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By Jorj Morgan of www.jorj.com

What makes a holiday party a blast? The answer is simple. You need the right blend of great food with tons of fun friends, and above all—a relaxed hostess. Sounds easy enough, but how do you accomplish this? By incorporating a few simple tips. Plan a straightforward menu with dishes that you prepare in advance. Arrange food and drinks so that your guests assist you by serving themselves. Ask a pal or neighborhood teen to be your party helper during the evening.

The Numbers Game
Surprise! You are hosting a party. You wonder how so many people could respond positively to your invitation. Certainly, you thought that there must be other people throwing a holiday party. Not everyone is supposed to come. Suppress those last-minute jitters. Even with a large crowd, you don't have to hire a caterer. Take a deep breath and surround yourself with your favorite cookbooks, holiday magazines and recipe file boxes. Grab a pen and paper and let's plan a PARTY.

A People Mover
Start with the drinks. Choose among sodas, punch, liquor with mixers, beer and chilled wine. To make sure that your guests flow easily through your home, remember it's all about location, location, location! Strategically place the bar table at the far end of your party space. This will encourage guests to walk through the room to grab a cocktail. Arrange the table so that everything is within your guest's fingertips. Place ice in a large container with tongs nearby. Glasses, lemon slices, stir sticks and cocktail napkins should all be within easy reach. Choose a large tub or porcelain container to hold chilled cans of soda, beer and open bottles of wine.

A Workable Menu
Choose dips and cut up veggies in place of passed hot hors d'oeuvres. A buffet is a simple way to offer a variety of dishes. For food that is best served warm, prepare it in the serving dish, bake at the last minute and place the hot dish directly onto the table. Make sure that there are plenty of chilled or room temperature entrees that can be brought directly from the refrigerator to the table.

A Little Help From a Friend
Ask a pal or hire a neighborhood teen to assist you during the party. He or she will pick up discarded glasses and plates and keep an eye on the buffet to refill platters and stack fresh napkins. While you are greeting guests, your assistant will light candles and make sure the ice bucket is filled.

Leave Them With a Bang
Leave a lasting memory of a great party with a dessert and coffee table. Cut cakes and pies into sections and place the serving pieces nearby. Place plenty of small dishes around each dessert. Decorate with a bowl of freshly whipped cream, stacks of candies, and cinnamon sticks for coffee mugs. The entire table can be set out before your first guest arrives.

The Results
When your guests enter your home, they cross the room to locate the libations at your totally complete self-serve bar. (That's you at the front door, warmly welcoming each friend!) On the way to the bar, the guests get a sugarplum preview as they pass by the brilliantly laid out dessert buffet. When most of the fun people have arrived, you and your assisting pal easily place the platters on the buffet table. No one even realizes that you have momentarily left the room. When your friends take notice of the completed buffet, they begin to nibble at all of your great dishes. (Is that you over there, in the corner, enjoying a conversation with an old friend?) Someone turns up the music and begins a little dance. Your helper is picking up the used plates and cups and stacking them in the laundry room to clean later. You make a mental note to give her a terrific holiday gift because she's doing a great job. (Hey, is that you swinging around to Ricky Martin's La Vida Loca?) It looks like you have just learned to partee at you own party.

Jorj Morgan is the author of five cookbooks, including "Gorgeous! The Sum of All Your Glorious Parts," "At Home in the Kitchen" and "Fresh Traditions." She has twenty-five years of entertaining and cooking for her family of three sons, eight nieces and nephews, and hundreds of extended family friends. Visit her website at www.Jorj.com  Find more articles from Jorj at www.jorj.com