Okay, I know that referring to holiday party prep as a Holiday Party Battle Plan is a bit dramatic. But, really, when you think about it for a minute, you’ll see how well the analogy holds. I would even extend the theme to a Holiday Party Campaign (like a military campaign) rather than just a single battle depending on how many parties you plan to either host or attend over the next couple of months. One of my mantras of dinner party planning is “planning will set you free” and that is particularly true when you have multiple events for which to cook and / or prep.
We’re going to break this Holiday Party Battle Plan down into a series of staging steps and make ahead tricks. For many people, the calendar is full and getting fuller at this time of the year.
Step 1: Clear the Decks
Make Space in the Freezer
Depending on the state of your freezer, clearing space can take some time, so start this process as early as possible. That random roast at the back or in the bottom–toss it in the crockpot with some veggies and broth or sauce for an easy weeknight meal. That unidentifiable blob of freezer-burned something covered in an inch of ice–just throw it away. 😛
Make Space in the Pantry
I find it easy to lose track of what I have in the pantry. (One day I want an electronic inventory management system for my pantry, freezer, and fridge. Anyway . . . ) Along the same lines of the freezer, use the approaching holiday party cooking as a motivation to use up things that may have accumulated in the pantry. Look at it this way. It can either push the bounds of your creativity or lead you to eating some entertaining meals. Take that hot giardiniera plus that jar of olives and can of artichoke hearts to make yourself a little antipasti plate.
Step 2: Lay Out The Events and Timeline
Put All Parties and Events on Your Calendar
Whether you use an electronic calendar or a paper one, laying out all of the upcoming events will give you the big picture and milestones. In project planning terms, I’d call the events themselves the “milestones” and the recipes you’ll be making the “deliverables.”
Lori Side Note: I suggest the electronic version of a calendar so that you can share it with any other relevant people (like other people in your household).
From each event date on the calendar you can then work backwards to figure out when you need to start prep work.
Find and Schedule Prep Time on Your Calendar
Until you pick the recipes you’ll be making (in the next step), you might not know exactly what your prep looks like, but you can assume that it will need to happen.
Look at those event dates on the calendar and then at the days prior to each. Schedule in blocks of time for prep, whether that’s early mornings before work, evenings after work, weekends, or whatever works for you. Hold those time blocks. Do not sacrifice them.
Step 3: Pick the Dishes / Recipes You’ll Be Making
Questions to Consider
Before you start picking recipes, there are a few questions that you should have in mind. You might not have answers to all of them as soon as you look at a recipe. That’s okay because we’ll come back to them later.
- Are there any dietary restrictions you need to consider?
- Every dish doesn’t have to be suitable for everyone, but . . . you do want to make things that most people can enjoy. You particularly want to be aware of any allergies. Remember: avoiding cross contact is a critical part of keeping foods allergy-safe.
- How far in advance can a given dish be made?
- The more advanced prep dishes you can include in your list, the more freedom you’ll have on the day of an event. I know I’ve had to rush to make it to a gathering on time because I was waiting for a dish I was taking to finish cooking. Good things to avoid.
- The same is true and then some if you are hosting the party (dinner or otherwise) at your house. Minimizing the number of last minute tasks makes the whole thing less stressful and more enjoyable for you. (You should get to have fun too!)
- If making a dish in advance, where and in what container(s) will you store it?
- I know this sounds like minutiae but it can be really annoying when you “double book” a storage container.
- This is also the time to make sure you have enough storage space in your freezer, refrigerator, or elsewhere.
- Are you taking it to a party or serving it at your house?
- This may impact what dish you cook it in and if you need a travel carrier for it. e.g. If you’re taking a hot casserole to someone’s house, you probably want to use a casserole dish that has a lid and have an insulated casserole carrier to transport it.
- At what temperature does it need to be served?
- Knowing if it needs to be kept warm or cold can help you plan out your oven space, crockpots, refrigerator space, insulated transport bags, etc.
- e.g. If you are taking the dish to someone else’s house, room temperature items are easiest.
- How complicated is the recipe to make?
- You just want to remember to balance complexity of recipes with quantity of recipes to keep things manageable.
Recipe Picking Process
I will say that when it comes to picking recipes to make, everyone’s process may differ a bit based on personal MOs (i.e. modes of operation). For me, it goes like this:
- (1) Ideation
- I like to do an ideation phase in which I peruse recipes and flag the ones that I like and / or want to make.
- (2) Make or Modify
- I make a note of whether I can use them as they are or will need to make modifications to account for various dietary restrictions.
- (3) Assign Recipes to Events
- Then I look at my upcoming events and assign recipes to each event. This is likely not the final version.
- In this step, if I’m making a whole menu, I try to balance appetizers, sides, mains, desserts, etc. (Not that a dinner of all desserts wouldn’t be great, but . . .) Check out my tips on Dinner Party Menu Planning for an example template.
- In respect to recipes, I often utter the phrase “but I want to make them all.” Alas, there is not enough time for that so decisions need to be made.
- (4) Review and Revise
- Finally, it’s time to take the metaphorical red pen to your recipe selections and make sure each is feasible and appropriate for its assigned event.
- Remember those questions we talked about above? 🔼 Now’s the time to figure out the answers.
- (5) Finalize the Recipe List for Each Event
- Slot the recipes into their respective events.
- Identify steps in the recipe that can be part of advanced prep.
- Assign those prep steps to one of the prep time blocks that you scheduled on the calendar.
Step 4: Plan and Prepare to Make the Recipes
Grocery Planning
Once you have your list of recipes, put together your grocery list. You just cleaned out your pantry and freezer, right? I suggest going ahead and buying all of the non-perishable and freezable items you will need. You’ll want to wait and purchase any non-perishable items closer to whenever you’ll be making a given recipe.
To minimize your trips to the store, you’ll want to make a full list of the ingredients you’ll need and group them by section / category / type (e.g. fresh fruits & vegetables vs. dairy vs. canned goods vs. frozen foods).
Consolidate the Recipes in a Single (Preferably Digital) Location
When you’re working with multiple recipes that you are likely going to need to refer back to several times, it saves time to only have one place you need to look for them. Personally, I use Google Keep. I make a checkbox list and just paste in the links to all of the recipes I’ll be using or either a dinner party, a series of parties, or even just a weekly meal plan. This allows me to easily find the info I’m looking for on any device I’m using. It also makes it easy to share the list with Scar (my other half).
Step 5: Plan House Prep
For me, it’s easy to get caught up in the food part of party planning and conveniently forget about the house part of it. To help myself, I like to lay out the list of all non-food tasks that need to be done or accomplished.
Plan House Cleaning / Pick Up Days
For those events that you will be hosting, you can make your life easier by scheduling time for cleaning and / or picking up around the house. If this is already just a normal part or your weekly schedule, all good. I need the prompt. Also, make a shared “to do” list for your house. Again, I use a Google Keep list for this.
Add time for house cleaning and / or pick up to that calendar we talked about in the beginning.
Plan Decor, Decorations, and Changes Thereof
While I consider holiday decorations the “fun” part of holiday house prep, putting them up still winds up playing second fiddle to the cooking for me. One way to facilitate getting whatever your holiday decorations may be out of storage and up or out where they belong is to schedule a specific, targeted time for decorating. I like to do this in one fell swoop rather than spacing it out, but do whatever works best for you.
Again, put the time for decorating on that calendar.
Summary
Getting ready for what is often a season of parties both at home and away doesn’t need to be stressful. Putting together your own Holiday Party Battle Plan will help you clearly see what needs to be done by when. From there you can break down and assign times for the smaller tasks as needed.
One of the great parts of a season of parties is getting to spend time with friends and family. Making a plan will free you up to have fun and enjoy your time with them.
Interested in more tips related to Dinner Party Planning in general? Hop over to my Anatomy of a Dinner Party Plan for some advice.
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