Fall Family Party

With Thanksgiving just around the corner, you might be feeling the frenzy of the holiday season starting to creep in. While I try to not let joyous occasions stress me out, I am definitely noticing that the calendar is full through January and I am trying to juggle work and life accordingly.

Since we will be traveling throughout the holiday season, including another Thanksgiving in Ireland, we wanted to take time out to get local family together before the madness sets in.

I love a late afternoon Saturday party. It’s a combination of lunch/dinner, and lighting a fire as the sun sets makes for a warm and convivial atmosphere. When entertaining, I try as much as possible to choose foods that I can prep ahead of time.

We had a ton of work to get the house ready, so easy-to-prep food was even more important. We bought our house almost a year ago, but after being scammed by a shady plumber, we have had to put off a lot of the things we have wanted to do with the house. It’s still cozy and we love it, but decorating has taken a backseat to important things like heat!

Ultimately I would like to have a beachy/nautical house, so I have been incorporating little touches like sand dollars on a window sill, serving platters with crabs and seashells on them, nautical towels, and little lobster bowls.

You won’t be seeing our house in Town & Country anytime soon,   but it makes us happy!

Now for the food! I set up the table for the first hour of the party with the following:

Cucumbers topped with herb cream cheese and tomatoes – I think the red and green would be fun for a Christmas party, and it’s nice to have something light on hand when the rest of the meal is so heavy.

A cheese plate – two hard cheeses and one spreadable cheese, crackers, and bread

White Bean Truffle Dip

Guests trickled in, and we waited until just about everyone had arrived to put out the main course:

Bacon-Wrapped Sausage with Brown Sugar – I forgot to take a pic, but you can find one in this post. This is the easiest, most decadent party food ever.

Mixed Greens with Butternut Squash, Red Onions, Dried Cranberries, Pecans, and a Cider Vinaigrette – I roasted the butternut squash with cinnamon prior to adding it to the salad, and it was a delicious touch. The dressing was a super easy blend of apple cider, shallots, and olive oil.

Guinness Beef Stew – This stew is SO easy. Once the early prep was done, I left it on low all day. The beef was falling apart by the time it was served.

Chicken Pot Pie – Another super easy dish that seems daunting, this one started with sweet onions cooked in butter, followed by chopped up chicken thighs, chicken stock, herbs, chopped red potatoes (which I par-cooked prior), and torn spinach. I simmered it on low until about a half an hour before serving, then added a bit of milk, put it in an aluminum tray, topped with store-bought crust, and baked for about 30 minutes. Sadly some of the gravy overflowed onto the crust, but it was still tasty!

Pumpkin Pie Dip – addictive. This is a mix of pumpkin pie filling, cream cheese, and sour cream, served with gingersnaps and Nilla cookies. It was so easy and so good! Our guests also brought cake and cupcakes, so I didn’t make the Caramel Apple Dip I planned on.

And finally, if you know me you may have guessed there was bubbly. We had two options of bubbles, one from Graham Beck and another from Mumm Napa, as well as Brooklyn Brewery beer and some amazing beers our guests brought, including my husband’s cousin’s homebrew which is out of this world.

I used to get so stressed about entertaining, but I feel like I am starting to get in the groove a little more. The cooking is definitely my favorite part; I wouldn’t mind leaving the cleaning to someone else!

Now I am in Thanksgiving-planning mode. Do you know what you are cooking yet this holiday season? If you need any Thanksgiving recipe ideas, check out some posts from the past!

Thanksgiving Recipe Roundup (including Cranberry Cheddar Biscuits, Cornbread Sausage Stuffing, and Sriracha Maple Brussels Sprouts, a great Thanksgiving side dish!)

Brussels Sprouts and Apple Salad

Thanksgiving wine pairings and recipes

Turkey Soup (for the day after Thanksgiving!)

Pumpkin Spice Brownies