Try something a little different this year that will free your mind and body from all that kitchen work. By following these simple tips you should be off to a good star
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