Designing Delicious
By Tamara Bajic from Palinopsia Ceramics
Finding time for juggling a family, a bustling business, or a day job that thinks overtime is a lifestyle choice can be near impossible. If you are feeling like you're being pulled in more directions than a compass, fear not! I've rustled up some of my favourite time-saving hacks to rescue you from the holiday hustle – in the kitchen and at the table during this festive season. Consider this your roadmap through the guaranteed chaos of the season.
The Power of Renting Over Buying
Attention to detail is the secret sauce. Think about what emotions you want to stir and how you could do it. But here's the kicker: you'd be amazed at how affordable it can be to rent serve ware and accessories for that one special day. Candle holders, the plates, unique cutlery, funky placemats, or even the table and chairs! Check out a furniture props hire businesses and explore their treasure trove. It's like a playground for storytellers. The best part? You can transform your dining experience for as little as $50-100. So, let your imagination run wild and your dinner table dazzle – it's a story waiting to be told.
Call in the Catering Cavalry: Let the Pros Handle the Heavy Lifting
Consider catering as your secret weapon in the battle against time. Whether it's just to help eliminate a few tasks like salads and desserts or to take charge of the entire show. Ponder the stress it could alleviate from your plate – the agonising decisions on recipes, the calculation of quantities, the compilation of a shopping list, the supermarket parking wars, the fruitless search for coriander in the fresh produce aisle when only parsley is left, the seemingly eternal checkout lines and the showdown when exiting the car park as everyone decides to leave simultaneously. I bid farewell to that chaos years ago by opting for pre-ordered, fresh delights. This not only slashed food waste but also liberated valuable fridge space.
While salads might seem like a breeze, in the chaotic swirl of the season, they transform into sneaky time thieves, demanding relentless chopping, dicing, cleaning, and blitzing. So, why not let our friends at Soul Origin Catering handle some of that Christmas lunch prep for you this year? This will allow you to fully concentrate on the ham, lamb or ‘The Pav’! From flawlessly prepped salads to enticing grazing boards and luscious fruit platters, they've got it all covered.
For this latest event, to feed a cheerful crowd of 8x people, we ordered:
(one of each)
- Deluxe Grazing Platter
- Picnic Grazing Platter
- Salad Platter: Crumbed Chicken Pasta
- Wrap Platter
- Classic Sliders
- Salad Plater: Greek
- Seasonal Fruit Platter
- Slices
So, fellow reader, here’s to a merry season that's more about enjoying the moment and less about sweating it out in the kitchen. Give yourself the gift of time, let others help where they can, and outsource as much as you can. Your guests will be impressed, and you'll actually get to enjoy the party you worked so hard to create. Cheers to a laid-back, delicious holiday season!
