Thanksgiving Meals: Your Recipe for Energy Savings

Thanksgiving meals are an important part of the celebrations you share with family and friends. All of that extra cooking and baking, however, can lead to a real post-season letdown after you see the added cost on your energy bill. These simple, cost-saving tips will help you enjoy the festivities while trimming your energy budget.

• Preheat the oven to the exact temperature required; preheating is not necessary for foods that cook for several hours.
• If you've got an oven window, take advantage of it! Opening the oven door wastes energy and lowers the temperature by as much as 25°F.
• Glass and ceramic baking dishes retain heat better than metal. If you cook with glass or ceramic dishes, you can reduce the oven temperature by 25°F.
• Conserve energy by baking several batches of cookies, or more than one pie, at a time.
• For stovetop cooking, match the size of the pan to the size of the burner; using a small pan on a large burner wastes energy.
• Keep pots and pans covered to prevent heat loss and reduce cooking time.
• Clean burners after every use. A clean burner heats more efficiently, using less energy.

Slow cookers, electric skillets and toaster ovens are great for heating leftovers and use a lot less energy than conventional ovens and stoves. Microwave ovens also use 50% less energy than conventional ovens. To save energy, reheat holiday leftovers in the microwave instead of on the stove or in the oven.