McBride - Around the Table

Just like making an album, a lot goes into making a book like this a reality and so there are many people to thank!

Amy Bendell, Paige Hazzan, Lisa Sharkey, and the team at HarperCollins: Thank you for believing in me and for caring so much about this book. Its been a treat working with you.

Katherine Cobbs: Thank you for getting and keeping me organized, which is no small feat, for your invaluable insight into the process, and your great ideas along the way.

Thanks to: Jason Wallis and his assistant Eric Chapman for the beautiful photographs and for being so quick! (I hate long photo shoots). Chantal Lambeth and Lauren Lapenna for making all the food look so yummy (it tasted yummy too!), Katherine Tucker and her assistant Prissy Lee for all the fun props and making every shot so inviting and stylish, Catherine Steele for testing all the recipes and making sure they were ready, perfect, and tasty.

Thanks to Simon Green, Cait Hoyt, and Rod Essig at CAA for your enthusiasm and for pitching my idea in the first place. To Clint, Brandon, Mike, Matt, Buffy, Nate, and everyone at Morris Management for encouraging me to make this dream a reality.

To my husband and girls, John, Delaney, Emma, and Ava.: Thanks for tasting all the experiments and for understanding when I was focused on writing and behind a computer a few hours each day. Also for lending your stories and being such good sports about the photo shoot!

To my family and friends... thanks for letting me use your recipes and your stories. You all have shaped my life and helped make it worth writing about.

To my glam squad (and longtime friends) Earl Cox and Mary Beth Felts: Thanks for glamming me up! Lord knows I need it! Thanks to Renee Laher for the great style. Thanks also to Ali Benner for all your help with the photo shoot... you know where everything is and wed be lost without you!

Thanks also to all the chefs, cookbook authors, bloggers, and pinners who have been an inspiration to me... I hope to inspire someone else in the same way.

T he meals in my house growing up were not the stuff of todays food magazines or shows. They were midwestern and very simplecasseroles, Salisbury steak, hamburgers, boiled or mashed potatoes, peas, green beans... and Pineapple Upside-Down Cake, Peach Cobbler, and Strawberry Shortcake were our dessert standards. We had instant iced tea at every meal and coffee was Tasters Choice or Folgers. While I have experienced a lot of different foods and flavors in my life and travels, I remember those meals around my familys table during the 70s and 80s fondly.

We all hang on to things from childhood, and food memories, especially, become so much a part of who we are. Cooking for and hosting family and friends regularly is one way I try to create lasting memories for my girls, too. I find comfort in knowing that even when my girls are away from home, they will long for my pot roast (a recipe handed down from my mom). And one day I know the phone will ring and it will be one of them asking me how to make it for their family.

If I werent a performer, I think I would love to be a party planner. Every aspect of planning a gatheringcoming up with the party theme, designing a unique invitation, creating a menu, and setting the scenespeaks to my creative side. For me, a party is a gift for my friends and family. My goal is to make each person feel special from the moment they receive the invitation until they walk out my door. If there is one thing I want to impress upon you with this book, its to not let the idea of throwing a party be intimidating. Successful gatherings dont have to be elaborate or expensive. Your generosity and the thought and effort you put into the details are key to making guests feel welcome and appreciated. If they leave feeling that way, then youve succeeded. And if a farm girl from Kansas can do it, anyone can!

As a daughter, sister, mother, wife, and friend, I gear my party-planning advice and ideas to everyone, even beginners. Over the years, Ive developed a system that really works for me. I get inspiration from lots of placesTV shows, magazines, books, blogs, the changing seasons, and friendsand I am always on the lookout for fresh ideas or twists on traditional themes.

I wanted to create a scrapbook of my parties and recipes to share with my girls and thats how this book came to be. I hope it inspires you, too. I dont believe there is such a thing as effortless entertaining. Parties take planning and organization (not my best skills, by the way), but with practice and the tools found in this book, entertaining can look effortless. If youve never played host, start simple with a party like . As you gain experience, you can throw more elaborate parties with confidence.

The reasons to host a party are all around you. Do it to celebrate those you care about. Do it when the seasons change. Do it to try out that recipe that looked so delicious on Pinterest. Do it for the fun youll create and, most of all, the memories youll make. Do it just because!

Martina

HOW TO USE THIS BOOK

I ve been entertaining for years now, and I have a lot more confidence in the kitchen these days than when I was first hosting. I also have spent many hours on a tour bus or cozied up on my couch at home poring through cookbooks and entertaining booksits how I unwind! Whenever I come across a new recipe, ingredient, or a different take on an old favorite that inspires me, I find a way to add it to the menu for my next party. I have learned so much about food, style, and being a good hostess from these resources and from trial and error in the kitchen.

The parties in this book represent the many different sides of my life. Im a mom who loves having my family together for a warm Spring Brunch Outdoors or a colorful Taco Fiesta. Im a wife who relishes an opportunity to get a bit glam and serve up a Retro Valentines Day menu for my husband. I am a singer and entertainer who has had a lifelong love affair with music and enjoys an evening of good wine, good company, good tunes, and good food from my Red Wine and Vinyl party menu. Im a loyal friend who counts my blessings for the amazing people in my life and will find any excuse to celebrate them over brunch. And Ill always be a girl from Kansas who willingly serves up Dads crowd-pleasing potato salad and Moms peach cobbler to a boisterous crowd on the 4th of July. These parties were inspired by friends (Bountiful Tuscan Feast), travels (Taco Fiesta), being on the road (Bruschetta Bash), the seasons, and holidays (Mistletoe and Martinis). I find inspiration everywhere! The menus include prized recipes from my family and friends, along with new favorites, and suggestions for embellishing store-bought ingredients when you dont feel like doing all the cooking.

No matter your experience, the parties in this book can be adapted to fit your own comfort level and your style. Each party comes with a suggested menu, but please feel free to pare down the list of recipes to suit your crowd, your comfort level, and your timing. I wanted to give you some bang for your buck, so I share a lot of recipes here. If you decide to prepare all of the recipes from a partys menu, I have provided you with a step-by-step game plan so you can stay sane and organized. Otherwise, pick and choose your favorites from the list and start cooking! You can even mix and match menus. One thing I want to stress is that this is