h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

After work today, I bought the fruit, vegetables, spices, and other things for cooking next week. This includes the remaining things for Thanksgiving dinner. Tomorrow's tasks include making sure I have enough pans & pots and cooking.

My father would wait until the last minute to shop for a holiday. Last minute as in 5:30, the night before the holiday (back when stores closed at 8:00 or earlier). My siblings, being older and faster, would disappear when Dad said 'let's go get the groceries.'.

By the time I was 12, holidays meant an irritating few hours at the store that didn't have everything, waiting at the checkout for a long time, then making another trip the next morning to the one convenience store that was open to pay more money for the thing we could have bought the week before, if only...

At the age of 13, I took Home Ec. In class we cooked: A turkey, yeast breads, giblet gravy and cornbread stuffing. We took notes and were even tested on these recipes. Didn't know it at the time, the teacher was using a Betty Crocker cookbook for the recipes. The turkey recipe was different than my mother's. It was less time, less effort, and no guesswork (there was a chart).

At 15, I cooked my first holiday dinner. It was just easier that way, really. Mom made the shopping list on Monday. Dad went shopping on Tuesday for the turkey which went into the fridge to thaw. Wednesday, Dad bought the other stuff. Wednesday night, turkey (still in plastic wrapper) went into sink of water. The water was changed every hour or so. I started cooking at 10:30 Wednesday night. Finished cooking Thursday afternoon. Dinner was at 2:00 p.m. There was even some sleep in there, from 1:00 - 6:30 a.m.

Just about every year someone will tell me about a holiday tradition that they dread, such as the family argument or the fruitcake that no one likes. The holidays shouldn't be the cause of stress. They are meant to be celebrations. If all else fails, borrow the tip from Justin Wilson: 'I always cook with wine, here's the pot, and here's the glass of wine. *sip*

To be fair, I'd like to point out that some people find cooking to be therapeutic. My sister-in-law works hard at her job, making a lot of phone calls and using her laptop extensively. To her, it's soothing to chop and peel vegetables and assemble entire Thanksgiving menus. Her pumpking/yam soup is delicious, as is her creamed leeks. Pretty much everything she makes is delicious.

I've always thought that people who do a lot of mental work enjoy finding things they can do with their hands.

I like cooking in my own time. The stressful part of the big dinners was not having what was needed in enough time to do it calmly.

That's why it makes sense to have parts of the meal already prepared in advance, which you seem to be doing.

I am working on it. Wish I had the kitchen set up we have at the store. This took a lot of practice over the years. And, observing just what wasn't helpful, whether it was myself or others.

That's what it's all about.

Over the years my baking has moved in the direction of whole grains and using different grains for vaiety -- even a bit of garbanzo flour for extra protein. I use fruits (including dried fruits and fruit juices) as a way of making my cakes sweet enough without any use of sugar or artificial sweeteners. There are no empty calories anywhere in the food I make. It took decades to figure out, though.

Have you tried substituting applesauce for the oil in recipes?

I do like the granola bars our bakers make. I'd rather make some that are a little lighter, though.

Yes, I use applesauce a lot in my cakes. I grind up several teaspoons of nuts as well.

Would it be easier to use cashew or almond butter instead of grinding them yourself?

Any kind of nut butter would end up being kind of messy. I almost went crazy in my twenties when I was using that liquid sesame seed stuff that people use for hummus.

I keep shelled almonds, walnuts, and pecans in jars in my refrigerator. It's easy to spoon some into a blender along with rolled oats (I always grind oats as part of the flour mix when I bake), and grind it into flour. It's quick and easy.