At the 2024 , The Takeout put down the free food samples long enough to check in with Kardea Brown of Food Network's "Delicious Miss Brown" and one-time host of . As the festival takes place just before the end-of-year holiday season (known to some as Hallowthanksmas), we asked for advice about how to keep holiday entertaining stress to a minimum. The tip she gave us is a tried-but-true one: "Prepare yourself.
.. anything that you can make in advance, do that.
" Not all foods can be made in advance, since what would a traditional holiday be without the delicious smell of slow-roasted meat perfuming the kitchen for hours on end? Still, quite a few recipes can be tinkered with to allow for pre-prepping. That way, says Brown, "By the time that Thanksgiving or Christmas comes around, or even if you're having a Halloween party, you can have things just basically reheated by the time your guests come in." These holiday dishes can all be made in advance Kardea Brown suggests you start your holiday prep three days ahead of time, although you may need to shift that to four or five days in advance if you still need to work the week leading up to the big day.
In fact, you can even start prepping months ahead of time, if you wish. Many such as cranberry sauce, cornbread, and that ubiquitous green bean casserole can be prepared at any time; since all of these items can be frozen. Pies, too, are great make-ahead items, though you could use store-bought ones to save on time and effort.
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