Holiday Entertaining - Doing the Holidays In Style This Year While Saving

NOLENSVILLE, TN, November 29, 2012 (Press-News.org) The holidays are synonymous with entertaining, which means buying more food and beverages, says Stephanie Nelson, founder of CouponMom.com. In December, grocery budgets are stretched to the max as people host a party at home, bring a dish to a dinner party, attend a cookie exchange or bake gifts for neighbors. With a little creativity, consumers can plan and attend fun holiday events without stressing about the amount of money they will have to pay when the credit card bills come in. Nelson says "You don't have to be a scrooge just because you may need to pinch pennies this year."

Nelson says if you've traditionally hosted a formal dinner party at this time of year, change to a more casual theme and serve a less expensive meal. She suggests instead of a four-course beef tenderloin dinner, try a potluck dinner. The host provides the beverages and entree while your guests bring appetizers, salads and dessert. Another idea for a fun theme is a "make your own taco" bar or a baked potato bar filled with bowls of assorted toppings. People care more about being included in social gatherings than the specific menu.

Another idea to save money is hosting either a luncheon or mid-morning brunch for friends instead of a full dinner party, and possibly partnering with a friend to share the event's work and expenses. Daytime entertaining generally means not serving alcohol, which is also easier on the budget, says Nelson.

When planning what to prepare for dishes, Nelson says to consider the cost of ingredients before deciding what to serve. For example, she says she has made an appetizer that uses prosciutto ($14 per pound), provolone cheese, Dijon mustard, and puff pastry. When she adds up the cost of the ingredients, the appetizer costs about $10 to $15 to make. Instead, she says, choose a budget-friendly copy of this appetizer using crescent roll dough, deli ham, mozzarella cheese and brown mustard at a cost of less than $5. There are coupons available weekly for rolls and mustard to get an even bigger savings.

Another example, instead of spending $20 on two pounds of raw shrimp and cocktail sauce, serve marinated and grilled chicken strips with a dipping sauce for less than $6 (assuming you buy the chicken on sale, of course) and make a homemade dipping sauce, such as a Thai peanut sauce or a honey-mustard sauce, says Nelson.

If you are baking for a crowd, Nelson suggests finding a section of great cookie recipes that are easy on the budget. A general rule is that simple cookie recipes that are variations on sugar or oatmeal cookies are less expensive to make than cookies with nuts, chocolate, coconut, condensed milk, and dried fruit. Rolled sugar cookies cut in holiday shapes and frosted with homemade butter frosting with almond extract are less than $2 a batch. Nelson says they are her contribution for the neighborhood cookie exchange, and everyone loves them.

Always check out, www.CouponMom.com, before going to the grocery store, and get your store's weekly specials along with great holidays coupons. This year, feast on the joy of the season without overspending.