Running to the grocery store before hosting some of your final holiday gatherings of the season can be daunting and time-consuming. So, rather than braving the crowds, chef and cookbook author Gaby Dalkin, aka “What’s Gaby Cooking,” has a simple solution: use the ingredients you already have on hand. This means getting creative with pantry staples to prepare mouthwatering dishes for your crowd. And she promises that it’s easier than you think as with the help of a few holiday hosting tips. Beyond the kitchen, she shares how she uses that creativity for other key decisions like finding the perfect car using Kelley Blue Book’s MyWallet tool. Read on for our interview with Gaby discussing ways to make holiday meal preparation as stress-free as possible.
Gaby’s approach to hassle-free holiday hosting
As a chef, Gaby notes that food plays a big role in her holiday celebrations with loved ones. “I’ve been in this industry for, I don’t know, 1000 years at this point, but hosting family and friends is my favorite part of the holidays. I’m not a gift buyer for my friends,” she says. “I will invite you over and cook you an incredible meal, but an incredible meal doesn’t necessarily have to be anything complicated.”
Creative ways that Gaby uses leftover ingredients for meals
Scanning the pantry and fridge for ingredients is Gaby’s top strategy for creating a holiday meal that’s easy to prepare and sure to impress guests. “I mean, really evaluating what’s in your fridge is tip number one, and two, having a stocked pantry. So you’ve always got pasta or quinoa or beans, red sauce, stuff like that,” she notes. “I just did a TikTok asking people what they had leftover in their fridge after Thanksgiving, and I took one of the answers and made this insane corn soufflé. Someone said they had too much sour cream and cornmeal, and I made this epic corn soufflé with pockets of leftover cheese that I also had in my fridge.”
@whatsgabycookin #ad You guys really brought it with these ingredient combos… Just like I made these holiday dishes with your pantry staples, Kelley Blue Book My Wallet takes your info and makes finding the perfect budget-friendly car simple and stress-free! Enjoy the Corn Souffle! @kelleybluebook
Using what you already have on hand not only saves you time but gives your wallet a mini-break from spending at the grocery store. Hence why, Gaby maintains this mindset throughout the year—especially when it comes to cooking with pasta. “If it’s summertime and I’ve got lemon and Parmesan and a little bit of cream, I’ll do a pasta al limone. If I have a little bit of ground chicken left over in my fridge, I’ll do chicken Parmesan meatballs with pasta,” she explains. “If I’ve got a thing of frozen beef in the freezer, I’ll do a quasi-lasagna bake or something along those lines. So pasta is a really important through line for me, and then I just kind of customize it based on what’s in my fridge.” You’ll definitely be surprised at the delicious meals you come up with by repurposing those forgotten ingredients!
How Gaby uses MyWallet as an additional planning tool
For those times when a grocery store run is needed to stock up on pantry items, the right car will get you there without hassle. Luckily, MyWallet takes the guesswork out of the car search process by tailoring options based on your budget, preferred monthly payment and other important factors. “I think that the beauty of using MyWallet, is that you can customize everything you need when you’re putting in your car search. And that’s how we do cooking every night, not just for holidays…,” Gaby says. “So, I can put a really beautiful creative meal on the table and with Kelly Blue book MyWallet, it only feeds you what’s actually within your means and in your budget. So then, you’re feeling very empowered and confident in your decision making.” (Head to KBB.com to learn more about the MyWallet tool.)
