What Do You Make for Last Minute Guests?

By Julie

This past week, through some last minute plan changes, I ended up have house guests over Tuesday and Thursday night. This information came down late Sunday night. Oh, and by the way, we would be out of town Wednesday so I wouldn’t have much time for the changeover. Did I mention that I am a routine-loving, schedule-adhering control freak? Yes, this was happy news.

So, the first thing I had to do was put together two meals that would be tasty to a variety of palates as well as quick and easy to make. No small feat. I ended up with a white bean chili that I threw in the slow cooker Tuesday morning for that night and a chicken noodle casserole (thanks for the idea, Mom!) for Thursday’s meal.  The final result: happy relatives with full tummies. And a mountain of laundry to handle Friday.

All of this leads me to a question: given a serious time crunch, what dishes do you pull out of your arsenal to feed family and friends around your table?  Hopefully, I’ll have more proper planning time in the future (fingers crossed), but I’d love to know what your sure fire recipes are when you want to impress in a flash.

Comments

[Katie]

Pasta carbonara--needs few ingredients, and the cook time is basically the amount of time it takes to cook the pasta.

Pasta Indiavolata--cook some orecchiette pasta; while it's cooking, saute garlic, broccoli rabe, sausage, and cannellini beans. Mix together, top with grated parm.

Chili in the slow cooker--I have a bunch of versions, from classic red beans and beef to chicken chipotle to black bean vegetarian. Whip up some cornbread, and you've got a meal.

[Sarah Lena]

Yep, crockpot all the way. Taco soup, pasta fagioli.. heck, I even make homemade cranberry sauce in the crockpot and serve it alongside rotissorie chicken (hot from the store) and stuffing (which takes, like, 10 minutes).

Also, I am a lazy cook and this is what I make for my full-time family, not just last minute guests. :)

[Erin]

Pasta with goat cheese & asparagus in the spring- so simple- just pasta, a log of chevre and throw some cut up asparagus in with the pasta for the last few minutes of boiling. Drain pasta, toss in the chevre and a swirl of olive oil, salt & pepper to taste and you have an elegant bowl of easy deliciousness!

Plain old spaghetti and salad would also be one of my go-to options, as would roast chicken & potatoes with salad.

[Jen L.]

All hail the crock pot! If I have thawed chicken, I can do chicken tortilla soup. Or I can do black beans and rice. I always seem to have those ingredients on hand.

[Caitlin]

I keep thinking about doing a post on this!
Shrimp and grits (always have grits in the cupboard and shrimp in the freezer).
Burgers & fries (always have ground beef in the freezer and potatoes in the bowl - I have a great fry recipe I need to post)
A big salad with grilled salmon or chicken
I usually keep meat sauce or meatballs in the freezer for pasta in a pinch too!

[ariel]

Crockpot here as well! I have a slow cooker pulled pork recipe that I use at least once a month. Steaks or tips with onions and mushrooms and baked potato are always a hit, too!

[jennielynn]

This time of year, I usually do my famous marniated tri-tip on the grill, salad, garlic bread and potato salad. Easy, and I almost always have my guests help in the kitchen.

[Supra Footwear]

i is so nice