Easy Hosting

I absolutely love playing the hostess role. 

Picture me as Monica from Friends... I just loooove to have people over. 

But then there are days, 

when you decide to host a dinner party, and unfortunately life gets in the way, 

so you're left with about an hour to tidy up your place and get some food on the table. 

So what do you do?

Well, first off, you breathe,

because when you stress, your guests feel uncomfortable. 

Second, always have a back up plan handy. 

A dinner that requires less than 30 minutes of cooking time is ideal. 

I always like to go with a Mediterranean theme,

since most of the dishes are meant to be fresh anyway. 

Here are just a few things I threw together for a couple of friends we had over last weekend. 

Easy peasy, fresh and breezy!

I picked up a few pre-made apps from a local deli on my way home from work.
Hummus and dolma, always crowd pleasers.

I threw together these Caprese towers with just a few fresh ingredients I had laying around the fridge.
Grill some eggplants and top with a smear of pesto, tomatoes, mozarella, basil and a dash of balsamic reduction.

Like I said, shorter cooking time is key when you're in a frenzy.
Both dishes for my main course took less than 15 minutes to cook!

Stuff trout (or any other whole fish you pick up at the market) with lemon wedges, onions and thyme.
Broil on high heat for 10-15 minutes, depending on thickness, and voila!

Martha Stewart's one-pan pasta is seriously a life saver!
How can something so simple taste so good?!