De-stressing the Holidays: Quick Meal Tips to Make Hosting a Breeze

Everyone knows that Mom's favorite thing to do on Thanksgiving/Christmas/New Year's Day is sit in the kitchen all day over a roasting oven to the music of well-intended, yet unlikely to be fulfilled, promises to help later with the dishes...right?

If you'd like to skip the passive-aggressive moment of accidentally-intentionally breaking cousin Fred's favorite mug while the folks chatter lazily in the other room, a pre-prepped meal may be your ticket to less 50's style holiday meal.

There are definitely several ticket winners for pre-prepped meal items which work great for busy people. Some of my favorites are:

1. The Ultimate ____ Dip. The blank represents whatever your wily imagination can cook up! The first thing that comes to mind is taco/nacho dip, but really the sky is the limit. A seafood dip (which can be made affordably from canned salmon or crab), a layered cheese dip, and an artichoke dip are just a few alternative options. You can dress it up a little by using sliced pitas or a fresh artisan bread with a bread knife so that your guests can chop off a hunk at their own leisure.

2. Almost anything that goes in the oven. If it's a stuffing, baked potato, root, or other vegetable, then you can do the prep the day before. Squeeze a little citrus juice onto anything that might brown and just grab it out of the fridge and shove it in the oven in the morning for worry-free cooking that will astound the guests you've been hobnobbing with all day. The best part about this plan is that you get to enjoy the day with your family and friends, rather than spending it talking to cutlery and dinnerware.

3. Ham. Ham is a fantastic holiday food, because it's already smoked, salted, and flavored. Add a little brown sugar crusting if you want to look fancy. Ham makes an excellent centerpiece to easy sides like the delicious sweet potatoes that are cooking themselves from #2. Unlike a turkey, there is no messy process or excessively long cook times that lead to a partly over and partly undercooked meat. Avoid purchasing anything labeled "hocks", because it's likely to be too bony for the price. A good semi-boneless cut of ham should run you between $1 and $1.50 a pound in the holiday season. And it saves you the experience of watching your husband name the bird and experiment on it with salt and a syringe, as I was subjected to this past Thanksgiving...farewell dear Winifred. You shall be dearly missed!

4. Finger foods. Shrimp cocktail, cheese cubes, little slices of veggies-all can be procured pre-prepped (at some cost), or prepared the night before. And, you'll have a great enough variety of food to please everyone, from Aunt Jenny the vegan to Grandpa Joe the gluten-free diabetic. Finger foods are always plentiful, always easy, and always ready exactly when any particular person is hungry. For an extra special touch, experiment with a variety of dips, including soft cheeses, yogurts, and bean dips.

But most importantly, don't forget to relax! Your guests may be hungry, but they are also there to see you and share in your holiday experience. So take off the kid gloves, grab a party platter, and head out of the hot kitchen and into the relaxed living room, where you belong.