Whether you're hosting Thanksgiving dinner for the first or the fiftieth time, it can be stressful. Here's how to lighten the load.
There are some Thanksgiving recipes that just have to be made the day of the dinner: the turkey, green beans with walnuts, and roasted pear salad definitely need to be made fresh.
Other dishes, like stuffing or sweet potatoes with apples can be made a few days in advance and refrigerated.
But what if you really want to get a head start? What if you want to cook today and freeze it for Thanksgiving? Generally, recipes that don't include eggs, cream sauces or cream cheese can be frozen without any problems.
Try my low-fat pumpkin bread or pumpkin bran muffins for an easy, make-ahead Thanksgiving side dish or breakfast. Sweet cornbread and pumpkin scones can also be made in advance and frozen.
Butternut squash soup, pumpkin chocolate chip cookies and frozen pumpkin pie are all great make-ahead dishes, too.
I do not recommend freezing homemade pumpkin pie. Although many store-bought pumpkin pies work well when frozen, they have additives to keep the custard from separating. Homemade pumpkin pie is best served fresh.
