cook for a crowd

I was running a little late this afternoon, but the sweet potatoes finally finished roasting in the oven and they were fine. The dinner was a success, everyone’s food was delicious, and I had some leftover sweet potatoes to bring home. Combined with my one remaining piece of leftover chicken which still in the freezer from last month’s dinner, I will have a good dinner to heat up at home tomorrow as well.

After dinner we had a good time watching someone’s relative competing on the TV show called “Duel.”

I still have to wash my dishes and shine my sink. That will have to wait until tomorrow morning. I’m just too tired tonight. Sorry, flylady. :(

...this time I’m supposed to make a side dish that goes with ham. Have to decide exactly what to make and get to the grocery store.

I have made roasted sweet potatoes before, but I can’t find the recipe that I used. Maybe I can just improvise. From what I remember, it is just cut-up sweet potatoes with some oil and maple syrup and salt and pepper roasted in the oven until they’re done. I don’t remember how long it takes, though.

• It was really really hard to decide exactly what to make. I kept changing my mind. I’m used to cooking for only one or two people, and it’s a little different to cook larger quantities. I kept procrastinating until yesterday afternoon, when I finally went to the store to shop. I wonder how many hours I spent looking at cookbooks and debating with myself. I guess if I did this more often, it wouldn’t be so hard. Also, if I were not so worried about pleasing everyone, it wouldn’t be so hard.

• The recipe that I picked was something I’ve never made before. It involved a fair amount of preparation. Chopping large quantities of vegetables and sauteeing them. Pounding out chicken breasts. Stuffing the chicken breasts. Making a sauce. I spent the whole afternoon yesterday on the shopping and preparation.

• Mid-way through the afternoon, I started to panic. I thought for sure that I had failed. I had to modify the recipe, and take a few shortcuts, because I started to run out of time.

• Everything worked out OK in the end. The dish came out neither underdone nor overdone. People thought that the chicken looked good and tasted good, and two people asked me for the recipe. The rest of the dinner was good, too, and we had some good conversation during and after dinner. I’m glad I did it. I think I could make this particular dish or something similar in the future and not go through so much internal anguish and fretting.

• My co-hostess was not used to entertaining in her home either, and I could tell that she was anxious as well. That helped me.

• My kitchen clean-up is done this morning.

• Thanks to all who cheered and commented to encourage me on this goal. You gave me the gift of some extra gumption, and I needed it.

...and I stayed to help my co-host do her dishes. I still have to finish washing my dishes and cleaning my kitchen before I can mark this goal as done.

...gotta go.

The date for the dinner is set for Saturday, March 28 29, a little over a week away. There will be eight people coming to this dinner. Now I have to decide what to make. (It cannot be beef, lamb, or seafood.)

^{how did I get myself into this?}

...I’ve committed to co-hosting a dinner. The people won’t be eating at my house, but I do have to cook some sort of entree. It will be some Saturday this month, and probably not the night before Easter.

What have I done?