Lessons Learned in Entertaining

Over the years we’ve done a lot of entertaining. Each event can teach valuable lessons, some of which we actually apply to future dinners. Here are three lessons we learned after last week’s French dinner.

1. Don’t overextend yourself, especially when you’re hosting a crowd. Several of our dishes required last-minute preparation, which cut down the time we had to enjoy the company of our guests.
2.  Sometimes there’s just not a vegetarian equivalent to a carnivorous dish. Julian made pot au feu. This stew was made with numerous bony cuts of beef, and was a serious umami fest. He found an alternate recipe for our vegetarian friends that contained tempeh. The broth and vegetables were good, but the tempeh didn’t add anything to the flavor of the stew.
3. Don’t overcook when others are bringing things to eat. We had scads of leftover bread, beef, and broth after the soirée. I’ve run out of storage containers because I put so much leftover broth in the freezer. I’ll have to repurpose it for other soups. I see pho in the near future.