From Thanksgiving until the end of December is the perfect time of year to open your home for entertaining. You can take advantage of the fact your house will be showing its best side by already being decorated and ready for the festive season.
With the tree all lit up, a few candles all around, a couple of potted poinsettias, some nice Christmas or soft background music and a welcoming wreath at the door, your home will be the perfect stage for any party.
Maybe you have avoided being a host because you thought the stress would be too much. Maybe you are terrified at the thought, but would still like to entertain a small group of friends. Well, here are a few simple ideas that can help you achieve success with a minimum of effort.
For the sake of simplicity, your first consideration would be to decide whether you would like to invite just a few friends, or throw caution to the wind and invite everyone who has ever had you as a guest in their home.
Plan the menu around a few simple ideas or be as elaborate as you feel capable. If you are not overly enthused about the kitchen and cooking, this is not the time to experiment with new recipes.
For your fruit and cheese tray, you should consider at least one ripe cheese, such as Brie or Camembert; one flavored or herbed soft cheese, such as Chevre (white, creamy goat cheese); one yellow cheese, such as Gouda or Cheddar and one blue cheese such as Stilton or Roquefort. All of these should be easily available in any supermarket. For more exotic or sophisticated cheeses, be adventuresome and consult the experts in the specialty shops.
Serve with a selection of crackers and a bunch of seedless grapes and any other appropriate fruit, arranging the fruit and cheeses on a wooden board (a large cutting board would be wonderful for this) and providing several small knives, spreaders and a cheese-slicer.
The cheese and crackers can be bought a few days ahead and stored, well wrapped, until needed. Arrange your fruit and cheese tray a half hour before guests are scheduled to arrive.
If you do serve an alcoholic punch or drinks make sure there are designated drivers in the group and remember to not let your guests drink and drive.
Have a wonderful time and remember to enjoy your own party!
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Comments: 19
Thanks for some great ideas.
Hey Shannon!, yes, we love cheeses........but I especially like a good Stilton with pears..........if I can find good pears here, which is a feat in itself....!
Harry & David......that's an idea.........! the pears and peaches and so forth we get here are picked and shipped way too early and don't taste anything like they should!
Donna is right, the fruit we get shipped here is usually so dry and mealy that buying it, unless you use it to cook with, is a waste of money.
My son Anthony does most of our grocery shopping. Once he saw some gorgeous white nectarines and bought them....the dumb things would start spoiling before they even ripened, so I cooked them with a touch of sugar and balsamic vinegar and use them as a condiment with pork....they were good that way....but I would have so much loved to be able to bite into a juice, sweet, ripe fruit!!!
Moggy, I also do a great wheel of brie....my recipe will come up soon in a future article.
Yes, I love the holidays too.....my favorite time of year....besides Spring......or Summer.....or heck, Fall, too!!!!
Sorry to hear about your fruit situation..we are always lucky to find good quality..
That comment about the pears has sparked an interest my hubby loves pears and a decent pear is sometimes hard to find.will have to check out that website....
One good thing about living here is that our parties can be held outdoors any time of year, if we wish, as long as there is no rain...........Not rubbing it in.....just stating a truth...LOL
I better get busy and get some evergreens, pinecones and berries harvested outside so I can start decorating! Reading this have given me the ambition I need, I think I will cheat and start decorating early. Our Filipino tradition dictates that we start Christmas season on the 16th, 9 days before Christmas so, I've always waited til then to get my Christmas Tree and decorations up.
I'll be shopping next for some of the yummies you mentioned here!
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