Meals I Make When We Have Guests In Town

My mom and dad came to visit us this weekend and it was so wonderful to have Mae and Pop in town again! The boys adore their grandparents so, so much and having several days of uninterrupted time together to catch up, swim, enjoy the sunshine and eat good food was just what we were all craving! I will share more pics and updates from our weekend soon but first I wanted to share a blog post I began writing last week that was inspired by my parents’ visit.

When I was writing out a grocery list for this past weekend and planning our meals, I realized I have a handful of recipes in my back pocket I make over and over again when we have guests staying with us because they are tried and true favorites. They’re recipes I have practically memorized and recipes I feel confident serving to friends and family because they always get positive feedback and result in plates that are practically licked clean!

The summer months seem to be a time when we have a revolving door of guests and since I know summer is prime-time travel for many, I figured a post focused on some recipes I consider big-time crowd pleasers might be of interest. Hopefully some of the meals below jump out at you to make the next time you have company in town!

Meals I Make When We Have Guests In Town

• Paleo Marinated Chicken Thighs

Why I Make It: It’s the BEST chicken marinade around and our guests rave about it every time we make it! It’s the perfect recipe to have on hand for a cookout when you want something other than burgers and hot dogs. It’s easy to make and lends itself well to prepping ahead of time. We usually serve the chicken with simple sides like baked sweet potatoes, edamame black bean salad and green beans.

• Instant Pot Chicken and Broccoli (via Lexi’s Clean Kitchen)

Why I Make It: Because everyone LOVES it! I have yet to make this recipe for guests and have someone NOT request the recipe. It’s a huge hit and an easy one, too! My shortcuts: I use a giant bag of frozen broccoli (I double the broccoli in this recipe) and I also use ginger paste — a LOT of it! We serve it with brown rice for a little more staying power.

• Easy Marinated Pork Chops

Why I Make It: I don’t have to measure anything and it always comes out great! This recipe is a nostalgic one for me because my mom made it for our family all the time when I was growing up. Once you make it one time, you’ll realize you can eyeball all of the ingredients in the future and it will always come out great. Gotta love a forgiving recipe! This is also a great one to serve with an assortment of sides and I love it paired with my ginger sesame broccolini.

• Oven Baked Chicken Fajitas (via Juli Bauer’s Paleo Cookbook + Carrots ‘n’ Cake)

Why I Make It: So much can be prepped ahead of time! I buy frozen pre-sliced onions and peppers (BJ’s Wholesale and Whole Foods often sell them) so I don’t have to chop any veggies. I typically have the chicken and veggies prepped and ready to go and while they bake, I assemble the extras: Tortillas, shredded lettuce, tomatoes, salsa, guacamole, shredded cheese and sour cream! Note: I originally made the recipe from Juli Bauer’s Paleo cookbook but now opt for Tina’s version of Juli’s recipe because it’s a shortcut version and tastes almost exactly the same!

• Easy Cheesy Crock Pot Chicken Corn Chili

Why I Make It: This is the recipe that won the top prize at a friends’ chili cookoff in the “best non-traditional chili” category so it’s a recipe I feel confident others will love! It’s the simplest of the simple (no chopping — you just dump everything in a slow cooker) and is a favorite recipe of mine to serve during the colder months of the year.

• The Whole Smiths Roast Chicken (via The Whole Smiths)

Why I Make It: It is the perfect comfort food to serve on a chilly night. It makes the whole house smell amazing and can be completely prepped ahead of time so you just throw it in the oven when you’re ready for dinner. Note: I double — and often triple — the veggies in this recipe because they are SO good and we fly through them!

• Everything Bagel Seared Tuna

Why I Make It: Something about seared tuna feels special but this recipe is a breeze to make! If I know we’ll be hosting seafood lovers in our home, I love to make this recipe because it somehow has a “wow factor” to it but doesn’t require a ton of time in the kitchen to put together.

Question of the Day

What is a meal you often find yourself making when you have guests in town?