Hellobee Boards

Depends on the house guest, but a lot of times I do pasta with a choice of two sauces (like marinara and pesto, or a red meat sauce and alfredo), or I do taco soup, or make-your-own-pizza, or taco bar. Basically things that people make themselves, so I don't have to worry about what people do and don't like.

Things I can make ahead and freeze, like lasagna, quiche (bonus - they go in flat pans so don't take much fridge/freezer space), or soups - two favorites are a black bean soup (vegetarian) or lentil with shredded chicken. Both are quick to make but also freeze well; I freeze them flat in freezer bags so they aren't space hogs.

Do you have freezer space? My husband often makes big pots of stew-style food and freezes portions. Then we just defrost/reheat on the stove and cook a starch (rice, pasta, quinoa, or couscous) and make a salad or side vegetable if you are feeling fancy. Examples: Bolognese sauce, Thai-style curry chicken, Moroccan chicken with carrots (or sweet potatoes) and currants, or beef goulash.

This weekend he made Moroccan chicken. Then last night after work I reheated the chicken and made some quinoa and steamed some broccoli. It was a very tasty and healthy too.

ETA: The Mario Batali bolognese recipe is excellent, and we recently discovered that it still tastes good if you substitute the ground veal and pork with ground turkey. (We still use the pancetta though!). Grated Parmesan is a must with this!

DIY tacos/nachos. Spaghetti with salad and red sauce.

Not necessarily for meals (I struggle with this too!) but I always like to have a variety of cheese and crackers on hand. They stay good for a long time and people have something to snack on while I figure it out. And I just put t out on a pretty cutting board and let them cut it.

lunches: I always do just stuff for sandwiches/wraps and set it out so they can make their own. Then have pasta salad, potato salad, fruit, chips. etc. to eat with it.

dinner: make ahead lasagna or similar pasta dish, or i'll make a huge patch of taco meat (chicken/hamburger) and have a DIY bar with taco shells and chips for nachos. I will also do a pulled chicken/pork for sandwiches.

breakfast: I always do a egg casserole and/or a French toast bake casserole depending on the amount of people. If its' a lot, i'll do bagels/rolls I can just pick up and fruit.

@lamariniere: It's the Swiss German word, lol. I don't know why that came out.

When my in-laws were here last, I made a big thing of chicken salad and had croissants and sandwich fixings on hand. That turned out to be perfect and they ate that happily at least once a day! Even a huge amount of chicken salad is easily contained in a large Tupperware.

I think coming up with a repetoire of pasta dishes that you like will be your best asset. Pasta marinara sounds like the most obvious, but there are a lot of other vegetarian options. Here's a link to Lidia Bastianich pasta recipes and she uses a lot of random veggies for sauce, like broccoli or mushrooms. Pasta puttanesca uses barely any meat (just anchovies) and I really love simmering chopped kale and onions and chili flakes in a jar of pasta sauce and tossing it with whole wheat spaghetti and cheese.

http://lidiasitaly.com/recipes-categories/pastas-polenta-risottos/

Soups or stews would also be good. Lentil or bean based soups are hearty and good this time of year. A standard brown lentil soup simmered with a mix of onion, carrot, celery, garlic, bay leaf, vegetable or chicken broth, with salt and pepper is hearty and delicious. I also really love this red lentil soup that's fast and a little different:

http://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1016062-red-lentil-soup-with-lemon

I also really like ribolitta, which is a bit more filling and tastier than a simple minestrone to me:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/ribollita-recipe.html

Another favorite is potato leek soup, which I like to serve with Gruyere cheese toasts:

http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/potato_leek_soup/

Then you can quickly make a simple green salad and serve with bread and cheese. The dressing you can just make in a big jam jar once a week and keep in the fridge. I do a quick one that's chopped shallot, cider vinegar, Dijon mustard, salt and pepper, and olive oil, plus a little sugar if the vinegar is really strong. Its great on just simple green leaf lettuce. If you want to jazz it up, you can chop up an apple or add a handful of raisins. Go buy a box of truffles and a tin of good cookies and pass them around after dinner for an easy quick dessert with tea or cookies.

I don't think any of these things are so weird that a kid wouldn't eat them. Especially with pasta, if they really don't like it, some cheese and butter and noodles will be fine.

For breakfasts, I would just keep fresh bread, jam, butter, yogurt, and coffee/tea/hot chocolate around. Cereal and milk if the kids want that. You can boil off some eggs and keep them in the fridge if someone wants that.

Lunches I'd do cold things, like cheese or saucisson sandwiches with pickles and a cold side salad, like canned garbanzo beans tossed with lemon juice, olive oil, and grated Parmesan. Or if you want to host a nicer lunch, I'd do a huge salade Nicoise with tuna and nice olives.

Also I have a great potato corn sausage chowder I can send you. You could leave the sausage out or just use very little

@T.H.O.U.: This sounds delish - I would like the recipe too!

@T.H.O.U.: sounds delicious! Thanks for the recipe.