I often get asked how we manage to "pull off" large get-togethers when having to cook majority of the food from scratch. Since there is such an occasion coming up this weekend for us (two milestone birthdays between two of our boys), I figured this would be a great time to share how we go about it. Everything from planning (those that know me already know howe much of a planner I am) completed set and everything in between. In this post, I'll mostly be going over the planning the party menu and what early prep work can be done ahead of time, as a lot of my friends and family already know I don't like to leave things till the last minute. So, sit back and relax while I let you inside my head for a bit while I share with you my tips for pulling off a less stressful get-together.
The Check List: One of the most important things (In my opinion). Whether you like to the old school way with pen & paper, or like to make notes on your phone, either one will suffice. I know a lot of you are probably saying to yourself right now, "I don't need to write it down, I'll remember." Let's be honest, without a to-do list, you will probably be running out to grab things that were forgotten or cleaning and prepping things in a hurry. So, do yourself a favor and make a list, it really does help. I generally start my list once I know when we are hosting a get-together. I start my first list (yes, you read that right there are multiple lists) with what will be on the menu and what we will need to shop for and in what time frame. By that I mean, is there anything that I can pick up that isn't perishable, like chips, drinks, any canned food items that I'll need to cook with, things like that. By picking up these items early it cuts down on my grocery store trips and I can usually spread out the costs of goods between a few weeks, this way the I can take advantage of sales and help stretch the budget for the get-together. When thinking about what type of food we want, we take into consideration what type of gathering we are having (birthday, holiday, game night, etc.) This way we know if we are "serving" food or are we going buffet style where people make their own plates. Once the food is decided, make a list of everything you'll need that is food related, even put ice on the list (since I find people tend to forget this one). That list would entail all ingredients needed for whatever is to be cooked to what can be store bought. Then go through your fridge, pantry, spice cabinet, and freezer and check off the things you already have on hand. Doing this one step alone makes a world of difference in party prep. Once this is done, I usually make notes on what I'll need to get the day before like produce, or refrigerator items. this way you won't be potentially wasting groceries.
Guest List: Once you decide on what type of party or get-together you are having, now you need to make a list of who to invite, this will start you second list (yes, there will be multiple lists to keep track of). If you are utilizing Facebook or a party invite app, then they do the work for you of keeping track of RSVP's which is nice. Sometimes though, like in my case some people who you'd like to invite don't use social media or aren't "app friendly", then you'll need to reach out via phone or text. Usually between my husband and I we divide and concur the gust-list, since we don't have the exact same people on social media or contact info. We manage this by creating the guest list together and then figuring out who each of us is responsible for inviting. I generally keep the main guest list, and as people RSVP that my husband has invited, I record the response on the main list. By doing this we have a running head count of our guests and can insure we have enough food/drinks for the event. When sending out invites, be sure to give enough time for your guests to check their schedules and plan accordingly to attend, because let's be honest most people don't like last minute invites (it could make your guest feel like an "after-thought". You want to also be sure not to send out too far in advance to where people may forget they were invited somewhere. Unless it's a wedding, you don't need to send out invitations 6 months in advance. For small get-togethers I usually invite people about 2 weeks out, birthdays (especially milestone ones) I tend to invite a month ahead of time, but I make sure to have an RSVP date on the invite, giving plenty of time for follow up if I haven't heard back. Speaking of RSVP'ing, I like to set the reply date usually a week before the event. This way I can have adequate time to adjust the amount of food to be made if needed. This step is also important especially if you are having your event catered like a food truck or taco guy.
Cleaning: Most people would assume to do the cleaning the day of the party, but I like to spread it out over a few days before hand, let me tell you why. For starters, the day of the party you will have enough things to do besides worrying about cleaning (like running out for those last-minute things you thought you'd remember). I like to start cleaning about 3-4 days in advance, "touch-up" cleaning is faster the day before the party. By this I mean do all of your "extensive" cleaning the 3-4 days before like dusting, mopping, cleaning bathrooms, deep cleaning the kitchen (I despise cooking in a dirty kitchen), laundry (what you want to wear for the party, kitchen towels, bathroom towels, aprons and so forth), making sure the kitchen appliances you might need for the party are clean and in working order. Thankfully in our household our children know it's a group effort since everyone will be enjoying the party and food. They each have their chores to perform and a few extras to help out since myself or my hubby will be in the kitchen handling the food. With that said, we also do our fair share of cleaning too. By dividing up the cleaning it ensures that it isn't all on one person to do and everyone helps out. This is a big thing in our house for get-togethers. For example, we (the kids and I, Hubby was at work) got the whole house clean by noon, that leaves the rest of the day for whatever activities they want to do or to relax.
The day of the party is when we do quick "touch-ups" around the house like making sure there is enough hand soap in the bathroom, or restocking toilet paper, etc. If needed, we spot mop in places that look dirty, make sure the kitchen counters are nice and clean and that there isn't a sink full of dishes to be washed (pro tip, make sure the dishwasher is empty so you can just rinse and load throughout the party if need be.) I know that seems like a commonsense idea, but you'd be surprised how often some people don't think about it.
For us one of the things that only gets cleaned the day before is the garage for hanging out. We have various things to do in our garage, so it never stays clean long, that's why it's cleaned the day before hand. We can set up tables and chairs if needed or figure out space for the ping pong table. When it's wintertime we often have to take into account the layout for propane heaters while cleaning and setting up the garage, because we want them to keep our guests warm but not to where they will be in the way. We check to see if we the folding chairs are clean or if they need to be wiped down, do we have enough ping pong balls, is there space for extra coolers if anyone bring their own, etc.
This concludes part 1 of how I party plan for large gatherings.
Kim