Holiday House Menu

In part 1 of this post, I go over how Real Canadian Superstore is a great place to do a #OneStopShop and pick up all the things you need for holiday entertaining at once. From decorations to serving trays, from deli meats to sweet treats.

Here's how I put it all together, along with some great tips to make your holiday parties a smooth affair.

We chose a Canadiana theme for our tree and picked up all sorts of cool ornaments and decorations from Real Canadian Superstore.

Everything on this tree is from there!

On the mantle above is a big vase filled with cinnamon scented pine cones. We grabbed them by the bag and also tossed some in the bathroom (ahem).

The stockings are so cute and are perfect for my animal loving boys. My favourite ornaments were the vintage birdhouse and the wreath in window. I also loved the moose head toboggan, snowshoes, the knit sweaters, a cute wooden bike, bright snowflakes, and we picked up a big box of baubles to fill in all the gaps.

With all the decorations up, and the fireplace channel turned on, I moved over to prep for our open house.

Tip 1: Hold It In The Afternoon

With a busy holiday season crashing down upon everyone, an afternoon party means people can double up. They can visit you for snacks before heading out to evening parties or dinners.

Afternoon parties are perfect for families too. With an open invitation for people to drop by between 4 and 7, we had our friends bring their kids . We snatched up some Rudolph kits from Real Canadian Superstore and passed them out as the kids arrived.

With an afternoon party, you'll want to encourage your guests to not consume as much alcohol before they head off to other events. I always keep a few cases of President's Choice Blonde and Red de-alcoholized beer in my fridge.

For this party I jazzed it up by picking up a few packs of President's Choice Sparkling Fruit Juice. Just drop some frozen berries and a sprig of mint into a champagne flute and you have a refreshing, fancy drink.

Tip 2: Charcuterie And Cheese

I can't think of any easier way to lay out a spread for people than doing charcuterie and cheese. With an invitation for guests to arrive at 4, I didn't start prepping the table until 3.

It was so easy. Lay out some of the sliced deli meats with fancy mustards, olives, and pickles, on a wooden board dressing it up with some fresh herbs.

I also picked up bread and spinach dip, and veggie trays. Both were freshly pre-prepped at Real Canadian Superstore, meaning I just had to put them on serving plates and lay them out. I mean if you wanted to wander the variety of produce in the aisles you could DIY your own veggie and fruit platters, but the quality and value of having them pre-prepped worked perfectly for me.

After all, the most effort I was prepared for making my guacamole (three smashed avocados, a squeeze of lime, handful of diced tomatoes, salt, pepper, and a sprinkle of cumin).

To identify the cheese, just use some chalk on the edge of your wooden board. It will wipe right off after the party, and adds a nice rustic touch to your table.

The cheese aisles at Real Canadian Superstore are packed with choices from around the world. We had some rich cheeses, a few milder ones, and then soft herbed chèvre and another chèvre with figs.

Tip 3: President's Choice Crackers

These variety boxes were a saver. I scooped up one each of biscuits for cheese, and fine assortment crackers, and I had plenty to cover my table.

There were wheaty husks, soft creamy crackers, salty ones, just a wide variety that looked great on the table and were easy to get with just one quick stop.

Tip 4: Frozen Appetizers

You never know how many people are going to show up, right? So I had a freezer loaded with appies just in case I needed to fill up the trays.

I grabbed some French Quiches, Coconut Shrimp, Mozzarella Bites, and Spanakopita. I only ended up using a couple of boxes – so instead of having a lot of leftovers, I have finger food in the freezer for the holidays!

There are some special additions for the season in the PC Insiders Collection that are worth checking out. The Asian Hors D'Oeuvre Collection, PC Double Smoked Oak-Smoked Long-Sliced Scottish Atlantic Salmon, PC Belgian Biscuit Collection, PC Rich and Creamy Egg Nog (which comes in fun chocolate and candy cane flavours too), and PC Candy Cane Cheesecake Lollipops will all jazz up your holiday spread.

About 45 minutes after I started my prep, I was done. The guests started arriving (and congregating in the kitchen).

Because we started early, everyone was out by shortly after 9.

Clean up was easy with just one table and a counter too look after. We tossed the left overs in some containers to snack on over the rest of the weekend, and we were in bed by 10!

Millennials might think that's lame, but as an aging Gen Xer, I'll take that kind of easy entertaining every time!

Tip 5: Click and Collect

You want it even easier than I had it? All the product links above take you right to the website where you can load them in your cart and then Click and Collect them all. The Real Canadian Superstore elves will get everything in a buggy for you and you don't even have to go inside.

Now that's easy entertaining with a #OneStopShop!