Inn co-owner shows how to take it easy as a host
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Rebecca Hollis is ready to host guests at The Sautee Inn. (Photo/Samantha Sinclair)
by Samantha Sinclair
White County News
Rebecca Hollis, along with her husband Mike and business partner Ron Geraneo, purchased The Sautee Inn in March 2022.
Geraneo asked the Hollis couple if they’d be interested in the purchasing the inn with him — she had been a baker, her husband was a handyman and Geraneo was an antique dealer.
The Sautee Inn was built in the late 1800s, and it has been a hotel, personal residence and a restaurant over the years.
After some cleaning, restorations and renovations, they reopened the bed and breakfast in May 2022, and they welcome guests year-round, even during the holiday season.
“This inn was known for desserts and breakfast, and I get to make the desserts and breakfast,” Hollis said.
Her baking background also gave her the knowledge of baking for a variety of needs, like allergies and gluten intolerance.
She has found her purpose in hosting gatherings at the inn.
“When I sit in the kitchen and hear laughter around the dining room table… it fills my cup,” she said. “It makes me happy to contribute to that sense of community.”
For anyone hosting family or friends this holiday season, Hollis recommends doing what you can to help you relax.
“You want to create an environment where you can relax,” Hollis said. “As a host or hostess, you want to relax.”
She said if you can relax as a host, it will help your guests feel more relaxed.
• To prepare for guests, she advised to not worry about everything being perfect or the same as previous years. “A lot of things are going to be different this year than it was last year,” Hollis said. “At the end of the day, guests are not going to have a bad time because a quilt was not there.”
• She advised doing as much in advance as possible, which she admitted is sometimes easier said than done. As a tip, she suggested when making a casserole dish like a lasagna or egg bake prior to the holidays, make a second to freeze until ready to heat and serve during the holidays. She said egg bakes are something everybody loves — it’s just egg, bread product, vegetables and other mix-ins to personalize it, and cheese melted on top.
• Christmas cookie dough can also be made in advance and frozen until ready to be baked. She said dough should be formed in cookie-sized balls, placed on a tray, then frozen. Then, the frozen balls can be placed in a freezer bag and stored until ready to bake. Hollis said an extra two minutes will need to be added to the bake time for frozen cookies.
• She’s also a fan of pan cooking. Hollis freezes bread slices for French toast (similar to how she freezes cookie dough, then when ready to cook, places the slices on a parchment-lined pan, sprinkles cinnamon sugar mix on top, then places another sheet of parchment and foil on top. She also cooks bacon in a pan by lining the pan with foil and filling it with bacon. Once the bacon is done, she reuses the pan and the grease left behind to cook potatoes.
• To make grits easier to cook, she makes them in the Instant Pot on the porridge setting.
• If your home is not big enough for everyone to be comfortable, she recommends renting a space, like The Sautee Inn, for a family gathering. She said families can always gather on a weekday to celebrate together, then have a more intimate Christmas morning with the immediate family. She said one Sautee family is hosting out-of-town family at The Sautee Inn for Thanksgiving, and they can walk across the bridge her husband built at the back of the property to access the Sautee Nacoochee Center and the family’s nearby home.
• Final tips include getting a good night’s sleep and be open to getting help as a host. “We have to be intentional and let things go as well as ask for help,” Hollis said.
For her own Thanksgiving meal, she makes sure her family gets to eat her mac and cheese, hash brown casserole and ham and biscuits. For the turkey, she’s free to order a pre-cooked turkey from a local chain restaurant.
“I will make a point of sitting down and enjoying conversations,” Hollis said. “Focusing on what is truly important with the people I love and those who love me is the best part of Thanksgiving.”