60 genius tips that will make your holiday cooking so much better

From grocery shopping to cooking to using up the leftovers, we’ve assembled expert tips to help you through the holiday season.

Is your turkey up to temperature but doesn’t have golden-brown skin yet? Stop basting and crank the oven up to 230°C to crisp up the skin. The bird will brown in just a few minutes, so be sure to keep an eye on it.

Think outside the box with your cutouts. Many shapes can be repurposed to make seasonal designs. Stars can become Santas, diamonds can become elves, gingerbread people get new life as yetis and much more.

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When the lump won’t dissipate no matter how much whisking you do, transfer your gravy to a blender. Pulse the gravy until it’s nice a smooth.

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If you’re having lots of people over, it might seem counter-productive to get two smaller turkeys instead of just one huge one. But birds over eight-10 kilograms are much more likely to have been treated with chemicals. Plus, massive birds also take quite a bit longer to thaw and cook and tend to cook less evenly.

Add some crunch and texture to your stuffing by spreading it on a cookie sheet and baking at 177°C for 10 minutes. If it’s still too soggy for your tastes, just stir and repeat.

There’s more to gifting food than cookie tins (though there are some really cute ones!). When wrapping up holiday treats this year, get creative. Recycle waxed paper boxes and turn them into cookie containers, fill mason jars with homemade treats, wrap rolls of cookies in parchment and much more.

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Keep your ham nice and juicy with some help from a glaze. You can go with a molasses, sweet mustard, cranberry or bourbon glaze for an extra-special ham.

For a smaller gathering, you’ll want to plan on getting a bird that serves 225 grams per person. For a large dinner, however, grab a turkey that serves 450 grams per person. The extra sides will help round out the meal.

Nervous to place that steamy slow cooker chili in the passenger seat as you drive to your holiday get-together? We were, too, until we found this genius trick to keeping the lid on tight: Grab a small bungee cord hook each end onto the slow cooker’s side handles then wrap it around (or thread it through) the lid’s top handle. Give it a wiggle to be sure it is good to go.