A few weeks ago I received a message from our dear friends, Peg & Lisa, requesting dinner together since they were going to be traveling and not seeing us for a little while. They are some of our closest friends and we always have a wonderful time with them, talking & laughing, so I immediately responded with a yes! As we were heading into the holiday season and were watching our budget I took the opportunity to invite them to our home for dinner instead of going out. We included our mutual friend Cynthia as well so it was a great group.
Entertaining at home is a fantastic chance to have a relaxed evening with friends without breaking the bank. It also allows you to really linger and enjoy each others company without feeling rushed to “give up the table”. Keeping your menu simple is the key. Focus on foods you feel confident making, don’t require lots of prep or serving time and you will see what fun this can be. For our evening with “the girls” I heeded Pegs request for grilled cheese sandwiches and soup. A couple of years ago I had them over and made a roasted tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches and it must have made quite an impression on Peg, she asks for it repeatedly! This time around, I made a roasted Thai curry zucchini soup that was very easy and amazingly delicious considering zucchini has very little flavor on its own. The grilled cheese had gruyere, mild cheddar, thin slices of tomato and a hearty sourdough bread. The key is to use an herbed butter to do the grilling. Adds tons of flavor!
The best part of the evening (apart from time with friends!) was I put on a delicious, easy dinner for 5 all for under $20. And we had hours to sit at the table, linger over dessert and really spend quality time together. I can’t think of a better evening!
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