Thanksgiving Guides Offer Make-Ahead Cooking Tips

Several guides offer ways to ease Thanksgiving cooking by preparing food ahead. Make-ahead appetizers include dips, smoked-salmon deviled eggs, savory cheese coins, liver-mousse toasts and bacon-wrapped dates, with some components able to be refrigerated for up to two days. Slow-cooker desserts such as bread pudding, baked apples, rice pudding and maple-pumpkin pudding can free oven and stovetop space for the main meal. Bread can also be prepared before the holiday: parbaked rolls can be frozen for up to six weeks and finished in the oven on Thanksgiving, while shaped, unrisen dough can be frozen and thawed and proofed before baking.