holiday entertaining

Host a Gourmet Holiday Lunch with Open-Faced Apple and Gruyere Sandwiches and Happy Planet Soup

December 10, 2015 by Kathryn 18 Comments

Holiday entertaining often means evening parties with plates of appetizers, huge turkey dinners with all the fixings and a large variety of sweets and treats. But what if you want to do something a little more low key for your holiday event, yet still just as classy? A gourmet luncheon may be just the holiday event you’ve been looking for!

I decided to throw a little lunch party recently for a few friends, and I knew just where to start when it came to planning the menu. Happy Planet Fresh Soups are the perfect gourmet addition to any meal, and I decided that a simple menu of the new West African Squash and Cashew Soup with Open-Faced Apple and Gruyere Sandwiches would be the perfect way to impress guests without too much effort!

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Come Join in the @PureViaCA #PureVia Holiday Twitter Party December 10 9pm EST

December 2, 2014 by Kathryn 2 Comments

The holiday season is here at last and that means lots of special treats and goodies! It’s easy to go on a sugar binge when Christmas arrives, but with help from Pure Via, you can enjoy all your favourite goodies without a sugar overload! I love cooking with Pure Via Granulated during the holidays because it measures like sugar, tastes great and is naturally sourced! It’s also a great choice for diabetics and those with special food restrictions, so treating your friends to tasty treats they can actually enjoy has never been easier!

It’s pretty obvious that Pure Via knows how to make holidays fun, so the company is celebrating the season with a #PureVia Twitter party! Come join in the fun on December 10 at 9pm EST to chat about ways Pure Via can make your holiday entertaining delicious and healthy. There will be fun tips, plenty of conversation and delicious recipes to enjoy. And best of all, we’ll be giving away $850 in prizes including a fabulous $250 Pure Via holiday entertaining grand prize! [Read more…]

Join in the @RaisinBreadCA #SunMaidBrunch Twitter Party November 20 at 9pm EST

November 16, 2013 by Kathryn 4 Comments

Is there anybody that doesn’t love brunch? Breakfast is my very favourite meal, so when I get the chance to sit down and feast on an assortment of tasty breakfast foods during a family brunch, I am about as happy as can be! And I’m not alone; a recent study of Canadian families that eat brunch found that 80% of those polled would consider a festive brunch instead of the standard dinner this holiday season. And brunch can be a fun and easy meal choice too with great recipes from Sun-Maid! This year, the company has created four signature brunch recipes using Sun Maid Raisin Cinnamon Swirl Bread that will have everyone in the family excited to eat!

To celebrate all the ways you can create a fun and festive brunch this holiday season, Sun-Maid is hosting a fabulous Twitter party that you won’t want to miss! Come join us on November 20th, 2013 from 9 pm to 10 pm EST for the #SunMaidBrunch Twitter party to chat about your favourite brunch tips and ideas. The hilarious Kathy Buckworth will be joining us as a special guest to share her thoughts on making holiday brunch easy! [Read more…]

KitchenAid Invites You to Support the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation and Cook for the Cure this Holiday Season

December 20, 2012 by Kathryn 8 Comments

Christmas is a season of reconnecting with friends and family and visiting loved ones, but Christmas is also a season of giving and Cook for the Cure presented by KitchenAid has a brilliant way of combining those two concepts to help raise money for the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation. This innovative organization has been encouraging women to turn that ordinary dinner event or cocktail party into a Cook for the Cure party to help raise money for this worthy cause.

So how does it work? Simply let your guests know that instead of hosting that traditional annual Christmas Eve cocktail party or New Year’s bash, you’ll be having a Cook for the Cure party instead! It could be a regular casual gathering or you can get fancy and create a fun theme for your party to raise awareness and funds at the same time!

Recently I was invited to check out the Cook for the Cure website so I could see for myself exactly what was involved in hosting a Cook for the Cure party. It all starts with a quick and easy registration on the website. Not only does this provide a wealth of information for party planners, it also lets guests donate online if they prefer!

I loved the fact that the site gave me so many amazing tips for planning my own Cook for the Cure party. From recipes to party tips to photos of parties hosted by other women, there was plenty of inspiration available! I especially appreciated the tips on how to graciously request donations from guests. This is one of the things that I have a hard time doing, and the idea of requesting a donation in lieu of a hostess gift was an especially ingenious one to me. After all, having money go towards a worthy cause makes much more sense than getting another muffin tin or candleholder. [Read more…]

Enjoy a Stress-Free Gathering wiith Holiday Entertaining Tips from Metro

December 14, 2012 by Kathryn 3 Comments

I love entertaining over the holidays, but it can be a bit stressful sometimes too! Cleaning the house, decorating, preparing food and planning entertainment can all take time and leave me feeling a little frazzled by the time my company actually arrives! That’s why I was delighted when I received this great list of party planning tips from Metro.

Metro has ten stress-free tips to make any party the talk of the town! The company has done the research and put together a list of need-to-know tips and techniques for an effortlessly unforgettable get-together. [Read more…]