6 Holiday Cookbooks and 3 Thanksgiving Tips for the Host

For holiday meal ideas made easy look no further than the library. Search hundreds of cookbooks, many of them holiday-themed, or ask a librarian for help discovering the perfect book to suit your needs. Library cookbooks – at least most of them – check out for three weeks. That's about how much time you have before Thanksgiving (Yikes!). Need help finding just the right recipe based on specific ingredients or dietary needs? Try our online Recipe Assistants service.

Here are six that will get you started and put smiles on your family's faces:

Vegan Holiday Kitchen: More Than 200 Delicious, Festive Recipes for Special Occasions by Nava Atlas

Thanksgiving 101: Celebrate America's Favorite Holiday with America's Thanksgiving Expert by Rick Rodgers

An American Family Cooks: From a Thanksgiving Everyone Can Master to a Chocolate Cake You Will Never Forget by Judith Choate

3 Thanksgiving Tips for the Host

from Cooking neighborhood librarian Erin Seeger

1. Borrow Cookbooks. Your library has hundreds of cookbooks gathered in one convenient place, called our Cooking Neighborhood. It is a great place to gather recipes and menus for the big day. You can find great recipes in non-holiday cookbooks, too!

2. Create lists. This will help you keep your sanity. Gather recipes; create grocery lists, timelines for recipes, and cleaning. Keep it simple and find one to print and keep on hand, such as this one from Real Simple.

3. Prep ahead. Find recipes you can spread out over time, as well as foods you can make at the same time. Baking pie, cutting vegetables, setting the table, freezing cookies and desserts, and prepping beverages ahead of time are small steps that can be done anywhere from a day to a week ahead of time. Clean as you go by soaking dishes before you eat dinner – it will cut your cleanup time in half!