I love having these Raw Cookie Dough Bites from The Nourishing Home on hand for snacking.
We are very excited to have two different families coming to stay at our house – the first for a few days beginning this weekend, and another next week, staying for three whole weeks!! The boys are looking forward to playing with their buddies, and I am looking forward to catching up with great friends I don’t get to see nearly often enough.
So that I can enjoy our visits and not spend all my time in the kitchen, I’ve tried to get a little bit of cooking done ahead of time. Here’s what I’ve made (or plan to make tomorrow):
- Sloppy Joes (made and in the freezer)
- Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies (made and in the freezer)
- Raw Cookie Dough Bites (made and in the fridge)
- Whole Wheat Quick Mix (on my list for tomorrow)
- Cheesy Salsa Enchiladas (on my list for tomorrow)
One of our guests this weekend needs to eat gluten free, and then the following week, one guest has a peanut allergy. As long as I don’t get my weeks/guests mixed up, we should be just fine. :)
Our local Farmer’s Market hasn’t had much to offer yet in the way of fresh produce. We’ll get there, it’s just still early in Nebraska! Thursday night, I was able to get some fresh greens and two heads of broccoli. We ate all of the broccoli at lunch today. So good!
I got stocked up at the store tonight on loads of fresh fruits and a few veggies, plus a few treats to share with our guests. I love all the fresh produce available this time of year. (And no, not all of it was organic. This is all I have available to me right now, so I’m cheerfully going for it!) Hopefully by the time company comes, we’ll still have some of this available. I mean, when there are fresh peaches in the house…
What are some of your favorite meals to feed guests?
Crockpot chili w/grass fed beef, almond flour choc. chip cookies, newest-homemade gummies, taco bar, quick breakfast breads, crawfish etouffe’, ect….
Homemade gummies??? Do tell!
got the recipe here: http://www.mommypotamus.com/homemade-gummy-stars/
So good w/fresh lemon juice & a drop of orange flavor
Yum, thank you!
Taco Soup is a great one. You can do it with or without meat. Plus it can cook in the crockpot all day.
Great way to avoid heating up the house…I like it!
Don’t hate me, but I’m so glad I’m not the only one who buys those yogurt tubes (well, I pass by the dyed and HFCS ones, but still). :D They’re just so darned convenient to have on hand, and one is a perfect toddler portion.
I rarely buy them, but I thought it would be fun for our kids and guests. They have actual sugar in them instead of HFCS, and overall weren’t the worst, so I went for it this time. :)
You should try making smoothie pops in silicone freezer molds. http://www.amazon.com/Norpro-431-4-Piece-Silicone-Maker/dp/B0036B9KHO/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1371919907&sr=8-10&keywords=freezer+pop+molds.
Just mix up your favorite smoothie (mine has plain whole milk yogurt, frozen bananas frozen berries and a splash of juice to thin it out), put in the molds and freeze. To serve take 1 out a few hours before you need it or thaw in a cup of hot water and it will be ready to eat. Plus, you decide how full to fill them. Super Easy!
One of my go to meals for company is make your own pasta-vegetable-chicken salad. Spread the counter full of cut fresh veggies, cheese, grilled chicken, dressings, pasta, etc. Serve a loaf of fresh hot bread at the table…we get raves every time! (:
I love this and am totally stealing it for my menu this week… :)
Flattered. (: If you have 20 extra minutes to roast carrots and onions, they will throw flowers at your feet. Or chocolate. (: Have fun with your company!
I like that you buy the same deli meat that we do. It sure is pricey, but I do find coupons for it quite often, which helps a little. I buy the same brand of bacon, but MAN is that expensive. I try to alternate between the bacon and homemade turkey sausage patties.
I didn’t know they made bacon – our Walmart doesn’t carry it. Or…maybe I just haven’t looked. :)
Is the lunch meat organic? I can only find organic lunch meat at
Earth Fare. It is the Apple Gate Brand but it has cargeen in it.
No, not organic. Just “better than.”
Oh my! I may have to run out for more fruit now. That looks delicious!!
My favorite go-to for guests is Baked Ziti or “Messy Lasagna” as it sometimes becomes. Mix short pasta with my spaghetti sauce/meat, dump half of it in the baking dish, top with dollops of sour cream and cheese (if it’s feeling like Messy Lasagna, this cheese topping will also include cottage or ricotta cheese), the other half of the pasta/meat, and a little more shredded cheese on top. Cover loosely and bake for about 20-30 minutes at 350…or until you/re ready to serve it.
The great thing is that I can easily double it and toss a second in the freezer! It’s a simple dish that usually finds approval with even the picky eaters. :)
Sounds awesome. I love meals that even picky eaters like. :)
I like to get a lasagna in the freezer along with pasta sauce. The base of some kind of soup in always helpful too. I do a good bit of freezer prep before Christmas when our kids (5) and spouses and grandkids are here. We are up to a family of 15 and every meal is a production for an entire week.
All that produce looks yummy! I just got my first pound of green beans this week at the farmer’s market as well as staples like grape and regular tomatoes, mini Persian cucumbers, asparagus, green onions and fresh strawberries. Then went on to the regular grocery store for the rest of the produce and some dairy. Can’t wait to mix up a big batch of Tabouli later on as well as some shortcake to go with the strawberries!
Feeding company is always a challenge to me, because it’s often too expensive to serve large cuts of pastured/humanely raised meats to large groups of people and then if people have dairy issues, that let’s out most pasta dishes. Summer is the best time to have guests, because I can base a meal around all the fresh produce. I often make a nice salad (strawberry spinach with caramelized walnuts , raspberry walnut, Greek, caprese, etc.)and some good bread and possibly interesting cheese with homemade fruit based dessert. Enjoy your guests!
A fun healthy snack we do is applesauce Popsicle.
All you have to do is buy Popsicle molds and fill them up with applesauce!! So easy and so healthy! My three year old really likes them!
Your groceries look amazingly familiar to me….
Anyway, one of my favorite things to make ahead is breakfast breads, like cinnamon rolls. I make them, then freeze them in the baking pan (foil pans work great) before the 2nd rise. The day before I need them, I pop them in the fridge overnight and then cook them the following morning. I pull them out of the fridge when the oven preheats to complete the 2nd rise. There’s nothing like fresh baked cinnamon rolls, especially when all the hard work is far behind you!
Have fun with your guests!
Chili really stretches a small amount of meat, especially if you add tomatoes and beans. I like to use half meat and half lentils, because it tastes pretty much the same as all meat.
Make your own tacos with all the fixin’s
Soup – chicken noodle or tomato – and grilled cheese
Pot pie is always good
Breakfast for dinner
I like baked spaghetti – cooked pasta with sauce and sautéed green peppers, onions, and mushrooms topped with cheese and browned til golden – quick and delicious!
Fried rice will stretch leftover meats and veggies – leftover rice will keep a few days in the fridge and it’s great for breakfast with a fried egg and drizzle of soy sauce on top!
The freezer is great for waffles, pancakes, breakfast breads, casseroles, cookie dough, and those snack/protein balls.
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My favorites are “Cheeseburger Soup”, “Borscht and Homemade Bread and Buns”, Home Canned Fruit and Cookie” (a favorite for me because I enjoyed eating this at my favorite aunties and grandmothers.), “Loaded Bun Sandwich with Pickles”.
Recently I made pizza with a pasta as a crust. Prepare as usual. I will be using this for company.
Thank you so much, Laura, for your kind shout out. I’m so happy you enjoy the raw cookie dough bites recipe and am honored you like to share it with your guests (and readers). Like you, I love to have these on hand for guests as well as some pre made cookie dough for baking fresh cookies with less fuss. Love your site and appreciate all the inspiration you provide. Blessings to you and your precious family, Kelly
I love these tips!! Thanks for sharing your meal plan. It’s always great to hear what other people serve to guests.
It can be so hard to know what to cook for guests. And I want to cook real whole foods for guests but I have to realize that not everyone eats like we do so I don’t want to serve strange things either lol!
I made the raw cookie bites and they are delishhhhhhh! Easy peasy too! Thanks