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Life’s Little Sweets celebrates seasonal cooking and local food pathways. Find inspiration from farms, CSAs, and home gardens with recipes that highlight fresh ingredients, community, and the joy of cooking through the seasons. Continue Reading

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Instant Pot Ham Vegetable Soup lifeslittlesweets.com

Fall Soup Recipes

When the weather gets cooler and those leaves start falling, you know it’s time to cozy up with a hot, delicious bowl of soup! We have a list of yummy, nutritious fall/autumn soups that you can make at home.

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cropped-IMG_5275-Pumpkin-Spice-Baked-Donuts-www.lifeslittlesweets.com-Sara-Maniez-680x1020-1.jpg

Popular and Delicious Fall Seasonal Recipes

It’s time for some cranberry, pumpkin, apples, and everything spiced! Sweater season is here which means we’re hungrier than ever. Want to know what food to cook this Fall? Keep on reading!

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This Pumpkin Spice Bread yields 2 generous loaves and can be customized with your favorite toppings and Vanilla Coconut Icing! Bring this favorite to your next holiday gathering! Be sure to check out the other #FoodieMamas pumpkin recipes in the post! #pumpkin #bread #pumpkinspice

Pumpkin Spice Bread

This Pumpkin Spice Bread yields 2 generous loaves and can be customized with your favorite toppings and Vanilla Coconut Icing! Bring this favorite to your next holiday gathering! Be sure to check out the other #FoodieMamas pumpkin recipes below!

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October Recipes

October Recipes

October means fall is upon us. This might be the season that you’re craving for some warm pies, pumpkin bread, and cold drinks — like wine for example. Or simply just some coffee or tea for those who don’t want to go in the alcoholic route.

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This Homemade Buttermilk Ranch Dressing is creamy, tangy and flavorful. It is the perfect accompaniment to a fresh salad or pair it with a vegetable platter for dipping. This Homemade Buttermilk Ranch Dressing recipe is your go-to zesty dressing since it has just 10 ingredients and takes only 5 minutes to make!

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Drinks | Coffee • Tea • Syrups • Cocktails •Mocktails

Citrus Honey Ginger Tea is an invigorating, fresh, hot, tea drink to help banish winter health woes and it is our go-to cold & flu remedy.

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Wineberry Recipes Collection lifeslittlesweets.com

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Dinner

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Baileys Irish Cream Chocolate Fudge Recipe

10 Festive St. Patrick’s Day Recipes | Life's Little Sweets

10 Festive St. Patrick's Day Recipes

St. Patrick's Day Shamrock Shaped Brownies www.LifesLittleSweets.com

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Baked Apple Cider Donuts

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Cherry Overnight Oats

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Cold Brew Iced Coffee

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Garden Update August 2020

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Kitchen Renovation Update Week of 9.17.2017
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    • Slow Cooker Crock-Pot Butter Corn lifeslittlesweets.com
      Slow Cooker Crock-Pot Butter Corn
    • Homemade Coffee Creamer
      Homemade Coffee Creamer
    • Maple Cinnamon Butter
      Maple Cinnamon Butter
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      Fall Soup Recipes
    • cropped-IMG_5275-Pumpkin-Spice-Baked-Donuts-www.lifeslittlesweets.com-Sara-Maniez-680x1020-1.jpg
      Popular and Delicious Fall Seasonal Recipes
    • This Pumpkin Spice Bread yields 2 generous loaves and can be customized with your favorite toppings and Vanilla Coconut Icing! Bring this favorite to your next holiday gathering! Be sure to check out the other #FoodieMamas pumpkin recipes in the post! #pumpkin #bread #pumpkinspice
      Pumpkin Spice Bread
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    December 6, 2022

    How to Plan Christmas Dinner

    Estimated reading time: 5 minutes

    Are you in charge of planning Christmas dinner this year? If so, you may be feeling a little overwhelmed at the thought of cooking a large meal for your extended family. 

    With a little advance planning, you can make Christmas dinner a breeze. Here's what you need to do.

    Pinterest collage pin with text,

    Table of contents

    • 1. Choose a date and time for dinner
    • 2. Make a guest list
    • 3. Choose a menu
    • 4. Ask everyone to bring a dish 
    • 5. Do your grocery shopping

    1. Choose a date and time for dinner

    Christmas falls on December 25th every year, so that's the most obvious day to have your dinner. However, depending on your family's availability, you may want to hold the dinner on another day. Once you've chosen a date, decide whether you want to have an early dinner or a late one. This will determine how long you have to prepare the food.

    How to Plan Thanksgiving Dinner
    Grandma’s Perfect Jam Thumbprint Cookies up close view of 1 cookie
    Grandma’s Perfect Jam Thumbprint Cookies

    2. Make a guest list

    Now that you know when you're having dinner, it's time to make a guest list. First, decide whether you want to invite just immediate family or extended family as well. Once you've decided who you're inviting, make sure to get their contact information so you can send them invitations. Since you are the one hosting, you’re the person that gets to decide who you want to invite. 

    Up close view of pumpkin pie with whipped cream
    Homemade Pumpkin Pie
    Chocolate Chess Pie with whipped cream on a white place over a wood board
    Chocolate Chess Pie

    3. Choose a menu

    Now comes the fun part, choosing what everyone will eat! If you're not sure what to make, ask your guests if they have any dietary restrictions or food allergies. Once you know everyone's preferences, you can start looking for recipes online or in cookbooks. Make sure to choose dishes that can be prepared in advance so you're not stuck in the kitchen all day on Christmas Eve! An easy Christmas dinner menu will do just fine! 

    decorated Gingerbread Cutout Cookies on a wire cooling rack
    Gingerbread Cookies
    How to Roast a Turkey photo
    How to Make Roast Turkey

    4. Ask everyone to bring a dish 

    Cooking everything for the Christmas dinner could be a big task for one person. This is why asking everyone to bring a dish is a good idea. It’s fairly traditional to ask each family to bring at least one thing to the dinner. You can request that they bring something specific, or they can bring whatever they’d like. If you’ve never planned a big dinner before, then you know that this can be a huge help! 

    a side view of scalloped potatoes with herbs on top with a white background
    Scalloped Potatoes
    Green Bean Casserole up close being served on a spoon lifeslittlesweets.com
    Green Bean Casserole

    5. Do your grocery shopping

    Planning a traditional Christmas dinner menu? A few days before Christmas, head to the grocery store and pick up everything you need for the big meal. If possible, try to do all of your shopping in one trip so you don't have to make multiple trips and lug around heavy bags of groceries.

    If you don’t LOVE grocery shopping, then consider placing an online order and picking it up or having it delivered. Doing something like this can save you a ton of time when you already don’t have much time at all. 

    Are you in charge of planning Christmas dinner this year? If so, you may be feeling a little overwhelmed at the thought of cooking a large meal for your extended family. With a little advance planning, you can make Christmas dinner a breeze. Here’s what you need to do. #howtoplanChristmasdinner #christmasdinner #dinner #holidays #December #holidaydinner #lifeslittlesweets #dinnerplanning #mealplanning
    Eggnog
    Are you in charge of planning Christmas dinner this year? If so, you may be feeling a little overwhelmed at the thought of cooking a large meal for your extended family. With a little advance planning, you can make Christmas dinner a breeze. Here’s what you need to do. #howtoplanChristmasdinner #christmasdinner #dinner #holidays #December #holidaydinner #lifeslittlesweets #dinnerplanning #mealplanning
    Coquito

    Planning Christmas dinner doesn't have to be stressful! By following these simple steps and doing some advance planning, you can ensure that everything goes smoothly and that everyone enjoys themselves. It’s time to put on your holiday music, pour yourself a glass of eggnog, and get started on your Christmas plans today! 

    Do you have any tips on how to cook Christmas dinner? Leave your tips below! 

    a bunch of different groceries on a wood table

    Latest Posts

    • Slow Cooker Crock-Pot Butter Corn
    • Homemade Coffee Creamer
    • Maple Cinnamon Butter
    • Maple Shortbread Cookies
    • Fall Soup Recipes
    • First published: 12/6/2022
    • Written by Allison Lancaster, photos by Sara Maniez

    • Author
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    Allison Lancaster
    Allison Lancaster
    Allison Lancaster is a blogger and work-at-home mom. She has always had a passion for writing and after becoming a mom in 2015, decided to turn her passion into her career. Her writing has been featured in the Huffington Post, Scary Mommy, and more. She resides in Tennessee with her husband and two children.
    Allison Lancaster
    Latest posts by Allison Lancaster (see all)
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