Just Between Us

Be My Guest

Potlucks Can Brighten and Lighten Your Holiday Feasts

With Thanksgiving right around the corner and winter just around the block, food and gatherings with family and friends will soon take center stage. This thought brings a cozy, warm kind of joy over some, but for others (those who will be doing all the cooking) it brings sighs of premature exhaustion for the work that lies ahead.
Of course, not all people approach holiday hosting with trepidation. There are those culinary champs who can wow their guests with show-stopping feasts every time and make it all seem effortless. But surely even those exceptional types can admit to appreciating some help with meals every now and then.
My friends and I have come to refer to a respectable, yet less work-intensive way of entertaining as the “p” word—potluck. When we first began dining at one another’s homes, whoever was hosting implored the others to “not bring a thing.” Having just met, with formalities still in play, we felt compelled to do all the work ourselves. Over time, while the desire to be together was still there, the time and energy it took to pull off even casual dinner parties put a damper on how often we gathered. Finally, we agreed to pull that beautiful “p” word out of the closet and let the good times roll.
I joke about the near shame I associate with the time-honored tradition of potluck gatherings. That’s not how I really feel—but I do know that for some, this way of entertaining is a hard shift to make. As for me, when time allows, I still enjoy the whole process of planning and executing a full-on dinner party on my own. And yet, if doing all of the cooking feels like the deal breaker for having people over, potluck it is!
Here’s my soup-to-nuts list of why potluck meals should be embraced:
•    Dinner parties and spontaneous get-togethers (which are usually the most fun) are more likely to occur when the work doesn’t all fall on one person.
•    If the party is at your house, you still get to plan the main menu.
•    Potlucks are a less costly way of entertaining. (Let’s face it; a simple dinner party can pull on your purse strings.)
•    Guests feel good showing up at your doorstep with a dish in hand and are generally more comfortable partaking in a collective effort.
•    Meals have the potential to be extra special since every invitee can use the opportunity to showcase a signature dish.
•    New recipes will be discovered and shared.
•    Cleanup is much easier to swallow.
Hopefully, you will agree that there’s no need to abandon party plans and put meaningful and memorable gatherings on the back burner. Gosh, no. A comfortable setting peppered with a bit of help sounds like another “p” word to me—perfect.
E-mail Gina Jaber at ginajab@yahoo.com.

—By Gina Jaber
—Photography by Craig Merrill