Welcome Your Guests in Style; Get Diwali-Ready With these Super Tips

Diwali is just around the corner and millions of Indians across the globe are gearing up to celebrate this five day long fiesta with their family and friends. This year Diwali will fall on 19th October, 2017, followed by Govardhan Puja and Bhai Dooj on 20th and 21st October, 2017 respectively. It's time for everyone to come together with their loved ones and celebrate the festival of lights.During the week long festivities, you will see your relatives, friends, colleagues and even acquaintances drop by to extend Diwali wishes to you and your family. Considering the onslaught of guests during this period, it's not easy to entertain everyone and make them feel welcome in your home. Most of these guests don't even stay for very long - so you have got to be ready to offer savouries and sweets in a matter of minutes. It's a good idea to have some basics in place that could help your serve a tray full of goodies in a jiffy. You don't want to be offering the same Kaju Katlis and Dahi Vadas. Not only does this become repetitive, these kind of dishes taste best when served fresh. Instead, why not offer something that is light on their tummies and also different at the same time?Here are five essentials which you can buy and keep handy a few days before, they have a long shelf life and your visitors will thank you for it!1. A bowl of nutsMove over heavy snacks and serve your guests the goodness of nuts like cashew, almonds, pistachios and walnuts. While there are a lot of flavoured nuts out there, but we suggest you avoid them for this period. Chocolate coated almonds, masala cashew nuts, or salted almonds will only add extra salt or sugar, plus there's nothing to beat the freshness of freshly toasted nuts.
 2. Trail mixMake an interesting trail mix of dry fruits like dried apricots, berries, raisins, cranberries, figs and dates. This trail mix will not only be tasty but will also help your guests take in all the goodness of these healthy dry fruits. You could even add pumpkin seeds or chia seeds to the mix for an added crunch.
 3. Regional savouryOne of the best ways to give your guests a break from the usual foods, is to serve them something regional. So why not serve them something that comes from your native region? Say if you are from Maharashtra, you could serve Bhakarwadi, if you are from Tamil Nadu, you can give Murukku or if you are from Gujarat, serve Khakra. The idea is to treat them with something different so that they enjoy these foods more and it's a break from the usual suspects.
 4. Chocolate coinsThose gold and silver chocolate coins we used to get as a gift during our childhood can surely be brought back this festive season. These are easily available in all local markets and make for an interesting addition to your Diwali tray. We are sure; these chocolate coins will be quite an attraction for the kids visiting your house too.
 5. SharbatsHeavy beverages like coffee or tea are a big no-no, considering the guests have already been visiting so many places stuffing themselves with heavy food and drinks. Instead, just serve sharbats that will keep their tummies light. You can serve khus sharbat, kesar sharbat or rose sharbat in order to treat their palates.
 Imagine your tray has a bowl of nuts, a bowl of trail mix, a bowl of regional savoury, chocolate coins
and a perfect drink to accompany them with, making you Diwali ready, without really overdoing it.