Sainsbury's magazine announces the launch of new entertaining at home website

Sainsbury's magazine announces the launch of new entertaining at home website at sainsburysmagazine.co.uk

What do you find the most stressful about entertaining? The menu planning? The cooking? The presentation?

Do you sigh when you find a vegetarian at your table - or groan at the thought of thoseeven trickier gluten-free guests? Is matching wine with food a mystery to you? Do you wish you could whip up a delicious pre-dinner cocktail or serve up an authentic Vietnamese feast? Does your food look messy rather than Michelin standard? If so, we have the answers at sainsburysmagazine.co.uk.

Happily, according to a recent survey* those who find entertaining at home stressful are in the minority (38%), while more than 72% of people think entertaining at home is more popular than ever.

When it comes to inviting people round, four out of five of us see it as a reason to make a big effort, while
three-quarters really enjoy cooking for our guests, according to Mintel**. That seems to apply to many wellknown faces too, who like nothing more than whipping up a special meal for friends and family.

Funnyman Alexander Armstrong is definitely a host with the most: 'Entertaining is one of the great pleasures of being a grown-up. It's wonderful to catch up with friends over good food and wine. If we couldn't entertain, life would be miserable.' And actress Kim Cattrall also loves to feed a crowd: 'I throw a lot of parties. It makes me happy seeing people enjoy food in my home.'

So what's on the menu when our favourite celebrities are creating in the kitchen? An invitation from
Lorraine Kelly could mean a chance to sample her cheat's paella - 'Lots of lovely fresh crab, langoustines,
mussels and scallops, served with crusty bread and plenty of robust Rioja,' while Olivia Newton-John likes to keep things simple with her pot-luck suppers. 'Friends will bring a dish and I'll supply one. I like that relaxed, casual sort of dining.'

And guess who's coming to dinner? Asked to reveal their dream dinner party guest list, Hugh Bonneville plumps for Noël Coward, F Scott Fitzgerald and George Gershwin retiring, Downton-style, to 'smoke cigars after dinner', while actress Jenny Agutter thinks Jane Austen would be a 'fun dinner guest'. And who wouldn't want to eavesdrop on the after-dinner conversation at comedian Alan Davies' dream gathering - just what would Jesus, Woody Allen and Debbie Harry have to say to each other?

Your guest list might not be such a stellar one, but for entertaining made easy, go to sainsburysmagazine.co.uk.

Sainsburysmagazine.co.uk features interactive menus from celebrity chefs to help home cooks plan those special meals for friends and family. With over 200 triple-tested recipes from the nation's biggest-selling cookery title, sainsburysmagazine.co.uk will take the angst out of entertaining.

Contact at Sainsbury's magazine
Michelle Dickson
0207 775 5528
michelle.dickson@seven.co.uk

*Survey of 2000 people conducted on behalf of mychefonline.co.uk (October 2013)
** Mintel In-home meal occasions summary Feb 2012