My food blog, which has just celebrated its second birthday, was created to inspire its readers to entertain at home, so they can experience the joy associated with having guests. In the past 2 years, entertaining made easy has provided its readers with a myriad of recipes, tips and hints, ideas and articles – all designed to take the stress and guesswork out of entertaining. Reflecting on the past 24 months, I felt it was time to take a step back and talk about the basic elements of entertaining - the keys to making your occasion as enjoyable for you as it is for your guests.

Friends enjoying themselves at a Fondue Party

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The way a meal looks is almost as important as how it tastes. Food that is pleasing to the eye always tastes better: imagine being served a plate in a restaurant that looked like a dog’s breakfast – your taste would likely be negatively influenced.

Approach the presentation of your meal like an artist would a blank canvas – strive for a pleasing arrangement and be mindful of composition, colour, lines and textures.

As a home entertainer no one expects you to go to the lengths that Michelin Star chef’s go to for their food presentation, but following these basic guidelines will transform your tasty meal into a memorable one: [Read more →]

More and more people are avoiding gluten in their diets. Whether they have been diagnosed with Coeliac disease or have non-coeliac gluten-intolerance, chances are you know someone who falls into this category. But what do you serve your gluten-free guests when they come over for a meal? [Read more →]

It’s winter in Australia, and time to nestle in and enjoy the culinary delights that the cold weather brings. Whilst we don’t have snow in Sydney, it can still get mighty cold at this time of the year. What better way to warm up than with heart-warming fondue shared with a group of good friends?

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This summer in Sydney has been a scorcher, with temperatures well above average.  This is not the weather to be standing over a hot stove, getting hot and bothered in the kitchen. However, this presents a dilemma, as I love cooking and entertaining. There’s always the barbeque, but even that can be too hot to handle in this heat. So I came up with a challenge for myself:  create a 6 course meal that requires absolutely no heat on my part: no cooking in the preparation and all food to be served cold. Oh, and a meal that will please and satisfy a group of discerning foodie friends!
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I am very excited to announce that life’s a feast has commenced running cooking classes.

Our Entertaining Made Easy cooking classes are designed to teach its participants to effortlessly and confidently entertain. The classes are more than just a cooking lesson: in addition to preparing a sumptuous meal, you will learn the elements of hosting a successful dinner party or home event in a relaxed and fun environment. [Read more →]

There’s no doubt about it, home entertaining is back, in a BIG way.  We have all heard about the current state of the economy and what the experts are forecasting. The reality is that eating out is a luxury that many people just won’t be able to afford to do on a regular basis.  [Read more →]

Over the past few weeks I have read a number of articles from various sources stating that the dinner party is making a comeback. After it took a nosedive in the 90’s, home entertaining appears to be alive and well. The general consensus seems to be that this is due largely to the economic downturn, but also that people are enjoying purchasing from the ever-expanding available selection of quality produce to impress their guests. [Read more →]

Last weekend I had 8 friends over to celebrate my husband Paul’s 10 year anniversary of living in Australia. Paul is Dutch, and I met him in The Netherlands in 1995 when I was working over there. We both moved back to Australia on 19 September 1998 and married in March 1999. [Read more →]

I am often asked by my clients what is the best way is to serve the meal once it has been cooked. There are a number of ways of getting each course from the kitchen to your guests’ plates, and your choice will be influenced by the meal you are serving, the number of guests and the degree of formality of the occasion. [Read more →]