Felicity Cloake's Quick-Fire Entertaining Guide: Simple Entertaining for Last-Minute Guests
During this festive period, while there's a lot happening which even vivacious people may sometimes anticipate the calm respite in the new year, it's very simple to forget things. I'm sure I cannot be the sole person who has once been jolted back to reality at work by a text from a friend wondering, "What time should we come over later?" Fear not; if you are distracted, and just likely to make impromptu plans, I've got some solutions.
The Golden Rule to Great Parties
First and foremost, though I can't stress this enough, whether you've planned long in advance versus just a short while, the greatest events tend to be the most straightforward. What everyone is hoping for are pleasant conversation, something to sip, and enough nibbles so they don't end up gnawing something on the ride home. Unless you are Jay Gatsby, no one expects extensive drinks, Michelin-starred catering or entertainers.
The greatest parties tend to be the most basic. That said, a theme is useful to mask the reality you've just put the event together while coming back from the office.
Selecting a Style to Guide Your Preparations
Nevertheless, a theme is helpful for disguising the fact you have just thrown this thing together on the way from the office. By concept, I mean for example the holidays. Getting a bit more specific (Nordic holidays, for instance, featuring mulled wine, warm beverage, smoked fish plus crispbreads, folk tunes selection; alternatively fiesta-style party, with holiday punch, refreshing lagers or tequila drinks, along with lots of corn chips, spicy sauce and guacamole, and festive music on the stereo) will focus your options during the necessary supermarket sweep.
Practical Buying for Your Party
While shopping, select a couple of drinks (one alcoholic for those who do, a non-alcoholic one in case some don't want to) and a couple of nibbles that fit the style, and get as much of them as possible, instead of stressing over providing too much choice. No thing appears more welcoming and cheerful than a bounty – I would always rather to arrive by a container stocked with chilled bottles with reasonably priced bubbly over a single glass with swanky bubbly. (Add some bags of cubes, as well; you'll find never enough ice.)
Cocktails and Punch Streamlined
Should you show off and provide a mixed drink, then pre-mix a big quantity in a container so you aren't stuck messing about with it while you ought to be socializing. Once underway, enlist a close friend or helper to watch the drinks and replenish if required until it runs out. Do the same with the non-alcoholic punch; people enjoy to take on a role while socializing so they can enjoy the positive vibes.
Regarding punch, whichever formula you pick (there are many online), skip anything overly sugary – children there need separate beverages – and if it's available, plonk aromatic bitters close by (avoid adding any to the bowl as they're not suitable for people abstaining from alcohol entirely). Make an effort in presenting it so the soft punch doesn't seem unimportant; it only takes a minute to slice several pieces of lemon or orange to the punch.
Nibbles That Shine Without Fuss
For me, I'd skip the readymade platters with "party foods" available at grocery stores seasonally; they feel fussy, and frequently require turning the oven on (if you choose to opt for these, know that everyone quietly favors garlic bread and/or small hot dogs regardless). I'm convinced you can't beat several really big dishes of good-quality chips (plain salted pleases everyone), and, provided there are no issues, some of those large and economical bags of mixed nuts available in the South Asian section in stores, with perhaps a few pitted olives for colour (you don't want to discover stones in odd places months later).
If, similar to some, you think chips substantial fare, a single large piece of tasty cheese on a platter and crispbreads and some elegantly arranged fruit often appears visually appealing. A platter with some preserved or ready-to-eat prosciutto or seafood laid out on it (only one type, unless you're wealthy), or a handsome pre-made tart, of the type available on deli counters at this time of year, is even more filling, while you really will succeed with rustic pieces of focaccia, since they don't need buttering.
