Entertaining Company on Short Notice

Feeding Unexpected Visitors Who Come to Your Home

May 12, 2009 Jennifer Harshman

Dinner, practice, errands, messy house... now company is coming. Visits can be enjoyable, even with little time to prepare. Three steps lead to relaxed hospitality.

Under the wrong circumstances, a drop-in visit could be inconvenient or unwelcome, even if the visitor is a loved one. A homeowner can be embarrassed when people who come to the door see a cluttered, disorganized mess. An empty refrigerator and pantry make it difficult to prepare a meal for guests. Being prepared for visitors can be simple, and it allows busy people to enjoy surprise visits.

Stocking Up Makes it Easy to Entertain on Short NoticeKeeping food and drink items on hand that store well and that can be used to make quick and simple recipes make it easy to throw together a meal or a dessert. Some entertainers like to have a few favorite recipes for which they become known. The recipes are a cinch for them to throw together, but a guest won't know that his host's "famous chicken pot pie" only took a few minutes of the host's time. All he'll know is that it was delicious.

It's a good idea to stock some packaged foods. Some examples are

• frozen pie crusts
• canned or precooked and frozen meats
• canned vegetables
• canned fruits and pie fillings
• cake and/or cookie mixes
• crackers
• chips
• pasta

Fresh fruits and vegetables help to round out the packaged foods for a balanced, filling, yet quick and easy meal. Crisp produce makes it look like the host was prepared for the visit. Fresh food is appetizing and guests appreciate the kindness. Considerate hosts will be prepared to entertain those friends or family members who have food allergies or intolerances and can't eat certain things.

When Guests Have a Food Allergy or Intolerance or Special Diet

Considerate hosts will be prepared to entertain those friends or family members who can't eat certain things. Alternatives such as soy milk and rice milk (for those allergic to milk and other dairy products) can be purchased in individual servings that are shelf stable – they can be stored for a long time and do not have to be refrigerated. Gluten-free cookies, crackers and bread are also available.

A prepared host can toss a salad, make a quick main dish and assemble a tasty dessert in less than half an hour. Recipes and ingredients take care of that, but when visitors are coming on short notice and the house is a mess, a host needs a little more help. The Dash-and-Stash (or Cram-and-Slam) technique makes things look clean in just minutes.

Florence Littauer says in her book It Takes So Little to be Above Average that everyone can and should entertain. Entertaining doesn't have to be elegant or elaborate. It doesn't even have to be planned. Whether planned ahead of time, or spontaneous and on short notice, visits with friends and family should be enjoyable. Making a guest feel welcome goes a long way toward that end.

The copyright of the article Entertaining Company on Short Notice in Entertaining is owned by Jennifer Harshman. Permission to republish Entertaining Company on Short Notice in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.