Practice Makes . . .

Perfect? Yes, but Larry Gelwix, coach of the winning Rugby team portrayed in the film Forever Strong says "Practice make permanent." I agree with that too. But today I'm thinking about how practice makes tasks easy.

I mentioned to my husband that I can count on one hand the number of thanksgiving dinners we've eaten away from home, and they were all in the first years of our marriage. I've made a full thanksgiving dinner so many times that it is easy for me. I can see why some women, especially those who work outside the home feel overwhelmed by it.

Wednesday is baking and make ahead day. I bake pies and rolls, and make the cranberry jello salad. Yesterday I make two apple pies, using Pink Lady apples; tasting the pie today I can say that those apples are wonderful, sweet with just the right amount of tart, perfect texture, not too crunchy or too mushy, they are just right. I also made two pumpkin pies which turned out very nice. The recipe for the rolls is an old family favorite found in a cookbook put together by the ladies of my mom's ward (congregation) in the 1960's.  The cranberry jello salad recipe came from The Friend magazine when our children were very young. I thought it would be a good way to introduce cranberries to them and they loved it and have requested it ever after.

With all of that made ahead Thursday is a matter of putting the turkey in the oven in a roasting bag; peel and cut the potatoes, cover them with salted water and sit them on the stove until time to turn them one to cook. Peel and slice the sweet potatoes, microwave until just tender, then prepare them with butter and brown sugar, set aside until time to put them in the oven. Finely chop onion and celery and sauté them until tender, set aside for the dressing. Then go and rest for a while.

Next is make the Waldorf salad and put it in the fridge to chill. Prepare the stove top dressing, add the pre chopped onion and celery, put into casserole dish.

About an hour before the turkey is done, start cooking the potatoes until tender. When they're done, drain, add butter and milk (however much you want) and whip into mashed potatoes. When the turkey comes out of the oven the sweet potatoes and dressing go in to heat thoroughly. While Dad slices the turkey, Mom makes the gravy.

The table was set earlier, the juice was made by a child (frozen concentrate) and the rolls, butter and jam are all set out.

I've done this so many times it is fairly easy for me. Practice makes it so. And for that I'm grateful.