To serve a takeaway to dinner party guests tomorrow?

[TheDevilWearsPrimark]

Taking into account the fact that they all are wonderful cooks and always serve the most delicious dinners for guests.

Something has come up meaning I'll be working for most of he day and the last thing I'll feel like doing is shopping and cooking.

Or am I just being a lazy slattern and should go shopping and do the prep tonight?

Go to ottolenghi on your way home
(if you live near one)

chilli

Friday night, I'm going to a friends house, what do I want? good company, wine, some sort of food - don't care if it's pincy or not. I'd be happy with a big bowl of good pasta or some other one-pot dish & some nice salad and bread.

Takeaway will be pricey.

We sometimes make chilli tomato tiger prawns with cous cous....

bling, sadly it's not proper close friends, otherwise I wouldn't be fussing. It's a few people I know through work and our old neighbours.

Oh I need to cater for two vegans too (forgot to mention that) and don't have a clue, hence I thought takeaway much easier.

No problem with it at all.

Work smarter, not harder.

can you pass it off as catered?

My local (excellent) thai restaurant, will "cater" for dinners/parties - they provide dishes (appropriately thai-patterned), heating thingymajigs, etc etc? So, while it's obvious you haven't cooked, it's more "upscale" than a takeaway grabbed on way home from work?

Then you spend 10 minutes whizzing around the house when you get back polishing up some buddhas to throw on the table as decoration, draping some clothes for atmosphere and lighting a zillion candles...?

god it sounds horrendous
just cancel

Thai vegetable curry. Make it tonight, stick it in the fridge, do the rice tommorow. Pick up some starters from takeawy enroute home.

get the takeaway, sounds like too much hassle for the bores people you aren't that friendly with.

OTTOLENGHI
i tell you

oh, and be sure to serve some seriously lethal delicious cocktails on arrival.... that will stop them wondering!

seriously lethal

Oh CD that looks wonderful. But I bet they'd know!

naah just tell them you have the cookbook

YANBU if you have a really good takeaway.
However if your local takeaway serves a munchy box then you will have to cook.

YANBU I sometimes get takeaway when we have visitors. Can't see the problem. They are here to see us and have an enjoyable evening, not watch me getting stressed trying to cook, serve and tidy up. Besides I like takeaway

No don't do takeaway TDWP. You know you'll hate yourself in the morning.

Do you have a slow-cooker? You could make something nice and easy and casseroley, and prep the veg tonight.

Why don't you do some swooney veg? Gratin dauphinois always gets fulsome comments despite being easy peasy. Or tie up green beans with bacon. Takes a second. Really looks like you are Serious About Cooking.

SO much easier just to order the takeaway and arrange it artfully on plates and say it was catered.

And it was.

By a takeaway restaurant.

Just cheat, buy loads of ready made yummy things from an Italian deli. Or that's what I'd do, but then I live in Italy so it's not very difficult

Why would you have vegans round for dinner. What a nightmare!

I'll tell you what to make: blend almonds with olive oil and basil to make pesto, with some salt and a little bit of garlic if you don't mind quite strong raw garlic flavour. Make spaghetti al dente (at last minute obviously and mix loads of the pesto in. Serve grated parmesan on the side so as not to upset the vegans

Chop lots of veg (peppers, aubergines, courgettes, carrots, fennel, whatever) into big pieces, mix with salt, olive oil and finely chopped rosemary and roast in a hot oven until delicious. Serve these, hot, warm or cold, after the pasta with lots of plates of things like buffalo mozzarella, parma ham, other nice cheeses, lovely bread.

Buy nice wine and some nice cake for pudding.

This will look like you made something, taste nice and be piss easy.

Don't cater for the vegans. They are clearly either mad or antisocial. Just pass them the fruitbowl and some water. They'll think it's a feast.