With the holidays coming up next week, many folks will be spending a lot of time in the kitchen preparing the beloved holiday meal.

Chef Ron Kneabone of the Marriott Fallsview Hotel and Spa in Niagara Falls, Ontario, offers up these tips to keep in mind when you’re busy bustling in the kitchen this holiday season:

First

Why buy cranberry sauce in a can when it takes five minutes to make homemade? Fresh or frozen cranberries, sugar, cinnamon stick, red wine and an orange cut in half! Simmer for 5 minutes and you have the best cranberry sauce ever. And it doesn’t go “GLUMP!” as it falls out of a can!

Here’s the recipe:

1 pound of fresh Cranberries

1 cup sugar

2 cups dry red wine

1 cinnamon stick

2 bay leaves

1 orange cut in halve

It’s this simple, put everything in a sauce pot and simmer for 5-10 minutes!

This sauce is so good it is a shame to only use it for turkey! Try it as a sandwich spread, a dip, put it on a brie and bake for 15 minutes, serve on ice cream, etc.!

Second

Cook your stuffing outside the turkey for safety and practicality. When your turkey is cooked and resting sweat off diced vegetables (I use carrots, celery root, white onion and chestnuts) in a generous amount of butter, add diced bread, herbs (I use parsley and sage) some gravy and bake for 20 minutes. Add some fruit if you are so inclined!

Third

A turkey does NOT need to cook until it falls off the bones! Don’t be proud; go buy a meat thermometer and cook it until you have obtained 180 degrees in the thigh. It will still be juicy and safe to eat!

Fourth

Christmas Martinis!

1 oz vodka

½ oz Goldschläger

½ oz Cointreau

1 oz cranberry juice

1 squeeze of lemon juice

Shake over ice and serve with skewers of cranberries. Make them ahead of time so you can have one too!