Dinner parties

Jamie and I have gotten into the habit of hosting dinner parties. At first, they overwhelmed me because:

• What the heck do these Brits eat? Do I have to make bangers and mash? What are bangers? It looks like badgers. Is it badgers? But it sound dirty. Oh my gosh, how did I end up on this island?!


• This dessert I used to make at home is in cups and Fahrenheit, but I have to deal in grams and Celsius here and let's be honest, I haven't done fractions since, like, my junior year of high school and even then I had a TI-89 that basically did it for me, and even then, Nathan DeWitt would step in to help when I didn't get it. Do I have to work in Celsius for the rest of my life? Oh my gosh, how did I end up on this island?!

And so on and so forth. 

But then, we had a dinner party. And another. And it wasn't so bad! We started to find dishes that worked well for us, dishes that could be prepared ahead of time or in tandem with socializing, and I realized I really liked creating a table for people to sit around. People seemed to ENJOY eating what we cooked for them, and they wanted to spend time in the space we'd created. 

And I really thought about it - I've never shown up at someone's house for dinner and expected a feast, or even a Pinterest table setting. I'm just happy to have someone cook for me and to make easy conversation around the table after a long day. Once I realized that, it took so much of the pressure off of it. 

So now that we're getting better at this, I thought I'd share what's worked well for us:

• Keep a bottle or two of rose in the fridge. It's our summertime staple and goes with pretty much anything we serve.


• Likewise, keep some fancy olives and stuffed peppers in the fridge. They're great to throw in a little bowl for nibbling pre-meal. Don't make a ridiculous hors d'oeuvres. Seriously, don't. 


• Food-wise, we tend to go with a) meals you can make ahead of time and b) meals that are easy to make whilst chatting. For example:


• Shrimp tacos have been a go-to. I prepare everything ahead of time, and then, when it's time for dinner, I just spend 5 minutes pan searing shrimp (prawns). Serve with Mexican corn salad (made ahead of time) and a pitcher of margaritas (everything ready to go and mixed together just before serving). Crowd favorite and you can have a clean kitchen before guests arrive.


• Since it's summer, the BBQ has been clutch. Jamie grills heavily seasoned pork belly, a few chicken breasts, and some broccolini tossed in olive oil and salt. Boom. Delicious. Pair with a simple salad or potato salad (make the effort but make it ahead) and toss some strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries together with strips of basil for dessert. 


• A pretty table kind of makes itself. Get a simple linen tablecloth (I ordered this),  neutral place mats (so you can use them with anything), white linen napkins, a vase for flowers, and a few tea lights, and put them in a basket. There's your kit. Pull it out whenever someone's coming over, and change the look via your flowers. Once you add in platters heaping with grilled meat or veggies or pasta, cutlery, water and wine glasses, and bottles, it looks amazing. 


• Keep a bottle or pitcher of water on the table. Throw one in the fridge the morning of so it's cold by the evening. This way glasses can stay full and you won't spend your time running back to the sink to fill them. 

I also recently read about a very thoughtful hostess gift that isn't a bottle of wine (gasp).