Life In Pleasantville

Food, Travel, Life

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After I made my very first Thanksgiving dinner many years ago, I developed a whole new respect for my Mom. She just always made Thanksgiving seem so effortless. We’d have tons of guests in our house and my Mom always put on a huge meal with delicious food. She was never frenzied or stressed, but always perfectly coiffed and ready to entertain.

After my first Thanksgiving disaster, I asked her how she did it. As it turns out 90% of the Thanksgiving meal was prepared and cooked ahead of time. Brilliant! I’ve since adopted her method and I now find Thanksgiving dinner so much easier
cheesy make ahead mashed pototoes

Start now and look for recipes that can be made ahead of time like this Cranberry Sauce or these Cheesy Make Ahead Mashed Potatoes.

Cheesy make ahead mashed potatoes

There’s two things I really love about these Cheesy Make-Ahead Mashed Potatoes. First, they don’t dry out when they are reheated. Second, cheese. Who tries to get more cheese in their life all the time? This chick right here, that’s who. The older the cheese the better for this recipe, so don’t be nervous buying an extra old or sharp block of cheddar. 

Pro-tip for boiling your potatoes. Cut you potatoes into 1 inch chunks rather than leaving whole to boil. This ensures that your potatoes will cook evenly. 

 

This recipe is perfect for any meal when you’re entertaining from Sunday dinner to Thanksgiving to Christmas. Add it into your menu rotation and you’ll never be sorry. 

 

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Cheesy Make Ahead Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients

  • 2 lbs Yukon gold potatoes about 6, peeled, cut into chunks
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1/2 cup shredded old Cheddar Cheese
  • 1/4 cup Miracle Whip Original Spread
  • 1 green onion sliced

Instructions

  1. Cook potatoes in boiling water in large saucepan 15 to 20 minutes or until tender; drain.
  2. Mash potatoes. Stir in remaining ingredients. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
  3. Spoon into microwaveable bowl. Microwave on HIGH 5 to 7 minutes or until heated through, stirring occasionally.

Cheesy make ahead mashed potatoes, grated cheese

About Candace Sampson

Candace is founder and editor-in-chief of Life in Pleasantville which isn't half as fancy as it sounds. You can find her sharing travel stories on What She Said Radio and on CTV Ottawa Morning Live.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  2. Alayne Langford

    I make my cranberry sauce ahead of time, as I find it thickens the longer it is refrigerated! ❤️

  11. Tricia Cooper

    My favourite make-ahead side dish for Thanksgiving and the holidays Scalloped Peas and Onions.

  13. Brandy Oliver

    I make my special potato and bread filling a few days prior, as well as a few desserts.
    It makes everything much easier on Thanksgiving Eve and Thanksgiving Day, if we have some things already made or at least prepared.
    We have veggie and fruit and cheese trays so I try to get most of that cut up at least the day before.
    Thank you for sharing your recipe! I never even thought of doing this and combining these ingredients! I am anxious to try this!!

  17. andrea amy (@mommy2fiveboys)

    I prep all my veggies ahead of time so that when its time, all I have to do is pop them in the oven and turn on the stove. Since my kids don’t like mashed potatoes, I do a roasted vegetable dish. I use carrots, baby or creamer potatoes, parsnips, turnips, garlic (left whole), onion, and celery and I toss them with a little bit of Italian salad dressing, and about an hour before dinner I pop them in the oven (covered) and roast them up.

  26. Carey Hurst

    Have to make the pumpkin pie the night before and the pumpkin cheesecake so it has time to set .

  32. Bailey Dexter

    Our favorite is pasta salad! Pasta, shredded cheeses (we use cheddar, havarti and mozzarella), black olives, diced peppers, green onion, mix 1/2 and half of Greek salad dressing and Kraft Miracle Whip, toss all together and the longer it sits, the better it tastes!

  34. Erika Letson

    Mine would have to be stuffing/dressing. I don’t like to actually stuff the bird, I like to make it ahead of time on the side.

  52. sarah sar

    I like to make puff pastry pinwheels ahead of time…they freeze really well and save me so much time!

  53. Lori L.

    My favourite make ahead appetizer for the holidays is bacon & spinach wrapped chicken bites – so yummy! Thanks for the chance to win!

  72. Theresa Black

    My favorite make ahead Thanksgiving dish is Homemade dinner buns and pies 🙂 Thanks so much for the chance.

  74. Krista M

    Garlic & Cream Cheese mashed potatoes. They can be made a couple days ahead of time, then baked the night before or the day of. They’re a bit of work, but the taste is worth it!

  77. Shelley N

    My favourite make ahead side dish for the holidays is a 3 fruit cranberry sauce. I found the recipe years ago. very yummy

  80. Jay M (@JaySaver)

    I usually make a few batches of Grandma’s spice cookies for neighbours and friends a couple of weeks before Christmas. Always gets me in the mood for more Christmas baking!

  83. Valerie Mallette

    My favourite make-ahead side dish for Thanksgiving and the holidays is butternut squash soup.

  86. Jane Reid

    I make lots of dishes ahead of time for the holidays soups which I freeze home baked bread to freeze and mountains of ice Cream

  90. aly3360

    My favourite make ahead meal is scalloped potatoes with cheese. They’re great the first day and even better the next day (or the day after that).

    – amber y