Plan Ahead Then Relax and Enjoy

Planning ahead is never more of a boon to the harried person-in-charge-of-Christmas than now. The entire holiday season from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Day is a marathon Olympics for the homemaker.


There are numerous articles about how to keep your sanity, do less, etc. I have been reading them since I was first married, umpteen years ago. Let’s see, get the family to help with home chores, shopping, wrapping, making cookies, the works. I tried many of them. When my three boys were small, I was anxious for us to spend time in the kitchen together making Christmas cookies. So I got them all cute aprons, made lots of cut-out cookie dough, lined up the cookie cutter, the frosting, the decors, etc. The first five minutes were exactly the way it would be in the classic book on family fun. Then, the demon called “boy” entered and things deteriorated into rolling dirty dough into ugly worms and fighting over whose “cookies” were more like guns, monsters, you-name-it, and ended with dough being thrown around the kitchen until I put a fast halt to the melee.

I gave up on this particular family fun and baked the cookies myself; however I didn’t want to relieve the stress by doing less than I wanted to do, and decided the secret was in planning ahead.

Now, we all know people who have all their gifts bought and wrapped by July, and their cards in the mail the day after Thanksgiving; that’s not me. But if you didn’t really have to cook and bake a lot during the holiday season, wouldn’t it be great? You’d have time to do family fun stuff that everyone wanted to do, shop to your hearts content, decorate the house, have friends over for all those parties you really mean to give every holiday season and don’t and finally use those great gift-wrapping ideas for your gifts instead of stuffing everything in gift bags and tissue on into the wee hours of Christmas Eve.

Here’s the system I use: go back to the everyday meal planning scheme, using the Woman’s Day planner, or your own favorite—just do it, for every day in December. And make the meals very basic; hamburger, tacos, spaghetti, chili, baked chicken, soups and sandwiches, whatever your family likes that is really simple. Keep a bag of washed and torn salad greens in the refrigerator and replenish it whenever needed. Keep cut up veggie sticks in the crisper drawer and buy lots of easy, fresh seasonal fruit around like Clementines or regular oranges, apples, pears. Then plan out the special events you know you will be hosting. For me, that’s a Christmas Eve buffet, Christmas morning brunch and Christmas Dinner. In addition, three of four children will be here from long distances and 2 of the grandchildren, so I will have other meals on the days preceding and after Christmas proper.

I have a lasagna casserole in the freezer, lots of cookies in the freezer, a cake (as yet unfrosted) in the freezer, beef stroganoff, partially done (you have to add the sour cream at the last minute) in the freezer. The big Thanksgiving turkey that I roasted for the three of us is now waiting to become sandwiches, casseroles, whatever while the family is here. Add to these assorted hors d’oeuvres, dessert sauces, etc.

I wasn’t always this organized, it took me many years of being too worn out to enjoy much of the festivity that I was creating before I took a long, hard look at how I could change that and still provide all the goodies that I wanted my family to have and remember. Cooking ahead was my answer. I do it all through the fall, whenever, I am making chili or pasta sauce, etc., I make double and freeze half. If you do the advance planning, it really makes all the difference.

Our Christmas morning Brunch

Chilled fruit juice of choice
John Wayne’s Casserole
Sausage Strata
Mexican Salad
Fruit Compote
Christmas wreath coffee bread
Bran Muffins
Danish Puff
Coffee

I’m including a couple of the recipes if you want to try them. Both the casseroles can be made (actually, should be) the night before. The fruit goes together in a flash the night before. I use frozen fruit medleys. Let thaw and pour a can of lemonade concentrate (undiluted) over the fruit in a large bowl. The sweet breads can both be frozen, the bran muffins can be held as batter for 3 weeks or baked and frozen indefinitely; the salad dressing is made ahead.

John Wayne’s Casserole (serves 8)

2 cans (4-oz) chopped green chiles, drained
1 lb. Monterey Jack Cheese, grated
1 lb. Sharp Cheddar Cheese, grated
4 egg whites
4 egg yolks
Two-thirds cup evaporated milk
1 Tbsp flour
½ tsp. salt
One-eighth tsp. pepper
2 medium tomatoes, sliced

In large bowl, combine grated cheeses and chiles. Turn into a well-buttered (or sprayed) shallow 2-quart casserole.

Beat egg whites until stiff. Combine egg yolk, milk, flour, salt and pepper; mix until blended. Fold whites into egg yolk mixture. Pour egg mixture over cheese and “ooze” through cheese with a fork. Do not over-mix. Cover and refrigerate or freeze until ready to bake. If frozen, allow to completely defrost before baking. Bring casserole to room temperature and bake in preheated 325 degree oven for 30 minutes. Remove and arrange tomato slices around edge of casserole. Bake 30 minutes longer.

Mary’s Sausage Bake

2 ½ cups onion and sage croutons
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
2 lbs. Jimmy Dean brand pork sausage (regular)
6 eggs, beaten
Three-fourths tsp. dry mustard
2 ½ cups milk
1 can mushroom soup
½ cup milk
½ cup sour cream

Brown sausage and drain. Place croutons in 9x13 sprayed pan. Sprinkle cheese on top, sprinkle fried sausage over cheese. Beat eggs with milk and mustard; pour over all. Refrigerate overnight. Before baking, mix milk, soup and sour cream. Spread on top of casserole. Bake for 1 ½ hours at 300 degrees.