Why do people think.... - Page 9

Snicks1 · ‎07-28-2012

I see nothing wrong with having the meal prepared and picking it up, even for company. I have cooked the traditional Thanksgiving meal for up to 42 people, and enjoyed doing so. One year I served Italian food for Thanksgiving, everyone loved it. These days, we go to a lovely restaurant for our Thanksgiving meal, we now enjoy that just as much. I have desserts made at home, for later.

Edited to correct spelling error.

"To each their own, in all things".

Hayfield · ‎03-10-2010

I'm 61 years old, been married for over 38 years, raised two children and I'm a good cook and a good baker but I rarely do either any more. I still cook on Thanksgiving, if I'm home, but all my guests bring something and I don't care if they make it themselves or buy it! When I'm home for Xmas, I'm Italian and I make my Xmas Eve dinner in early November, homemade pasta, sauce & meatballs, I freeze it in containers. I toss a salad, bread, wine and heat & eat the meal. Xmas Day dinner is a marinated pork tenderloin on the grill and simple sides & again, wine. Easter is a Honey Baked Ham & some sides. Nobody complains! Most of my friends do the same. Holidays are meant to be enjoyed and if you don't enjoy spending all day in the kitchen, making things from scratch, then you shouldn't! To each their own as they say! Being with family and friends is what's important.

Moonchilde · ‎05-23-2010

@Hayfield wrote:
I'm 61 years old, been married for over 38 years, raised two children and I'm a good cook and a good baker but I rarely do either any more. I still cook on Thanksgiving, if I'm home, but all my guests bring something and I don't care if they make it themselves or buy it! When I'm home for Xmas, I'm Italian and I make my Xmas Eve dinner in early November, homemade pasta, sauce & meatballs, I freeze it in containers. I toss a salad, bread, wine and heat & eat the meal. Xmas Day dinner is a marinated pork tenderloin on the grill and simple sides & again, wine. Easter is a Honey Baked Ham & some sides. Nobody complains! Most of my friends do the same. Holidays are meant to be enjoyed and if you don't enjoy spending all day in the kitchen, making things from scratch, then you shouldn't! To each their own as they say! Being with family and friends is what's important.

@Hayfield, Thanksgiving and Christmas meals were always stressful and never a cause for celebration in my house, growing up or afterwards, because my mom didn't enjoy cooking, it was just something that needed doing, and holiday expectations with company just added to the stress. She was *mean* on those days.

One Thanksgiving she'd only been out of the hospital about 6 days after having her gallbladder removed. We went out to eat. It was the best holiday decision ever made in our family. No expectations of others and *everyone* could enjoy the meal. We did it for Thanksgiving every year after that.

Life without Mexican food is no life at all

Yardlie · ‎03-10-2010

@Chrystaltree2 ... Apparently she just doesn't "get" the way you feel. I know so many people who choose not to cook. They cooked for so many years while their children were at home, and they just do convenience foods or eat out now...very little actual cooking. The way you feel is not unusual.

Personally, DH and I love to cook as a hobby. We do much fancier cooking than we did when our children were home...you know, experiment with Chinese, French, etc. We love having people over to enjoy these special dinners with us. So...we hear all the time from our friends, "I don't cook anymore."

I would just keep telling your neighbor why you don't cook. Maybe offer her a couple of your favorite old recipes to show her that you used to cook.

A kind gesture can reach a wound that only compassion can heal. ~~ Steve Maraboli

Toppers · ‎01-01-2015

@JaneMarple wrote:
@151949 wrote:
Personally, if I did not want to cook I would not invite guests for Thanksgiving dinner - just my thoughts on it. I would never invite company for take out food.
You make it seem like "take out food" is a horrible thing! Take out can be from a gourmet restaurant and can be just as good or better than someone's home cooked meal! It's all about the family and fun times together.

One of my favorites turkey and ham came from Heavenly Ham one year, all my family had to do was make the sides and WE ALL LOVED IT!

There are no set rules for Thanksgiving, it could be Mexican, Chinese or any other food choice. As for me this year, I'm undecided so I may go out to a nice restaurant and have seafood.

Hi @JaneMarple.

I agree about the holidays being a time where it should be about spending time with our familes and friends.

The meal/food itself, doesn't matter to me.

It got to the point for me where it became too much of a physical burden for me to make the whole holiday meal at the holidays anymore, so we started to get one of the prepared turkey dinners for our meal that a local market makes at that time of the year.

There may be various reasons why people order these meals at the holidays, such as family care-giving or personal illness or work schedule situations that they're dealing with.

I'm just glad that they're available for those who want them.

Those meals from are market are so good! We've had them a few times now.

I personally feel that those meals taste better than the holiday meals that I can prepare for us at home.

They can prepare them there with commercial-grade equipment that I don't have here at home, so that everything that they make is cooked perfectly.

willdob3 · ‎11-01-2010

@Sooner wrote:
To be a really good cook, I think you have to have some training (whether from books, tv, or mom, or preferably all three), be interested in what you are doing and practice a lot. You need to try out new methods of cooking different products, know how to buy the best ingredients, and how to judge flavor and seasoning levels and, to quote Emeril, take it up a notch.

You can cook, but being a really GOOD or GREAT cook is an entirely different thing. I have always had a passion for cooking and learning about food in general--comes from my Dad!--and you can't just pick up a book and make food that compares to what I and many like me turn out! It is an art as well as a skill.

@Sooner - Trust me; there are plenty of "really good cooks" who don't like or want to cook - for various reasons - so they don't. Just because we can doesn't mean we enjoy it or want to cook.