My biggest must-do when it comes to entertaining is to get as much busywork done in advance as humanly possible.

Brussels sprout-trimming, lemon-zesting, potato-peeling...everything that can get done beforehand does get done beforehand. It's a habit I picked up back in the days of no counter space, no dishwasher and a mini stove; preparing a multi-course meal all at once at once not only wasn't fun...it usually wasn't even an option.

In any case, I think we can all agree that peeling potatoes is a semi-miserable task. If, like me, you prefer to get it out of the way in advance, here's a little tip: just submerge the spuds in a bowl of cold water to keep them from browning until you're ready to get going.