the 2024 ultimate easy-but-fancy holiday menu
 Caro for president because holy smokes this is amazing!!! Signed, gal hosting 8 of my husband’s colleagues (including bosses) from out of town while also wrangling a toddler 😂 Expand full comment Wow SO PROUD of you this rocks!!!!! Expand full comment It went so well!!! 🫶🫶🫶🫶 Expand full comment Before I even started reading this I asked my husband if he remembered what I made for Christmas Eve dinner last year (aka your holiday meal menu from last year) and he remembered EVERY. SINGLE. THING. This man cannot remember anything that’s not written on a sticky note. Needless to say, we LOVE a Caro holiday meal. Can’t wait for this years! Expand full comment I went to a *very* small college, and our cook had to make every ingredient count and every leftover stretchhhhhhhh. She used to use leftover mashed potatoes for soup! When I read this meal plan, it called up that old memory. Patricia Coyle ("Chef Pat" as we called her) died last month and maybe I need to make extra mashed potatoes this holiday season in homage. Thanks! Expand full comment Y'all are GEMS - this is amazing and I cannot wait to cook every bit of it. Thankyouthankyouthankyou for making everything easier and delicious-er! Expand full comment Strongly considering making this and breaking my family’s century old tradition of Christmas lasagna 🙈 going to do a test run this week of the roast and potatoes, will report back! Expand full comment Commenting again that I made almost the whole menu again (skipped the tortellini and the dessert) and it was somehow even better the second time! No changes from me. love this. And thanks Caro, without you I would have bought 6-7 different cheeses and overdone my charcuterie board 🤣 Expand full comment Okay made the roast, potatoes and asparagus - first, delicious, it’s happening for Christmas 🤣 my potatoes were a little liquidy but I’m thinking if it’s becuase I only had 2% milk on hand. I just cooked them a little more on the stove until they came together. So easy and hands off! Expand full comment Great call on evaporating any excess liquid over the stove! I find that they look liquidy but then once mashed are perfect, but 2% could def have been runnier. Expand full comment Also my absolute pickiest child ate the beef 👏🏻 Expand full comment Can the roast be made in a crock pot? Its not my fave but need the oven for other things! Expand full comment That is my plan for today!! It’s gotta work, crock pots are the best haha Expand full comment It toooootally worked in the slow cooker and was delicious!! Took like 8 hours? Started it in the morning and came home to deliciousness. Expand full comment Good to know!! THANK YOU!!! Expand full comment love everything about this and will absolutely be enlisting my toddler to smash the heck out of the peppermint Expand full comment After reading this menu to my husband, we totally changed our menu for Christmas Eve lol even though we originally planned on Early Dismissal Pot Roast Expand full comment Roast is in the oven now 🥳 it smells divine!!!!!! Expand full comment This looks awesome! What do you think about preparing the potatoes earlier and reheating in the microwave or stove? My silly oven is too small for both the roast and potatoes Expand full comment I was also wondering if there is a way to make the potatoes in advance? Can you keep them warm in a slow cooker? Expand full comment Yes -- slow cooker!!! Expand full comment Hi! Sorry to jump on this bandwagon and be so specific, but also going to make the night before and reheat in the slow cooker due to oven space. Question is, when I reheat, do I add in more milk or butter or anything or just put it on warm and let it do its thing? Expand full comment Been so excited for this to arrive so I can finalize my Christmas menu! Two roast Qs- 1. did you use the same spiced cider from TJs in the roast as in the cocktails? Afraid of the cinnamon factor with the meat so just confirming. If it’s what you used tho then obvs I trust!! 2. No searing of roast first right? Just into the Dutch oven fully raw, correct? TYSM 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻 Expand full comment Yes same cider!!! It's lovely don't worry about a little cinnamon nutmeg -- it's nice!! No searing!!!! Not needed here!! Expand full comment TYSSSSSSM💓💓💓💓💓 happy holidays!! Expand full comment I’m making the roast and can’t wait! I bought it from Whole Foods on 12/21. Will it still be good on 12/25 or should I freeze? I don’t make red meat often. Expand full comment Should still be good as long as it was fresh! The label should say! Expand full comment Thank you! Sell by date says 12/24. Husband says we’re good, I’m not sure. And it’s fresh! Expand full comment If I can only find 2 2lb chuck roasts and put them in the same Dutch oven, what do you recommend for cook time? Expand full comment If in the same oven on top of each other, cook time will be very similar, like probably still 3.5-4 hours. If not touching, it'll be 2 hours! Expand full comment I forgot how much I loved last year's version and now I'm excited to revisit that one AND make this one! The best. Expand full comment Salad-hating men 🤣🤣🤣 I have just four people for Christmas. One is sort of salad-hating but will eat anything blue cheese. One is a recovering alcoholic. A third is gluten-and-nightshade-vegetable free (no potatoes 😭) and semi-sugar avoider. Still, I think this menu can work on a smaller scale! Expand full comment this sounds like the start to a joke! Three people walk into a bar… Expand full comment WTF (not WTC), another LOL moment… aka dont reply after a few wines. Expand full comment