Food is so much more than what you put in your body.

乌鸦传媒淔ood is the great connection for us all. When we break bread together, we really are communicating with other people. It乌鸦传媒檚 a gesture of love,乌鸦传媒� said Denise Marchessault, the self-described 乌鸦传媒渁mbitious home cook乌鸦传媒� who has now published two cookbooks, The Artful Pie Project and British Columbia from Scratch.

Along with being a cookbook author, Marchessault stays busy teaching online cooking classes from her commercial kitchen in Victoria, where people can cook with her live, step by step in their own kitchens or watch and cook later.

For Marchessault, cooking and sharing food is her love language.

For others, breaking bread and immersing ourselves in deep conversations with friends may be something we enjoy partaking in, but planning the event can be quite stressful.

What do I cook? What if I don乌鸦传媒檛 have enough food? Do I decorate?

HARVEST asked Marchessault if she could share her tips and tricks for hosting a dinner event. Here乌鸦传媒檚 what she recommended.

Keep it seasonal

乌鸦传媒淢y planning always is based around the menu.乌鸦传媒�

The easiest way to plan your menu is to start with what乌鸦传媒檚 in season. For summer months, this may be fresh fish like salmon or steelhead trout, corn on the barbecue and a kale salad, she recommended.

乌鸦传媒淭he more appetizers you have, the less you have to worry about the main dish and the fewer portions you have to have.乌鸦传媒�

Easy appetizers include dips, nuts, tapenade, crackers, strained yogurt and fresh, in-season berries.

乌鸦传媒淭hose are nice grazing foods that you can put out.乌鸦传媒�

Keep it simple

It can be easy to go over the top, but what乌鸦传媒檚 easier is to keep it simple.

Marchessault likes to put craft paper on the table and decorate it with whatever is in season, which you can also theme the party around.

乌鸦传媒淚f it乌鸦传媒檚 summer, it乌鸦传媒檚 going to be wildflowers 乌鸦传媒� If I have a lot of salal, I乌鸦传媒檒l decorate with salal, and I would put it directly on the table in a long stream.乌鸦传媒�

For fall, she recommended leaves and in the winter, pine cones.

Another simple but fun thing you can include is coloured markers next to each person乌鸦传媒檚 plate or in a few jars on the table.

乌鸦传媒淯sually, people don乌鸦传媒檛 pick them up until the wine is flowing, and then it makes for a very interesting evening to see what people have written beside [their plates]. Sometimes it乌鸦传媒檚 really lovely and sometimes it乌鸦传媒檚 really silly and sometime乌鸦传媒檚 it乌鸦传媒檚 really funny. Sometimes it乌鸦传媒檚 just pictures and doodling.乌鸦传媒�

It乌鸦传媒檚 also a great activity for kids.

As for the rest of the decor, 乌鸦传媒渓et the food speak,乌鸦传媒� much of what can be prepared ahead of time, including dressings, pickled vegetables or desserts, Marchessault said.

Maybe it means having the pizza dough made in advance so guests can be ready to top them up with the pre-chopped ingredients.

乌鸦传媒淏uffet style works best.乌鸦传媒�

Collaborate

Still intimidated? Rest easy for the rest doesn乌鸦传媒檛 have to fall on you.

乌鸦传媒淸Ask guests] to bring something.乌鸦传媒�

Not only does this take the weight off the host乌鸦传媒檚 shoulders, but it makes the evening interactive.

乌鸦传媒淧arties are fun when the host is having fun. If they乌鸦传媒檙e not乌鸦传媒攚hen the host is stressed or worried about the timing of the food乌鸦传媒攊t definitely reflects on how the guests are feeling.乌鸦传媒�

Guests can alleviate this stress by getting involved. They can bring appetizers, salads or drinks or be in charge of laying leaves across the table.

They can also make their own meals乌鸦传媒攕ay gyozas, where the dough is premade and they select their own fillings乌鸦传媒攚hich gives them a sense of pride.

乌鸦传媒淚t gets them involved and they乌鸦传媒檙e very proud of it. You know, if you乌鸦传媒檙e putting [the food] in the oven, they get very territorial. 乌鸦传媒楴o, that one乌鸦传媒檚 mine!乌鸦传媒� 乌鸦传媒� They乌鸦传媒檙e very proud of their work when it comes out of the oven.乌鸦传媒�

Liberate yourself from perfectionism

乌鸦传媒淚t really, truly is about sharing and I think sometimes because we see such beautiful food all the time in magazines and we see these beautiful spreads, we have these high ideals of what it should look like and what it should be like.

乌鸦传媒淚t really is about sharing. When someone makes something for me, I am so thrilled. To me, that is a gift.乌鸦传媒�

Marchessault乌鸦传媒檚 most recent cookbook, The Artful Pie Project, came out last year and was a collaboration between her and Deb Garlick, artist and photographer.

乌鸦传媒淪he brought the cookbook to life with her playful blend of creativity and artistry.乌鸦传媒�

Preparing for the pie cookbook involved a lot of, well, baking pies, which meant further collaboration was needed.

乌鸦传媒淲hen I was writing this pie book, I did not know any of my neighbours but I was testing a lot of pies 乌鸦传媒� I would send my husband out with a tray of pies around the neighbourhood and I got to meet so many people that way. People were so touched. It came back to me tenfold,乌鸦传媒� explained Marchessault, who had neighbours returning the gesture with knitted socks, bottles of wine and vanilla from Mexico.

乌鸦传媒淲hen you make something for somebody or invite somebody into your home, it is very special 乌鸦传媒� Plan something, you know, with a little bit of heart, then it always turns out well.乌鸦传媒�

You can learn more about Marchessault, her cookbooks and cooking classes by visiting denisem.ca.

kim.kimberlin@blackpress.ca
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