How to Prep Your Kitchen for the Holidays

No matter the changes to your traditions this holiday season, one thing remains at the heart of the house: the kitchen. The nature of a pandemic driven year combined with the holidays is resulting in more time spent in homes. No matter your space or plans this season, we want to help you make the most of the holidays. 
It’s all About the Atmosphere
The aesthetic, ambiance, vibe, whatever you call it – we know you value how your space feels. So declutter your mantle, light some candles, hang that garland. Make it a priority to clean the mail off the counter at the end of the day, and before bed do a kitchen sweep. Take everything that has been laying around during the day and return it to its proper place. Then, take a step back and breathe in your holiday edition kitchen.
Clean as You Go
Whether hosting a small gathering of family or friends this season or cooking and baking for your immediate loved ones, dishes are an unavoidable side effect of the job. To minimize the mess that comes along with holiday entertaining, we recommend cleaning as you go! We know it may be tempting to leave that mixer bowl to sit in the sink, but we promise that your future self will be happy you cleaned it at that moment. Cleaning as you go is setting yourself up for success. Plus, at the end of the day, you will be thankful to be looking at a few scattered plates and not facing a mountain of dishes.
Schedule
Planning may not be for everyone, but it is helpful to have an idea of what to expect heading into the holiday season in your kitchen. Whether it is cookie baking day, gingerbread houses with the kids, or Christmas dinner with the family, get prepped. Sit down with a nice cup of hot cocoa and make those lists – and check them twice. Make the grocery store list, read the recipes, prep the cooking and baking schedules. There’s no worse feeling than getting halfway through a recipe and realizing you forgot a key ingredient. We know you’ll feel better when everything is listed and prepped, and the time spent in the kitchen will be even more memorable and stress-free!
Create Storage Space
Before you argue with us that there is nowhere left to store things – hear us out! Take a look around that refrigerator and pantry. Block off some time on your calendar to clear out and organize. We guarantee there will be some items that can be consolidated or tossed. Just think of coming home after that holiday grocery store trip to a fresh and clean place to store everything. An added bonus here is when asking guests or family for assistance in the kitchen, items will easily be accessible with a clean fridge and pantry.
Make Traditions!
There will be some old and some new traditions, likely with an emphasis on the NEW this year. Our most important advice is to embrace the season; however, you may be spending it. New traditions can be just as meaningful as ones that can’t be completed this year. Wherever you spend your holidays, there is always joy to be found.