What to make for this lunch

[deptfordgirl]

Please help mumsnetters!

Some friends we haven't seen for a while are coming to lunch tomorrow and I need help planning what to make. She is 7 months pregnant but has had sickness throughout her pregnancy. I asked her if there's anything she definitely doesn't feel like and she said she can't really tell until it's in front of her but she'll probably just pick at a few things. Her dh has crohns but the only thing she said he can't eat is fatty meat. I think she might be being polite and so I want to offer a selection of things so they don't feel obliged to eat anything and can help themselves. Oh and nothing too labour intensive as i have a toddler and a baby and limited time to shop and cook! Any ideas?

What about a few platters of salad, meats / smoked fish and cheese served with some nice chutneys and good bread? Very little effort, everyone will find something they like and it looks like an attractive lunch if it's all laid out nicely in the middle of the table for people to help themselves.

Make a little buffet; a platter of cold meats, some nice bread, a few cheeses, some crackers, some grapes and strawberries, a bowl of salad and some potato salad/pasta salad type accompaniments.

It’s simple but would keep most people happy, if you plate it all nicely and it will look nice on the table.

Best of all it’s zero effort (other than shopping) for you.

Great minds Mary!!

I'd do an afternoon tea type thing. Sandwiches, scones, cake and fruit.

You can buy most of that ready done and just assemble it all.

Yes Nona. It's one of my favourites to serve and be served.

As above, so things to pick & choose. Nice bread, maybe one plain, like a white baguette & one fancy. Don’t pre butter it. Crisps, one salted, one flavoured.
I found plain salty carbs helped.

I agree with the above comments, I'd also go for a more buffet - style approach.

I'd probably pick a nice, slightly "interesting/unusual" bread (we have a stone oven bakery nearby and they make lovely olive bread and challah bread) but I'd also include some plain toast.

A salad, some vegetables, maybe a vegetable dip, hummus, cheese, condiments.
I'd be cautious with deli meat /charcuterie because some pregnant women apparently only eat it if it's been heated(?)

Vegetable soup would be nice as well.
Unsugared fruit salad and biscuits. I'd probably also offer to scoop some ice cream.

(I would probably put the difference cheeses on individual plates instead of one platter, simply because cheese may smell strongly and that way she could subtly move the stinky plate to the other end of the table what still being able to eat the other cheese...)

Great ideas, thanks. I was thinking along those lines but am a bit cautious about meats and cheeses as I can't quite remember which ones pregnant women can't eat. I suppose I should just provide enough alternatives that she can avoid what she needs to.

You could add a small sliced up pizza and some sausage roll type things to give some heated options if you like.

I wouldn’t go for smelly or soft cheeses, just a small variety of hard cheese.

@deptfordgirl

Cheese:

Safe cheese:
Hard cheese
Cottage cheese
Feta
Halloumi etc

• no raw milk soft cheese.
• No blue or red cheese. (Gorgonzola etc)
• No mould ripened soft cheese.
• No openly sold soft cheese. Actually openly sold foot and cold cuts in general are a bit "iffy"/best avoided. (According to my OBGYN)

Food

Not foot and cold cuts!

Anti pasti platter with nice bread.

Parma ham, fennel salami, mozzarella slices, tomatoes, figs, artichoke hearts. A bowl of good olives. Maybe a Jamie’s cucumber salad and an orzo salad or tabbouleh alongside. Some decent ciabatta or focaccia and balsamic or flavoured oil to dip.

Pudding just some fruit on a nice platter. A loaf cake possibly- banana loaf or similar.

Oh, could cured meats:

Butmy packaged and "ready to eat". She may not eat cold cured meat or fish at all unless she knows you froze or cooked it beforehand...

Grilled halloumi

Cherrypavlova I think you've just described my death row meal

Soup?