Cabin Cooking: Holiday Recipes to Try in Your December Rental
Published Nov 6, 2023
December’s crisp air will whet your appetite for luscious holiday meals. Whipping up festive food in your Smoky Mountains rental cabin is easy, with these fast, filling recipes. Click the bold links for full recipes.
When you cook in a rental cabin, remember:
Your Colonial Properties cabin comes fully equipped with all the cookware and dishes you need.
Use recipes you can make in advance, so you’re not in the kitchen working while you’d rather be with your family. Dips are a great make-ahead appetizer.
One-pan meals are ideal because they reduce the pots and pans you have to wash.
You don’t have to cook everything from scratch! Take advantage of local delis and bakeries for sides, rolls and desserts.
Dip Into Holiday Flavor
Everyone wants to nosh while they’re chatting or watching the big game on TV. Serve dips with chips, crackers, baby carrots, bell pepper strips and celery. This rich bacon cheddar dip uses sour cream and mayo loaded with cheese. For a lighter option, try dill vegetable dip, made with plain yogurt, olive oil and herbs.
The Main Event
One-pan roasted turkey breast with vegetables. A breast cooks faster than a whole turkey and is 100 percent meat, no bones. Roast a turkey breast with baby potatoes, carrots, parsnips and stock. The dish creates its own gravy. Add rolls and a salad and you’re ready to celebrate!
One-pan ham, mashed potatoes and vegetables. By using ham slices instead of a whole ham, you get a quick result with individual portions. The recipe is “for two” but doubles easily. Brussels sprouts and carrots nestle with ham on a sheet pan, while potatoes cook in the oven at the same time and get mashed just before serving.
Tuscan vegetarian pasta. Toss veggies into a hot oven for speedy roasting, then add them to cooked pasta with sauce and cheeses, and bake. This dish so hearty that even meat-lovers will crave seconds. Make this in advance and bake just before serving.
A Sweet Finish
Let the pros take over for dessert. Order from a local bakery! If you want to try your hand at a beloved Southern dessert, make a cobbler. This recipe for Jack Daniels apple cobbler marries fruit with whiskey made right here in Tennessee.
Holiday meals are a joy here in the beautiful Smokies. Reserve a December cabin now and get cookin’!
