a guide to hosting for the holidays!
so into that #51
Hi! On Friday my family (mom, dad, brother, sister, brother-in-law, and two nephews!) arrives from the East Coast for Christmas in California and I feel like… well, a little kid at Christmas!! They haven’t been here for Christmas — or all at one time in general! — since before Mattis (my 5 year old) was born, and we are all so excited to have them here.
I love hosting. But it’s definitely a lot to be the orchestrator behind a week of holiday magic, activities and entertainment, three meals a day, snacks, booze, and sleeping arrangements for a crowd of 10+ people! Nothing that can’t be done without a plan though!
Here are some meal planning thoughts and activities that we thought could be helpful for anyone else out there who’s hosting (or being a helpful guest!) this holiday season.
Still looking for holiday gifts? Oh boy, I’ve got just the idea for you — the gift that keeps on giving all year long!
Before Thanksgiving we sent a guide for what to cook for houseguests, but I thought it’d be fun to share exactly what I plan to feed my family while they’re here. I always make an iPhone note with a detailed meal plan. Of course we wind up straying, but it feels good to start with a plan that I can refer back to all week.
20th:
Lunch: At Folktale after picking everyone up at the airport!
Dinner: Our friends are having a champagne and caviar party! But a caviar party would be really fun at home with family too (or even just putting it out as an app). I like to serve caviar with Ruffles, a dollop of crème fraîche, and chives.
21st:
Breakfast: Yogurt, fruit, granola, toast, butter, jam
Lunch: Soup and grilled cheese!!! I’ll make a pot of soup on the 19th and keep it in the fridge for lunch on the 21st. I can’t stop making the White Chicken Chili from the book, and it’s absurdly easy, so I’ll probably make that! With sheet-pan grilled cheese (I’ll make mine with just cheese, but use this method).
Dinner: We’ll either go out to eat somewhere or cook cioppino at home!
22nd:
Breakfast: Yogurt, fruit, granola, toast, butter, jam
Lunch: A big ass salad!! I’m thinking the Souvla Salad and adding roasted sweet potatoes (which is actually what they do for the vegetarian version of this salad at the restaurant Souvla!).
Dinner: Ham party!
The star is of course, a spiral ham. I add the glaze on top but only bake it for 15 minutes (not what it says to do on the package, because the package instructions dry it out! It’s already fully cooked!).
Alexandra’s Kitchen pull-apart rolls as the secondary star, for people to make their own little ham rolls
Optional toppings: Slices of aged cheddar, Dijon, honey mustard, pickles, and pepper jelly
23rd:
Breakfast: Breakfast tacos! Cheesy scrambled eggs, bacon, salsa, hot sauces, fresh cilantro, tortillas. So fun and such a crowdpleaser.
Lunch: Cabin day!! Taking the fam to see our new cabin, and the boys are sleeping up there! We’ll grill something easy or make sandwiches.
Dinner: Thai Chicken Chop or Dilly Chop (from the book) for my mom and sister and the babies!
Stars of Christmas Eve supper will include my kale Caesar salad, Ina’s mushroom & leek bread pudding, and a chocolate chess pie 24th:
Breakfast: Girls + babies breakfast at Stationaery
Lunch: Panini station!
Two types of bread (sourdough + a whole wheat), all of the spreads (mayo, mustards, pesto, pepper jelly), turkey, ham, a couple of sliced cheeses, tomato, lettuce, onion, roasted bell peppers (from the jar), sprouts, etc. If I’m feeling generous I’ll make some caramelized onions. Let people make their own sandwiches, then put someone in charge of griddling them in a nonstick pan over medium heat, with mayo smeared on the outside of the bread to get it extra toasty. It’s like make your own pizza night, for sandwiches!
Dinner: I want you to cook my entire holiday menu starring cider-braised beef. But I tested it so many times I can’t look at another chuck roast right now! So I’m thinking prime rib!!
Mushroom & Leek Bread Pudding (my favorite, and I didn’t get to make it for Thanksgiving stuffing this year!)
Chocolate Chess Pie with Graeter’s Peppermint Stick Ice Cream (my family usually goes to my parents’ best friends Julie and Warren’s house for Christmas Eve dinner, and this has been the star dessert for 30+ years!)
25th:
Grazing brunch:
Cheesy grits, bacon, chicken sausage links, fruit, yogurt, granola, maybe a Kringle
Soup (from the freezer!)
At some point this week, I’ll cook a big pot of soup and freeze it for the 25th! I’m thinking I might make Good Soup but I’m consulting the Soup Handbook because I can’t decide!! I’ll serve it with Salty Cheesy Honey Toast (from the book).
Dinner:
Sheet-Pan Balsamic Glazed Pork with Fennel and Potatoes with a jar of Major Grey’s Chutney
A big ass salad (not sure which yet)
26th:
Breakfast/Lunch: Adults morning/afternoon in Big Sur!! Kids stay home with a sitter so we can decompress and have some adult conversations before everyone leaves! We’ll grab breakfast burritos or something easy on the way to Big Sur (45 minutes down the coast), hike, and then have lunch at Nepenthe!
Dinner: Christmas Curry (recipe coming this Saturday!) or the Leftover-Beef Ragu Pasta from this year’s holiday menu! I have a ton of leftover shredded beef in the freezer. Look in the “love your leftovers” note in the post to find the “recipe.”
27th: Farewell, family!! :(
Little things to make your guests’ stay feel merry and bright:
Clear out space and hangers in their closet.
Clear out drawers for them to use (my sister and her husband are going into Cashy’s room — I’ll throw three drawers worth of his clothes into a bin so that they can unpack).
Show them how to use the washer/dryer/use the TV/coffee machine/show them where the medicine cabinet is/show them all the snacks you bought for their family — anything that will make them feel less like they’re inconveniencing you and more at home. Nothing worse than being a guest and feeling like you’re constantly asking your host for something.
Go ahead and set up the pack n plays and a little changing station with a few diapers (so they don’t have to hunt for theirs right when they arrive) and wipes if applicable (nothing worse than setting up a pack n play with a travel-tired kid screaming at you!).
Get extra wrapping paper for them to use (if they flew and thus shipped all of their gifts directly to your house).
Stack of clean towels waiting in the bathroom for them.
My cousin-in-law who owns Pippen House (code CARO20 for the easiest-to-change and most luxurious duvet covers!!) sets out a guest basket in her guest room and it makes me feel so, so loved and cared for when I sleep over. Think: a sheet of paper with the WiFi code and instructions for how to change the heat, toothpaste, lotion, hair dryer, shampoo, sleep mask, floss, extra toothbrushes, hair ties, mints, a little snack.
Phone chargers accessible on both sides of the bed.
A carafe of water with glasses waiting for them on their bedside table when they go to bed.
If you’re a parent, you know what’s on the horizon: a very long, very sugared-up break from school/daycare/childcare. Whether you’re traveling or staying home or hosting family, there’s about to be a lot of time to fill! Our team (parents to 9 boys under the age of 5!) has been gathering ideas for what to do, play, and watch during the holiday break — both to share with you and for our own sanity over the next two weeks as we try to work, play, party, cook, clean, travel, converse with other adults, etc. etc. As always, share your ideas too!!
ACTIVITIES:
Art for Kids Hub guided drawings. My 6 year old is obsessed with drawing using these as his guide! —Molly
Gingerbread houses. This kit from William-Sonoma is classic and cute. Don’t forget to use a glue gun to assemble the house — this is key to gingerbread house enjoyment!
Holiday minute-to-win-it games. I’m very into these easy ideas from the blog Raising Dragons that you can execute with marshmallows and other household items! Some of these look hilarious for the whole fam to take part in.
Park/beach picnic. I know, I know, this isn’t feasible for half the country, but if you live somewhere warm, don’t sleep on picnics — they’re not just a summertime activity! Don’t overthink it, just grab some to-go food and eat it outside somewhere the kids can run free (rather than in a restaurant where you’ll be too busy trying to get them to sit in their seat to actually talk to other adults).
Colorable pajamas. These would be a fun post-New Year’s activity when you’re losing steam in the wake of the holidays. As of today, it looks like they’d arrive at the very start of January — or here’s an option on Amazon that might get to you sooner. —Jillian
Yoga/exercise videos. If you’re stuck inside, Cosmic Kids Yoga, Danny Go (pictured above), and Coach Corey Martin Brain Break videos will get them moving!
A freeze dance party. This is my current strategy anytime the big boys (ages 4 and 6) need to get energy out and it’s gross outside. They won’t take the bait if I just suggest that we all dance, but when I put on a freeze dance song — or play literally any song, press pause, and yell FREEZE — it never fails to entice them. —Molly
Park pizza with friends! Same idea as the picnic, but invite all of your kids’ friends. Grab a couple pizzas, go around noon, make a little lunch date out of it.
Tongs + Toddlers = match made in heaven. Very excited to do this with Cashy and my nephew! Honestly the big boys will probably want in too. I don’t have little balls like this, so I’ll use little stuffies/toy animals.
HOLIDAY SHOWS/MOVIES + PODCASTS:
Common Sense Media has a VERY comprehensive and helpful list of kid-friendly holiday shows/movies organized by age, with those for 3+ all the way up through teenagers (I spy some good-bad movies on the list!). It has the classics — claymation Rudolph, A Charlie Brown Christmas, the OG How the Grinch Stole Christmas — along with newer options like The Bad Guys: A Very Bad Holiday, which was released last year and looks cute!
LOL Storytime is a cute pod with funny make-believe stories that make my boys… lol. And for our upcoming holiday roadtrips, I plan to play Brains On (a science pod) and Story Pirates (this one’s actually entertaining for all — comedians/actors turn stories written by kids into sketches). —Molly
For the Frozen lovers out there, Frozen Forces of Nature has podcast episodes of Anna and Elsa adventures that feel just as dramatic as the movies. My son has listened to it multiple times! —Jillian
For the adults… the good-bad Christmas movie matrix is here for you.
My friend
— author of The Weekday Vegetarian cookbooks and the newsletter — shared a poem at the party Substack hosted for What to Cook last month in Brooklyn, and it brought the whole room to tears. Jenny’s a mom of two college-aged children and wrote this poem — which encapsulates how we express love through food — right before her girls were home for Thanksgiving break. I asked Jenny if I could share it with you, and we thought it’d be an especially perfect read as we head into this holiday week. Thanks Jenny, and seriously, be sure to follow her Substack for beautiful recipes and words.
“Let me cook you something. Let me cook you anything.” Makes me burst into tears every time I re-read it! Thanks again for sharing,
.
What to Cook launched in December 2020, which means there are more than 200 recipes in the archives. To help you cook through them, let’s revisit what we cooked this week over the last four years.
1. tandoori-spiced chicken and potatoes with peanut chutney & crispy kale, 2023
This beauty landed in your inbox a year ago today. To quote myself: “When thinking about what we should cook this week, I envisioned a warming, flavor-filled feast that is so, so easy for you to cook, but will still allow you to really wow your loved ones. Something communal and cozy and impressive. Many of us will be reuniting with friends and family this week, and that calls for something special, but not especially effortful. This meal checks all those boxes and more!!” Also, this peanut chutney ROCKS.
2. lemony chicken orzo soup, 2022
Ooh maybe I’ll make this for my prep-ahead soup. Take it from Blair, who cooked it for her whole fam:
3. thai tofu curry noodle soup, 2021
A very delicious and flavorful vegetarian soup for a night you’re wanting a meat-free meal.
4. one-skillet broccoli cheddar chicken pot pie, 2020
Chicken pot pie = the epitome of comfort food. This would make an EXCELLENT holiday-week lunch or dinner, and you could go ahead and prep the filling now and pop it in the freezer to make things easier next week.
PS, congratulations to Christina!! You are the (randomly selected) winner of last week’s giveaway. Molly will DM you through Substack to coordinate the donation to GRACE! And if anyone is wanting to get in a merry mood, read through all the comments about amazing organizations doing important work across the country!
My sister in law lives four hours away. Their family of five comes for Thanksgiving, and we travel there for a post Christmas celebration. She started the tradition of handling breakfast for each night her family stays. She comes with a cooler packed with a premade breakfast casserole, pastries that can be warmed, mimosa and Bloody Mary ingredients, sausage balls, etc. Each morning, she wakes up and tackles breakfast and can even go back to bed if she chooses. As everyone wakes up, they come down to coffee and breakfast. It’s the most thoughtful hostess “gift!” Even if you just show up with store bought pastries, a nice juice or ground coffee, it’s such a departure from a bottle of wine or candle.
Love all of this, but Jenny’s poem brought me to tears! ❤️