Simple Tips for Ensuring a Flawless Holiday Meal

For many people, the holiday season is a time of joy, relaxation, and memory-making with family and friends. But for a few folks, the holidays signal impending doom and the fear of planning and creating a bad memory with a dinner that leaves people wishing they'd gone for fast food instead. Want to be sure that your holiday meal doesn't fall into that category?

The first step to ensuring a successful dinner is to carefully plan ahead. Start out by making a list of every item you want to serve, and then, unless you're a world-class chef, you'll need to track down the perfect recipe for each dish. The Internet is chock full of great recipes. Virtually a one-stop recipe shop for anything is The Food Network's website. Here you can find almost any recipe, all of which have been tested and tried by some of the country's most famous cooks. Epicurean is another site that lists lots of recipes; however, some of these can be on the high-end scale of difficulty so you'll need to look through the comments section for each recipe to determine if it's a bit too much for you to tackle. If you're looking for a recipe that has been tried and tested by average people, not professional chefs, then the site to visit is All Recipes, a site that boasts "real recipes from real people." All the recipes on All Recipes have been submitted by regular folks and rated by regular folks, who also give comments about their experiences and suggestions for changes or additions to the recipes.

After you settle on which dishes you're going to serve, use that list to create a list of ingredients you'll need to prepare those items. Carefully read every single recipe you plan to use to be sure you have all the ingredients you'll need, and make a grocery list for everything you'll need to buy. Don't skimp on being careful-even if you think you have enough cinnamon for your sauted apples, you'd better check the cupboard to be sure. You don't want to have to dash to the store at the last minute or, worse, be forced to change your menu at the last minute just because you're missing one ingredient that would make or break a recipe. If you're not sure how much you'll need of a certain ingredient, buy more than you think you'll need. Better to have too much than not enough.

There are two other important lists you may not have considered-a list of the people who you'll be serving, and a list of the serving dishes, platters, and utensils you'll need. The list of people is important because you want to be sure you'll be cooking enough of each dish, and you want to be sure to try to accommodate any special food requirements your guests might have. For example, if Great Grandmother Edna is coming, you might want to be sure there are at least a couple of menu items that aren't heavily spiced (make one pot of chili with jalapenos and one without) or overly strenuous to eat (go ahead and crack open a lobster or two). If there will be lots of children at your table, you may want to consider not using your mother's antique gold-rimmed crystal gravy boat, if you don't want clumsy little hands to accidentally drop it on the floor.

Once you have your meal planned down to the last detail, you need to be sure you have the right equipment to cook and serve your fantastic holiday feast. Should you use non-stick, glass, stainless steel, or aluminum pans for cooking? Cast iron or stainless steel roasting pans are better than aluminum because they distribute heat more evenly and they don't buckle under pressure. Glass roasting pans and baking dishes are good, but they aren't quite as durable and they can be much harder to clean after the meal is finished. Also, glass has a tendency to cook food more quickly, so you'd need to adjust your cooking time and possibly your oven temperature.

For baking, non-stick bakeware makes for less mess and easier cleanup, but remember that it has a tendency to make a darker crust, while both stainless steel and aluminum bakeware need additional coating such as shortening or non-stick cooking spray on the bottoms and sides to make sure the food doesn't stick to the pan. If you use shortening to grease a pan, you can avoid the mess by using a paper towel to spread the shortening or by putting a plastic sandwich bag over your hand. Then sprinkle flour on top of the shortening and tap the sides of the pan to coat the shortening with the flour. If you're making a chocolate cake, try using powdered cocoa instead of the flour, so everything will come out the same color.

Before you start cooking, make one last list of the times required for cooking each item. It's nearly impossible for most cooks to work on a dozen dishes at once, but you want to have each item ready to serve at the correct temperature at the proper time. So you need to plan a schedule for when you're going to begin cooking each dish, how long each item will take to cook, and whether or not you'll be able to keep certain dishes warm while you're finishing up others.

Here are a few more useful tips to help ensure culinary success:

• Don't overestimate your kitchen's cooking capacity. If you're going to be cooking four casseroles, be sure your oven is large enough to handle all of those casserole dishes at the same time. If not, then you may be able to cook one or two of them ahead of time and reheat in the microwave. Or you might be able to split a recipe in order to cook it in two smaller dishes that will fit better in your oven. If you're going to be cooking five pots of vegetables on the stove and your stove has only four burners, something is going to have to be cooked ahead of time and reheated.
• Check out your oven. If your oven temperature is questionable, invest in an oven thermometer. Some ovens can be off by as much as 75 degrees.
• Plan your table layout. Be sure your table is large enough to accommodate the various platters and serving dishes you plan to use, and be sure you have enough chairs and dishes to accommodate each guest.
• Prepare for accidents. Even the most meticulous cook can have an accident in cooking or serving a meal. Be sure your kitchen is equipped with a fire extinguisher, and have plenty of towels-both paper and cloth-at the ready to clean up spills. Before removing a dish from the oven, be sure you'll have a clear spot on a counter or table to put the dish. Have plenty of hot pads on hand so you don't risk burning your hands, and have plenty of trivets for protecting your counters and table.
• Don't forget the condiments. Planning for recipe ingredients ahead of time is easy because you have a pre-written recipe to follow. But you should envision the plate of food after its served to be sure you have all the condiments your guests might want to garnish the food with. You may need more than just salt and pepper-be sure you have plenty of butter for rolls and biscuits, creamer, sugar, and artificial sweetener for coffee, and an assortment of jellies, relishes, and pickles that will complement the food you'll be serving. And as much as you may despise doing it, be sure to have ketchup or steak sauce on hand for anyone who might want to ruin your prime rib. You want your guests to be happy, after all.

With patience and perhaps a little trial and error, you will create a culinary feast that will be remembered and talked about for years to come. But take heart-no matter how your meal turns out, it will definitely be something guests will long remember, because they'll know you made it especially for them!