Drop in Relatives, What Should I Have on Hand to Serve?

Do not make a meal for them. Instead, do some snacks. How about stocking up with some baby carrots, hummus, pitas or chips, salsa-- snack platter stuff? Or have some coldcuts and sandwich fixin's?

If they can't give you a reasonable amount of time to prepare a meal, it's very reasonable for you to give them a nice snack and let them go out for their main meal.

Oh M.-

I would be inclined to have WINE for myself...

Soft drinks and some cheese and crackers for them...lol

Hang in there!
michele/cat

Cheese and crackers?

You are far better than I...drop in relatives would send me over the edge of insanity for sure...

If someone gave me a five minute warning they should be grateful there aren't any bio-hazards in the kids room. Food, give me a break.

I always have frozen appetizers on hand and things like that. Not for uninvited guests, I like eating them. Still they could work for your problem since you are apparently nicer than me. :)

Honestly, if they are so rude as to expect that you are ready to entertain company with minutes warning, they ought to bring along the dinner. I would offer sandwiches or order pizza. But if it was me, since they aren't consistent about when they come and give you no warning, just once I would say, "OH, I am so sorry but we have other plans for the evening. Sorry that we can't see you." That might make them call ahead next time.

make up a lasagna and keep in the freezer. then you can pull it out and stick it in the oven when they call. or even easier is mosticolli that and some bread and your good to go.
or
like a previous poster said, get some blocks of cheese they last for months and with crackers and some fruit your good.

I think you can never go wrong with soup. You can put it together early in the day and it can sit and simmer on the stove and be ready whenever they arrive. I think chili tastes better when it's cooked for a few hours on low heat and all you need to have on hand are the fixings.

Honestly, I do have to agree with the others- I think it's kind of rude for them to just show up and expect a meal...

Well ordinarily, we make so much for lunch that we have tons of leftovers and way too many deserts. We have no clue what we will do this year. We are skipping Christmas day and waiting to have Christmas the next Saturday when our 2nd daughter is in town. She's vegetarian now, so we haven't figured out what to have.

I'd just make a turkey and the trimmings or a huge pot of soup or have cold cuts and all the sandwich makings on hand with various deserts ready.

I have had that for years and usually just add them to the table with whatever we are having for dinner. I can always open another couple of cans of veggies or something to add more food.

If they come when it's not a meal they don't get one, just maybe refreshments.

Things I always have in my freezer for the holidays.

Frozen Chili
Frozen Link sausages
Frozen Ham
Frozen Smoked Turkey Breast
Frozen cheese balls
Frozen Cookies..
Frozen Brownies
Vodka

In the Cabinet
Crackers .. all sorts
Dinner rolls
Tortillas
Tortilla chips
Ruffled type Potato chips
Cans of Rotel tomatoes
Hot sauce
Big block of Velveeta or Boxed Kraft American cheese
Potatoes for baking and for roasting.
Rum
Bourbon
Sodas
Coffee

In the fridge
Egg nog
Milk
Cream
Blocks of 3 types of cheese
Lots of sliced raw veggies
eggs lots of them
Dips.. Onion, Clam and Blue Cheese
Bags of salad..
Lunch meats..

This will get us through the week of Christmas through New Years.

Of course we usually have a rib roast for Christmas.. So I purchase that closer to Christmas eve.

I can pull out chips and dips. Or Cheese ball and crackers. Cheese Sausage and crackers, or Queso hot sauce and chips..

Or I can whip up a meal of Chili with tortilla chips.

Or heat up the ham with microwave baked potatoes and a salad

There is always just cookies and coffee..

You get the drift...

This is sooo not Christmas but I like to have - for a quick appetizer - tortilla chips and queso. That always seems to go over well. It's filling and extremely easy - I put it in a special serving bowl (looks southwestern).

We keep little dinner rolls and French breads in the freezer that just need 5 minutes in a 400 degree oven to be warm in the inside and crispy on the outside. Our Shaw's grocery store has them in the bakery section. You could buy one of those beef logs that sell at this time of the year, or a salami from the deli section (also in plastic, some don't even have to be refrigerated until you open them).Add a block of cheese packaged in plastic which stays good for months from the grocery store, a can of black and a glass of green olives, perhaps some fruit if you have it laying around, and that is all they get. We always have some cookies on hand (Pepperidge farm double chocolate milanos, yummm) and tea/coffee for dessert and you are done.

M., after reading another post here that had me thinking about the Grinch That Stole Christmas, it is SO nice to read your question. I like the ideas you've been given about soup, lasagna, snacks, etc. Make a big salad too, and have chips, dips, and cut up veggies at the ready to just pull out.

Another thing you can do is what my kids' friends just love - buy some semi-sweet chocolates and whipping cream and vanilla extract and put it in a double broiler, melt it and have strawberries, pineapple pieces, banana pieces and maybe small chunks of pound cake for dipping. If your friends and family are like mine, they enjoy hanging around in the kitchen talking and enjoying each other, and the dipping is a fun and happy activity, meanwhile, the "cook" isn't stuck in the kitchen alone while everyone else is having fun talking!

Have a wonderful holiday season!

Dawn

Updated

M., after reading another post here that had me thinking about the Grinch That Stole Christmas, it is SO nice to read your question. I like the ideas you've been given about soup, lasagna, snacks, etc. Make a big salad too, and have chips, dips, and cut up veggies at the ready to just pull out.

Another thing you can do is what my kids' friends just love - buy some semi-sweet chocolates and whipping cream and vanilla extract and put it in a double broiler, melt it and have strawberries, pineapple pieces, banana pieces and maybe small chunks of pound cake for dipping. If your friends and family are like mine, they enjoy hanging around in the kitchen talking and enjoying each other, and the dipping is a fun and happy activity, meanwhile, the "cook" isn't stuck in the kitchen alone while everyone else is having fun talking!

Have a wonderful holiday season!

Dawn

Oh...you are a far better woman/hostess than I...and I love throwing parties and hosting company. But last minute notice guests annoy me..it is inconsiderate to just show up and then stay through mealtimes...especially during the busy holiday time. This would only happen once for me and then the next year we would "have plans" when they called.

Chicken and hot dogs are fine...the short notice guests get a short notice menu.

But..it is easy to put out some nice appetizers and punch.

Cream cheese with hot pepper jelly poured over the top with crackers. This looks pretty and is so yummy...I always get oohs and ahhhhs.

Cream cheese with picante salsa,shredded cheese,sliced olives over the top and put in the oven at 350 for 10 minutes to soften it all and serve with tortilla chips. This is always a winner with my guests.

Ranch dressing with various veggies and olives in the middle of the tray.

All of these are simple and can store for awhile.

Lasagnas,salad and bread fill you up and are easy to store.

Soup,bread and salad are simple and you can have the soup simmering all day so that when they come the house smells delicious and it is ready so you have no prep.

Good luck and best wishes!!

I make a sauce with meatballs, I make enough for sandwiches and freeze them. They heat up in a jiffy. I also make a lasagna that can be heated up, make it and freeze it. I always have crackers and cheese and pepperoni on hand. chips with onion dip. freeze brownies and ice ice cream or a pie. Store some sodas and you done!

I would say make a frozen quiche for morning or late morning visitors. Will take about 40 minutes to pop in the oven.

For afternoon have lunch meat and bread or make a pot of chili and put it in the freezer- put this in a pot and it is ready to go in 40 minutes.

Late afternoon or for snacks...chips and salsa, cheese, prochuto, salami and crackers, frozen appetizers from cost co or grocery store.

For dinner....make a lazagna or enchiladas and put those in the freezer then just pop in the over and ready in 1 hour and no work on your part. Also through a loaf of italian bread in the freezer to make garlic bread. Add salad. Good luck.

Make some meatballs/sauce and freeze it. It will reheat faster than a casserole. Then just boil spaghetti and throw together a salad.

i'm a fan of big soups and bread (I make a gumbo-laya...combo of gumbo and jambalaya) around the holidays. You can make one ahead of time and freeze it... then when they drop by... just bring it out... run hot water over the bag/container to loosen it... put it in the pot... and it's ready an hour later.

Alternatively... spiral sliced hams are already cooked... you're just heating them up. A small one also takes about an hour to cook (and lasts for a month or more in the fridge).

While there are many things that take about an hour to cook... those (and a few other choices) are ones that only take you 5 minutes to get heating up... and then you can go visit.

I have thrown several pounds of chicken breasts in the crockpot with broth to cook them....the chicken is now shredded and ready for:
chicken salad, tossing with barbeque sauce for piling on rolls for sandwiches, thrown into veggie soup, making tacos, etc.
I cook up ground beef to have around for nachos, chili, spaghetti sauce, casseroles, etc.

In short, stock up on any cooked meat, which should stay okay for up to two weeks in your fridge, and throw it together with whatever you have on hand.

My father's side of the family was like this when I was growing up. My Mom knew how to feed a crowd of about 40 with an hour's notice. Whenever we heard that one of his 12 siblings was in town, Mom would have one of us go buy a sliced pre-cooked ham at the deli, and bags of buns. She always had jars of applesauce, pickles, and condiments to set out. Also chips, and an igloo of lemonade or tea. Paper plates and napkins for that size of a crowd.

It also meant that whenever she taught us to cook anything, the last thing she always said was, " This is how you make it stretch!". Her mother did the same thing. I miss them both so much!

Yes, it is rude to show up with no notice. But some families are like that. I think they should be grateful for any hospitality that is shown under those circumstances.

Pepperoni, crackers, cheeses, fresh fruits, nut roll, cookies, antipasto salad, maybe some ham & buns?

You are so sweet. Now, don't make it too easy on them. ;

Always have on hand in fridge/freezer:

Frozen Lasagna
Frozen mini quiches
spaghetti noodles
spaghetti sauce
crackers
cheese
cookies
lettuce, salad, onions, dressing for a quick salad
refrigerated biscuits
Canned veggies

Done! Good luck!