The Shish Kabob Fiasco
Jan
23
Written by:
1/23/2012 1:26 PM
There are some memories in a family history that are so painful that you will make every effort to not go there again. The shish kabob fiasco was one such episode for me. I have the lessons that needed learning printed indelibly on my brain. Fortunately, it wasn’t tragic, just embarrassing.
About 15 years ago, we invited our pastor and his wife and our doctor and his wife to dinner. I had a chicken pasta dish, previously well received, in mind. A couple days before the dinner, I was talking with the doctor’s wife and asked about food restrictions. She told me that her husband was lactose intolerant, no dairy, allergic to basil, didn’t like pasta, and didn’t eat sugar. Oops, so much for my menu!
I called another friend, and she suggested shish kabob. We had skewers, so I thought “Okay, shish kabob. Chicken? Beef? Shrimp? Why not all three? And rice pilaf, a salad, zucchini bread and grapes for dessert.” We’d never done shish kabob, but when the day arrived I threw myself into multiple marinades, and gobs of chopping. It seemed like I used every feasible receptacle for marinades, and almost everything in our cupboards for something. I soon had stuff marinating on every square inch of available counter space, on our washer and dryer in the garage, and on our ironing board. I was still assembling skewers when our guests arrived.
It took me too long to get dinner on the table, plus the whole kitchen with mountains of dirty dishes was visible from the dinner table. I cringe as I write this. The fellowship was pleasant, and all were gracious about the meal. It actually tasted pretty good, but by the time they left I was in a state of collapse. Our girls wandered through the kitchen rolling their eyes and murmuring that they wanted nothing to do with the mess. We didn’t have a dishwasher, and it took nine sinks of dishes to clear it all away. My husband counted. He now laughs at the memory, but we haven’t served shish kabob since then.
II Chronicles 27:6 comes to mind: “So Jotham became mighty, because he prepared his ways before the Lord.” I don’t need to be mighty, but I do want to survive my efforts at hospitality.
Tips:
Pray when planning menus.
When you invite someone to dinner, ask about food restrictions.
Collect good recipes for company.
Allow time to think through your menu. Test them on your family, first.
Do everything possible ahead of time.
Keep it simple!