What is your favourite, failsafe and prepare in advance dinner party menu please?

[Millie1]

Prepare in advance with easily available ingredients - oh, and nice comforting, autumnal food.

Thanks

Sounds lovely Seven - what's your Venison casserole recipe?

Starter - Spicy Butternut squash soup

Main - Rich beef stew with cobbles

Pudding - Cherry almond crumble & custard

Thanks Seven - the recipe looks gorgeous however just realised I can't do venison as we had it when we had dinner with these people not so long ago. Darnit.

Your menu looks lovely too Maddugar - had thought about a Squash soup or even some sort of parsnip & apple soup.

Please keep them coming!

Well, for a calorific (but devine) starter, or could be main course with sides: cheesy thing (I can't remember the proper name).

Basically: tranches of bread (like baguette) soaked in cream and beer. Then put slices of cheese (like port salut) on the top. This can be prepared in advance, and is probably better for it so that the cream soaks into the bread.

You then put it under a grill until hot all the way through, and the cheese melted and bubbly (even a bit browned).

Serve with crusty bread. Or just eat with a spoon.

A complete in advance (even freeze ahead menu)

leek and potato soup with grated cheese on the side. Lots of warm bread rolls.

A dish I call Somerset chicken. Chicken cooked (fried) with bacon or ham, a finely diced onion and carrots then flambéed to finish with cider brandy and just before serving warm and stir in a little cream. Garnish with eating apple slices lightly cooked/ browned in butter.

For an autumnal in advance pudding dried fruit stuffed apples with rich creamy ice cream are easy. Or summer pudding (with autumnal fruits) or pavlova again with autumn berries.

I'm a big fan of a cheese board to make sure all are full with grapes, celery and chocolates. Then you can bring out the coffee at the same time.

Starter - smoked salmon pate with garlic dough sticks
Main - St Anne's Beef stew with mash (beef with Worcester sauce & redcurrant jelly)
Pudding - Mars Bar sponge with clotted cream

Can post up any of the recipes if they appeal.

Starter: either crab cakes or hot mustardy crab pots, with granary toast

Main: Chicken Marbella or Beef Stew with cuminseed - both served with buttery rice/noodles and a salad

Pudding: I generally let Waitrose take the strain but always provide a really good cheeseboard

Or this for a main - Nigella's crab pasta - reminded by Midnight'sChild's crab starter suggestion. You can make the sauce in advance then just pour over the pasta. Very tasty indeed

Spaghettini tossed with sea urchin roe/olive oil/parsley

Pot roast veal with sage and marsala sauce (or with fresh funghi porcini if in season) and some kind of seasonal vegetable

Chocolate and pistachio cake

no formal starters - just a few dishes of olives, king prawns and aioli, good bread

then delia's chicken basque - you can make this ahead, and then reheat as needed.

Followed by Nigella's molton chocolate babycakes, served with vanilla icecream. You can make these the day before, then they only need 10 minutes in the oven when you're ready to eat them.

I'd do a chocolate mousse for dessert - has the advantage of literally just having to take it out of the fridge and dump in front of guests on the night (I do Nigel Slater's white chocolate and cardamon mousse because it's unusual, but do whatever you fancy and can find in your own recipe books).
Or a pavlova, but that's a bit more of a faff because although you can do the base days in advance you have to whip the cream and dish out the fruit on the night.

GraceK - could i be cheeky and ask if you can post your recipes please, I'm having some friends round for dinner on saturday and your stew and pudding sound ideal.

I was just going to ask the same thing!

That cheesy thing sounds delightful Absofcroissant...

AbsofCroissant - the 'Hot Cheesy Thing Starter' (as it shall henceforth been known in our house) has been filed for future. Sounds yum.

As requested here are the recipes

St Anne's Beef

Source - the Aga Cookbook
Serves 4
Prep time - 15 minutes.
Cooking time - about 3 hours

2 lb Chuck or Shoulder Steak
3 tblsp sunflower oil
1 oz butterf
1.5 oz plain flour
1 pint beef stock
3 tblsp Worcester sauce
4 tblsp redcurrant jelly
8 oz button mushorooms
salt & pepper

Trim off the fat from the meat & cut into cubes (or sensibly get the butcher to do this for you).

Take a large pan - melt the butter & oil and brown the meat.

Sprinkle with flour and stir in. Allow to cook for a few minutes. Add the stock & bring to the boil, stirring until thickened.

Add the Worcester sauce & redcurrant jelly & stir until melted in.

Cover & simmer for 5 minutes.

Pour into casserole & cook at Gas Mark 2/3 for 3 hours or longer if you like in a slow cooker / on S. Add the mushrooms 20 minutes before the end.

This goes particularly well with mash potato with a good dose of garlic mixed in and some green veg. This is my favourite stew ever.

Gooey Mars Bar Sponge

Source ? Reader's recipe in Good Housekeeping
Serves 10
Preparation time - 20 mins
Cooking time ? 55 mins

Sponge
3oz dark chocolate
¼ pt milk
6oz caster sugar
3 large eggs, beaten
6oz self raising flour
3 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder
2 x 62.5g Mars Bars chopped into chunks

Topping
6oz dark chocolate
5 fl oz milk
1 x 62.5g Mars Bar, chopped into chunks

Preheat the oven to Gas Mark 4 (180C / 160C fan). Make the chocolate sauce by putting the chocolate pieces in a pan with the milk and melting them together over a low heat until combined. Set aside.

Grease a 2 litre (3½ pint) baking dish. Beat the butter & sugar with an electric whisk until light & fluffy. Add the eggs a little at a time, beating well between each addition. (Add a tbsp of the flour if the mixture seems to be curdling.)

Sift the flour, cocoa & baking powder on to of the egg mixture & fold in to combine. Fold in the chopped Mars Bars.

Spoon into the baking dish. Pour over the chocolate sauce and stir gently to swirl it through the pudding. Bake for 45 minutes until just cooked but still soft & gooey.
To make the topping, melt the chocolate with the milk, then add the Mars Bar. When it has melted, stir lightly for a marbled effect and pour half over the pudding.

Serve the rest in cream or ice cream. A proper winter warmer.

Hope you enjoy them . Food like this is one of the few reasons to enjoy winter.

ANTagony how do you make the dried fruit stuffed apples?

Thank you. I have also made a note of the other recipes and links posted here for future dinner parties.

I had friends over for dinner last weekend and did:

• Butternut Squash soup:

Roast squash ( halved and seeded and drizzled w olive oil ) for 40 mins
Dry fry 1 teaspoon each caraway, cumin and coriander seeds for 2 mins. Crush with p and m, add half a teaspoon cayenne
Fry 1-2 onions and 2 cloves crushed garlic in butter for 10 mins
Add scooped out roasted squash
Add spices
Add 750ml chicken or veg stock
Simmer 5 mins
Liquidise
Add 2 tablespoons good creme fraiche

Best BNS soup recipe - ever, packed with flavour

I served it with souffled cheesy croutons

Then I did stuffed pork fillet - stuffed with spinach, onion, garlic, breadcrumbs, pancetta, prunes and chestnuts, then wrapped in pancetta and tied with string and browned in pan. Then roast for 40 mins.

With both of these I did all the work before they arrived. The pork was just in the oven when they arrived. I let it rest covered for half an hour or so. Served it w dauph potatoes ( which I did ahead and kept warm in a very low oven ) and greens which I did whilst they were there.

Friends brought a lemon meringue pud, but most puds I do are make ahead.

I'm sorry ... I posted this thread and disappeared into an evening of dinner, football, bathtimes and paperwork

Thanks so much for all the replies, ideas and recipes. I'm too exhausted to think straight now but shall have a proper read tomorrow when I'm feeling refreshed . I'm drooling though as I skim the thread!

DP once ordered it in a restaurant as a starter and made the stupid mistake of offering me a taste. It's diviiiiiiiiine

Yummy recipes on this thread.

I'd probably do something like a duck liver pate (this recipe is easy peasy) served with crusty bread, cornichons, olives etc to start.

Lamb shanks or Osso Bucco as a main, served with mash or polenta, and steamed veg like green beans.

Dessert would be a no-bake chocolate tart served with berries and creme fraiche.

I'm so sorry ladies ... I post a question and then disappear for nearly a week!

I think I'm going to do soup (can't do squash as I've had it at their house but something autumnual & comforting), pork fillet and pud to be decided.

Taffetacat please would you share your stuffing recipe if you see this and have time - it sounds delicious.

Thanks again everyone.

bump for taffetacat Pork Stuffing.. sounds gorgeous..

Maduggar the crumble sounds right up my street and perfect for my DP at weekend. Any chance of the recipe ?

thanks