What kinds of things do you prepare and then freeze, well in advance of the holiday season, to use for meals, impromptu get-togethers, etc.? ;o)

Excellent suggestion, amysarah. You could use some of that limoncello during the holidays to make this incredible tiramisu; https://food52.com/recipes/3668-simplified-limoncello-tiramisu-with-raspberries (I tested and served it for a special dinner party where it was a real hit. That's my photo, with the cut glass trifle bowl.) I imagine that just-thawed frozen raspberries could be used, or you just top it with long curls of quick-candied lemon zest, or perhaps orange zest. ;o)

Lucia, do you have a favorite recipe for arancini? Believe it or not, I've never made them before - it's high time that I do. My friends and family will be thrilled. It has never occur to me that you could freeze them. How do you re-heat arincini? In the oven? Do tell! Thank you, Lucia. ;o)

Niknud, don't hesitate to make a reference to your own recipe here. You know it's a good dish, tried and true for this purpose, which makes it exactly the type of helpful information for which we're all looking. I often freeze leftover roast chicken in stock plus whatever pan sauce / gravy is left, to use in a similar dish (which I make up after defrosting the chicken in sauce), but we put ours over toast. Your recipe sounds so good. I'm definitely putting it on the list. Thank you so much! ;o)

Great ideas, all of them, Bevi. I'm intrigued by the gougeres - will have to run that recipe down. I've never frozen gougeres. Such a revelation. Thank you so much. ;o)

http://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1015716-cranberry-cheddar-gougeres

Thank you, Michelle. I also make gravy ahead of time (and actually posted a recipe here a few years ago - it's a key element of my plan-ahead, make-ahead project: https://food52.com/recipes/7530-make-ahead-turkey-gravy ). I have never thought to add strained vegetables, but I imagine they make it even tastier. Thank you for the tip! ;o)

TheFritschKitchen - Potstickers are such a great idea (I would never have thought of that), as are your other suggestions. Thank you so much. ;o)

That's a great idea!

Nancy, what a great idea. Flavored brandies, whiskey, etc. with intensely flavored dried fruit such as apricots and sour cherries would also be good. They need a couple of weeks to steep, and then the dried fruit can be drained, pressed and used in cookies and quick breads. ;o)

IPK, those meatballs look terrific. I am certainly going to keep those in mind. Thank you. ;o)

Sarah, thank you; I love the idea of making ginger snaps. Do you have a recipe that you really like? Do tell. ;o)

Antonia James, Here is the recipe I use. It is not an old family recipe I planted my fig tree about 10 years ago and it is only the last 4 or 5 years that it has borne heavily.

Fig Bread: 3 eggs, 2 1/2 cups sugar, 2 cups mashed ripe figs, 3/4 cup veg. oil, 2 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp cinnamon 1/2 cup buttermilk, 1 cup chopped pecans.

Beat eggs, add sugar and beat well. Add figs and oil. Sift together flour, soda, salt and cinnamon. Add the fig mixture alternately with the buttermilk.. Beat well, fold in pecans. Bake at 350 for 1 hour in greased and floured pans. Makes 2 large or 3 small loaves.

(The sugar can be reduced down to 1 3/4 cups.) It has been popular at morning coffees at work.

C Sangueza, thank you so much for posting this! How much flour do you use? ;o)

C. Sangueza, do you have a favorite fig bread recipe? Figs are plentiful here, so much so that it's considered an act of great kindness to take bags of them from neighbors whose trees are heavy with fruit. That's such a good idea, as is the cinnamon raisin bread. I usually make cinnamon buns, but I can see how having a loaf or two of a sweet yeast bread like that would be perfect for toast and especially French toast. Thank you so much for the great ideas! ;o)

Niknud, thank you. We all really like Nigel Slater's Bolognese sauce, so I've made a note to make double batches henceforth, freezing one. Such a good idea. I'm not big on chiles but my sons are, so the idea of making a fruit + jalapeno jam is excellent. Too late for strawberries, but I'm thinking late-season plums would work . . . . plus, you could add some soy sauce and fresh ginger to make a nice glaze for chicken or salmon. ;o)

Any sweet berry works - blueberries are also extremely tasty. I made raspberry last year but only because there was a serious sale on some almost bad overripe at the grocery store. That's generally how I choose which berry to use. :)

Half Pint, do you use a particular recipe for your XO sauce?

Tomato sauce, yes. I hadn't thought of that. Definitely will add that to the list. I make "cold sauce" (recipe here on Food52) and was planning to make some anyway with the last basil of the season. Now I'll make twice what I was planning. Thank you, HalfPint. ;o)

I'd like that XO sauce recipe, too. Thank you.

I found one on FoodandWine which looks incredible. On my to-do list for this weekend. ;o)

@Susan W, this is the recipe I use with great results.
http://www.grubstreet.com/2012/08/how-to-use-xo-sauce.html#
The ingredient list is missing the amount of shallots, which is mentioned in the recipe, so I use about 1/2 cup of chopped shallots.

Thanks, Picholine. Great idea! ;o)

Uncooked lasagna? Can I get details on this so I don't hork it up and have epic fail in front of my family? It sounds like a great idea!

I use the no boil lasagna noodles and I make a meat sauce and layer as one does with ricotta and mozzarella cheese.
I always have extra sauce too. I cover first with a layer of non stick foil sprayed with say Pam then I wrap tightly again sealing the baking pan with heavy duty foil tightly. I let it sit overnight in the fridge ( I do this because I want the noodles to absorbe the sauce as I would if I was going to bake hours later) the next day or at least 8 hrs later, l freeze the pan and the extra sauce. When I'm going to bake it I defrost the Lasagna and place in a preheated oven and heat extra sauce in a pan to serve with. Baking 350° about hour and uncovered 10 m . Follow your fave recipe just use the freezing and defrosting directions I listed and it will tastes as you made it that day. Here is another tip ...if I'm taking the lasagna frozen somewhere ,I use double foil lasagna pans carefully lined with nonstick foil and the squares come out perfectly and then the pan can be thrown out!

Picholine, thank you. Your explanation is so helpful. (My sons will be thanking you, too, as they both like lasagne quite a bit, and it's been eons since I made it for them!) ;o)

Oh, I forgot tomato sauce.

cv, thanks so much. Do you have a recipe for lebkuchen that you really like? My mother made it every year at Christmastime when we were growing up. Would love to hear more about yours. Thank you. ;o)

Actually, I'm not the one who makes lebkuchen. A relative makes it and I'm a lucky beneficiary.

:-)