I had to get my Warcraft dailies out of the way first. Not too many of them—just the five I really want. I.e., the Dalaran cooking & jewelcrafting dailies, and the Kalu’ak dailies. I’ll come back to those in a Lich King post soon.

Doctor’s appointment at 9 am (the knee I banged up over 5 weeks ago has developed a mysterious sore lump), but other than that, it’s just cooking, one last tiny shopping trip to pick up some herbs & such, and fun!

11 am: Whoops. Well we’ll be getting a late start today. Doctor’s appointment turned into an x-ray to rule out fracture and abscess, a prescription pick-up, then buying the last couple of ingredients. Lunch next…

3:30 pm: The make-ahead mashed potatoes are made ahead; they’re sort of like a twice-baked potato casserole. Yum! We’ve also peeled and sliced carrots for an herbed carrot dish, and made a coconut caramel cream pie. Time for a Warcraft break while the dishwasher goes.

5:30 pm: We’ve made the brine for the turkey, as well as the sugar puff cookies. We’ve chopped broccoli florets and fresh bread crumbs and mixed the rices for the wild rice pilaf. We’re about to bake sweet potatoes for tomorrow’s sweet potato casserole.

Feast cooking tip #2: Plan for the unexpected. Be ready to axe one or more of your recipes if you find yourself short on time. For one, we’re always over-eager when picking out recipes. For another, something always comes up. What with medical stuff today we decided not to make a pumpkin pound cake. It isn’t as though we really needed it anyway; it was one of those whimsy things.

Irrelevant plug: Earlier today we decided we should have a holiday special at the craft store (errantdreams.etsy.com). So, as noted at the top of all store pages, through December 31 of 2008 you’ll get FREE SHIPPING on any order of $20 or more shipping within the US. Just go through the Etsy checkout process, but wait to pay until we’ve sent you a revised PayPal invoice without the shipping charges! Here’s just a smattering of the things you could get, and let’s face it, it’s way cooler to get your loved ones handmade one-of-a-kind items than mass-produced stuff!

7:10 am: Why day 1? Well, because we cook on Thursday and Friday and serve on Saturday. Technically I’ve already done a few things (made dry mixes for cornbread & biscuits, etc.), but this is where it really begins. My husband and I just made chocolate marshmallows, and now it’s time for a break.

Feast cooking tip #1: Remember to take breaks. Between each recipe, clean up the dishes & your work space, drink some water, and get off of your feet for 10 minutes to a half hour. It won’t seem necessary at first, but boy will it help later.

10:05 am: Chocolate marshmallows, Warcraft, orange cranberry sauce, Warcraft… back to work to make mocha pastry cream for a raspberry mocha trifle!

10:45 am: Mmmmmm. Mooocha. Well that came out well! Hard to go wrong with chocolate, coffee, and vanilla bean. Now we’re taking a 15-minute break before cutting and coating the marshmallows.

1:50 pm: Marshmallows cut & coated (most with a cocoa/powdered sugar mix, some with melted chocolate). Lunch eaten. Bacon bits made for the biscuits. Extra-sharp cheddar grated for the biscuits.

And that, I think, is that for today. Cleanup is still to be done before a friend comes into town tonight!