Monday, November 14, 2011

An Economical Housewarming

On Sunday, Z and I hosted about 20 of our closest family members for our housewarming party. We provided all of the drinks and food (with the exception of dessert, which other people provided). Our mission: To make it as "special" and economical as possible. Thankfully, we succeeded.


On the menu: Roasted veggie and tofu kabobs; bruschetta with caramelized onions, blue cheese and walnuts (courtesy of the Cook's Illustrated Cookbook); baked Brie with raspberry jam; and some of the best hummus you'll ever try (review to come in a future post). 


Despite the variety of finger foods we offered, we kept things as simple as possible - and we made everything before our guests even arrived. To keep it inexpensive, we also took an inventory of what we already had in our kitchen, and built the menu from there. Thanks to Trader Joe's, we also got plenty of beer and wine for a decent price. Our guests had a great time, and everyone left with smiles and full stomachs. 

It was so nice to host our families in our new home, enjoy great food and wine, and not spend a fortune doing it. 

Are you hosting any holiday parties this year? How do you plan to keep things economical?

5 comments:

  1. I like to ask guests to contribute something - an appetizer, a dessert or a bottle of wine. It helps keep costs down while diversifying the food options!

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  2. Veggie and tofu kebabs look good. My apartment isn't big enough to host parties but I am having a few friends over on different days so I'm looking forward to entertaining as well :)

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  3. Love the finger foods idea :) Also looking forward to hearing more about the hummus! I can't seem to buy hummus anywhere in Croatia though so I have to figure out a way to make a really good one myself.

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  4. Sounds like a great party! I usually ask people to bring something -- that would keep costs down if I could keep myself from going overboard on the cooking and baking!

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