How To Throw A Study Party

Last week, I threw a study party for me and a few of my friends.  One person working on her thesis, another on her dissertation, another reading for classes, and me working on a prelim paper.  It was intense.  Grad school is not for the faint-hearted. 

A successful study party depends on good sustenance.  You have to have good brain food.  For this, I made my hummus and pita, which is all kinds of good for you.

You also have to provide something sweet to counter the intense garlicky taste of the hummus.   I decided to make my Chocolate Cake Cookies.

And for dinnertime, I made my Spinach Artichoke Casserole, which is quite healthy and extremely flavorful all at the same time.  And the leftovers taste even better.  I think leftovers is my favorite type of food :)

But more importantly, you have to have something hot to drink while you're writing.  You simply cannot be expected to perform well (=not fall asleep) if you're not burning your tongue constantly on some hot beverage.  I like to offer a wide assortment of teas when my friends come over.

Clockwise from the top: Korean Grain Green Tea, Celestial True Blueberry Tea, Organic Lemon, Honey, and Chamomile Loose Tea, Tazo Assorted Tea, Jasmine Loose Leaf Tea from HK, and Jasmine Tea in a bag. 

It's also nice to invite a small group of people (3-4 is ideal) such that you are a small enough group that everyone is on task and large enough that there is a decent amount of peer pressure to keep working harder (i.e. if person A, B, and C are all working, I'm gonna keep working too, even if i would have stopped a long time ago if i were studying alone).

Good study buddies are hard to come by, but I'm glad I found mine.  You can have yours too!  Host a study party at your place this week!  And if you're not in school, you can host a "Study" Party where people bring things they need to work on (e.g. editing photos on their computer, working on planning a wedding, writing a novel, etc.)

Some other great study snacks (links will open in new tab):
Beer Bread - The easiest bread you'll ever make!

Popcorn on the Stove - Inexpensive crowd-pleaser!

Olive and Feta Polenta - A little treat that fills you up!

German Chocolate Coconut Cookies - Chewy and soft, chocolatey and sweet!

Baguette Pizza - Who doesn't love pizza, especially when it's miniaturized?!