Southern Living the half-hour hostess - Rebecca Kracke Gordon

From the most casual outdoor get-togethers to holiday gatherings that call for a little more planning, The Half-Hour Hostess makes it easy to entertain the Southern Living way.

Between hectic work schedules, carpool duties, and volunteer activities, busy folks want to stop and take time to reconnect with their friends and families. But who has the time? Now you can entertain the easy way! Forget fussy dinner parties and complicated soires- the recipes and ideas for our festive little gatherings come together in a mere 30 minutes or less. Instead of hosting a 5-course Christmas dinner, invite the girls over for a shopping break featuring Caramel-Cream Macchiato Coffee and Cream-Cheese Olive Spread. Send each of them home with a clever little Caramel Shopping Bag table decoration that you can assemble in just 15 minutes. With quick recipes, great decorating ideas, and countless tips, The Half-Hour Hostess helps readers get everything done in a snap.

Taking its cue from the popular "Half-Hour Hostess" column in Southern Living magazine, every recipe in this book is ready in 30 minutes or less. We throw out the idea of traditional entertaining and replace it with fun and fast gatherings instead of the fussy parties that you'd expect in a traditional entertaining book. With a photograph-or two-on every spread, each turn of the page offers ideas that are as much fun to look at as they are to use. Seeing just what the recipe or decoration will look like will help readers put together a party in style.