Money Saving Wednesday…Holiday Entertaining During a Pandemic and Recession

This is the year to rethink our holiday parties and keep them simple. The economy is bad. We have been told it is improving but most of us have not noticed any improvement in our own circumstances. Even if things are looking up let’s commit to learning from the downturn this year.

Our second concern this year is the H1N1 flu. With the seasonal flu season now upon us we may see increasing cases of the H1N1 flu as well as cases of the seasonal flu. We should prepare now to keep our entertaining focused on getting together with friends while protecting ourselves as much as possible from spreading flu germs of any kind.

1. Prepare food yourself. When purchasing meat and cheese or other trays at the store you have no way of knowing who has prepared your food and if they were healthy when they did. This year save money and protect your guests by doing it yourself.

2. Forgo expensive choices such as meat and cheese trays. This will not only save money but will also keep foods safer. We have all seen guests who use their fingers to pick up a piece of meat or cheese. We want to avoid fingers in our foods this year.

3. Divide and conquer. If you are serving desserts serve varieties that are not finger foods. Serve pies, cakes, crisps, anything that needs to be dished up with a spoon or spatula. Desserts are also a great way to save money as they are much less extensive than dinner foods.

4. If you feel you must serve dinner make it soup or chili. Again, no fingers in the foods, and they are inexpensive to make. If you feel this is not fancy enough make several varieties, everyone loves being able to try several, that is what makes buffets so popular at resorts.

5. Let it pour. If you feel you must serve appetizers place all dips into small pitchers so they can be poured onto a plate. This will eliminate dipping and double dipping. It may require you to thin your dip a little more than usual but then it will go further and save money.

6. If you must have spinach dip or another dip that is not pourable make individual serving sizes before your guests arrive. Cut bread into fun shapes and pile with the dip. Now they can be served with tongs and no dipping. You can also do this with your famous cheese ball. Place the cheese on crackers ahead of time.

7. If you are saving money by asking friends and family to contribute food, ask them to bring hot foods such as soups, casseroles and stews. When these are thoroughly heated any flu germs will be killed. Your guests may have the flu, be contagious, and not have any symptoms the night of the party, so play it safe.

Remember the holidays are about getting together with those you love. The food is secondary and going into debt for a holiday party will not make the occasion any more meaningful. Saving money now will mean you have more to give when your loved ones need help with more than a fancy meal.

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