Socially Distant Summer Entertaining

Many of us are beginning to get back together with friends safely, in small doses or small groups. What does this look like for you as a guest or host? We have been able to share a backyard or a front yard with friends and neighbors. We have been bringing our own drinks and keeping our time limited and stay at least 6 ft. apart.

But what about when you add food into the mix and begin to entertain again? How can we safely prepare and serve food to guests, or receive it from our hosts? What are some things we can make that will be safe and delicious?

It may be a while before we are all back to our normal comfort level with touching, sharing, spending extended time or celebratory meals with our loved ones, but in the meantime we can take some precautions. Here are some suggestions:

Who: Know your circle or ‘pod’ of people that gives you comfort. You know and trust who they have been with and where they have been and you’ve been openly sharing that information with each other. Keep the group small, especially if there is food which people will need to take their masks off to eat.

Where: Stay outside and use your outdoor space if at all possible. We are lucky to have a backyard, but if you don’t have a back space, use your front yard space. Set up a couple of chairs and tables 6 ft apart, or in pairs for families or couples. You could encourage families or groups to stay together while eating if possible. Taking masks off to eat increases risk of exposure, so make sure when people are eating that you have plenty of space. Have wipes and hand sanitizer for your guests to use before and after eating. In the evenings or when the weather gets cooler, have clean, laundered blankets outside to create a cozy atmosphere. You could even show a movie outdoors if you have a projector.

How: When cooking for others, use extra caution in washing your hands frequently. Clean hands, sanitize your kitchens and wash fruits and vegetables well before you cook or bake with them. I also like using clean tablecloths on surfaces outdoors so that areas people touch are covered for everyone’s protection.

Serving: I like to use trays for separating items–each “pod” of people gets their own tray, labeled so they know it’s theirs and there is no cross contamination. Do some prep work in advance, so you are not touching your guests cups and utensils at your get together. Same goes with food prep….do as much in advance as you can, like cleaning and chopping. Wrap any utensils and napkins in plastic bags for each person/group if you want to be extra cautious.

Label cups with names so there is no confusion. Chalk markers work great to write your guest’s names. Think of it this way-the time you are saving the inside of your house for guests can now be spent on the extra touches to keep everyone safe. Try not to serve items that need to be shared in any way, like cheese or fruit platters, or platters of cookies that need handling. If you do want to serve foods like this keep them separated for each small group.

Method: Individual dishes that can be baked in the oven and served without handling anything except the outer shell work well also. You may have some small souffle dishes you could use, or get creative grilling food in foil packets for individuals. Think separate and mini! Each person gets their own item and there is no sharing needed.

Menu: Keep it contact free and ready to eat.

For drinks, give everyone their own small tray, cooler, ice bucket, pitcher of water, tea, bottle of wine, bottles of beer or whatever you are serving.

One pot baked or roasted items, especially in individual serving sizes are great options. I’m overly cautious and chose foods that could be eaten relatively quickly and easily so guests are not uncomfortable being unmasked for too long. Condiments are not contact free enough, with everyone sharing bottles so avoid things like burgers unless you serve condiments in individual containers.

I recommend cooked foods over uncooked ones, like salads. There are a lot of options when thinking of individual portions and grilled items that can be kept safely hands off. Grilled lemon fish and vegetables, bite size sausage and peppers–all in foil packets would be nice options, and each person gets their own little meal. Any sides should be separated as well. If you must have salad, make sure you make it in advance and put it in individual containers. Individually baked mini corn breads would be easy to make ahead. For my get together, I grilled flavorful bite size chicken and veggie kebabs for each person with flatbreads.

For dessert, individual cakes, brownie pots, or fruit crisps baked ahead of time are easy at room temperature and hands free. Place them on a tray and each person can grab their own.

Have fun, stay safe!

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