Weekend Dinner Guests

It's no secret that Chris and I love to entertain.  From my first grown-up dinner party at the Watson girls' home to my mother-in-law's flawless Christmas dinners, the desire to gather around good food and connect with family and friends runs strong in our blood.  

Over the years, our entertaining has evolved from occasional events that take a lot of time to plan to more frequent, casual dinners.  We still love entertaining and as a stay-at-home mother, I anticipate and enjoy our nearly every weekend dinner guests.

These dinners run the gamut of impromptu pizza dates to sit-down dinners with an appetizer, main course, and dessert.  Both are enjoyable times spent with family and friends and I decided to share how I prepare for the later.

Towards the beginning of the week I start to think about what will be served for dinner.  Last week Fiona made her request for "Yummy Yummy Chicken" which is our take on Julia Child's "Casserole Roast Chicken."  I decided to serve potatoes on the side (which we had from our CSA), along with a side salad of arugula (also from the CSA) and mixed greens.  Yep, that's right!  Only three items were planned for dinner.  If our guests decides to bring a side, great!  If not, I've learned that three items is plenty and everyone is always satisfied.

We purchased the chicken on Friday so that I could brine it the morning before cooking it.  Below is the recipe I use to brine (this is not part of Julia's recipe and I cannot quite remember where I found it):

One Cup of Salt

One Cup of Sugar

One Lemon, Cut in Half and Squeezed

Half a Bunch of Fresh Parsley, Folded in Half and Tied with String

1 Tablespoon of Seasoning (we used Tarragon this time but have also used Herbs de Provence)

Mix together in a stock pot with enough water to cover the top of the chicken.

I try to allow at least half a day for the chicken to brine.  It makes it so flavorful and tender!

Normally I would arrange any flowers for the table on the day of the dinner, but this particular weekend I had classes all afternoon, so I arranged the flowers on Friday.  Trader Joe's is a great place to get flowers for very little.  I also use whatever happens to be blooming in the yard!

One practice that seems to put more at ease about entertaining is our strict cleaning schedule.  When it is followed, our house is generally clean by the weekend.  While a clean and tidy house is not necessary to have friends over (and, in my opinion should never be something that stops you from having guests over), it does make entertaining more enjoyable for me.  

I'd love to hear your thoughts on entertaining!  How often do you have dinner guests?  Do you have a systematic way of preparing dinner for company?