Dishing Out Holiday Dishes: Where to Draw the Line with Holiday and Specialty Cooking

I am currently writing this article after spending 4 hours making an authentic version of an Easter soup from my mom’s side of the family. Was it worth it? Absolutely! Will it always be worth it? No. There are different tasks in my life that have differing levels of priority, and there are several factors of cooking specialty foods that should be considered before investing time and effort into making them. This article points out some of the key factors to consider before making specialty foods of your own. Enjoy!   
 

WHAT DO YOU HAVE TIME FOR?

While this seems like this should go last, the time you can afford to put into cooking really is the first, foremost, and overall most important factor. If you have multiple different tasks to do on a day you want to cook a huge dish, you should consider which tasks are most crucial to get done before you add cooking to the list. Besides, no one’s saying you can’t make the dish a day late! 

COOKING IS A PERSONALIZED SKILL: WHAT DO YOU KNOW?
A testament to this concept is how varied I could expect the readers of this article to be in their experience with cooking. Everyone cooks differently, with varying levels of experience. If you know how to cook your ideal dish in a tasty and timely manner, you will probably have an easier time squeezing it into your schedule as opposed to someone who takes longer to cook. Whatever feels like the right decision for you, based on your cooking experience, is a great way to make a more educated choice on what and when you should cook.

WHAT FAMILY RECIPES ARE YOU WORKING WITH? 

If you don’t have any family recipes that you cook with, you can skip this section; although I would advise that if your family has any recipes you like, to go and ask them. They aren’t going to be around forever. (and how do you think they learned the recipes?) When it comes to family dishes, try to remember how long it took your family to make the recipe if it doesn’t specifically say. Think about the recipe itself too; a decades old dish with a huge preparation time and a bunch of hard-to-find ingredients is going to be more time consuming, and a lot bigger of a chore, than one for 30 minute no-bake Christmas cookies.   

CAN YOU GET THE DISH IN AN EASIER WAY ?

While I don’t encourage always spending money to get a quick and cheap version of a dish, there are times where it makes sense. For my birthday, I usually like carrot cake. However, I find it easier in this instance to go out and buy one, than to spend the time making one (especially because it’s for me). No one is placing an expectation on me to deliver a home-cooked dish for a big holiday. Whenever you can choose a simpler solution, it’s often for the best; and sometimes this can be no different regarding holiday dishes.

ARE YOU COOKING FOR THE FOOD OR FOR THE PRINCIPLE? 

This is one of those few times where the basic aspects of a task are more essential than the principles. Cooking a dish for the holidays or a tradition is important, but not enough to override things like your sleep schedule, and other tasks you have to do such as homework. Will you eat it? Do you want to eat it? Will having this food be worth it? If you can answer “yes” to questions like these, then by all means, enjoy your holiday and enjoy your food; especially since you worked hard to make it!