At Simply Recipes we don’t strive for perfection, we are going for togetherness.

Is having people over for a last-minute dinner party stressful?

It is for me.

dinner party table

Simply Recipes / Katie Smith

Our kids toys are always scattered around the house.

Remnants of breakfast lay bare on our kitchen counter all day.

But what if it didn’t have to be impressive or perfect?

The Dinner Party Project by Natasha Feldman

Simply Recipes / Alana Kysar

What if I ordered delivery pizzas and served them with agiant saladand arefreshing cocktail?

At Simply Recipes we dont strive for perfection, we are going for togetherness.

Socrank up the tunesand bring out all the mismatched chairs you ownlets have an imperfect gathering.

Zoë François dinner party playlist

Simply Recipes / Sabrina Tan

We cant think of anything more delicious than that.

A six-hour dinner party where hilarity and some drama ensues.

WriterThao Thaitells the story of her first time hosting friends for a meal.

One-pot pasta

Simply Recipes / Sara Tane

She’s spent nearly 20 years hosting gatherings with loved ones on TV and in cookbooks.

Here are her six dinner party survival tips.

Cookbook authorAnna Stockwellreveals her brilliant tricks for how to swing it like an expert host.

Sheet pan salmon

Simply Recipes / Sally Vargas

Here are 15 songs that will help you relax, chitchat, dance, and laugh with your guests.

Boil the pasta, make a quick and easy sauce, and toss them together.

These summery pasta recipes take almost no time to makewell, 30 minutes or less.

Build Your Own Tacos

Simply Recipes / Susy Villasuso

That means more time to absorb the setting sun and heartfelt conversations with those you love.

Take your pick depending on how much time you have.

for your guests to build their own tacos.

Batchable summer cocktails

Simply Recipes / Nancy Mitchell

A giant bowl of tortilla chips and extra salsa is never a bad idea.

Here are five ultra-refreshing cocktails and lemonades recipes, hand-picked by our very own cocktail-loving team membersEmma ChristensenandLaurel Randolph.

Jennifer Garner loves our lemonade so much, she endorsed it on Instagram.)