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Dinner party virgin - help me with my menu pls!

28 replies

Generallyok · 16/08/2017 10:07

I cook for family but feel nervous of cooking for anyone else. Have invited some a mum and dad from dd's school for a meal on Saturday. Now worried what to cook. Was thinking I would play safe and do chicken breasts stuffed with Mozzerella and wrapped in pancetta. Not sure what to serve with it? Also thought I would homemade brownies with berries and icecream for pud. Should I do a starter? If so please can you give me some suggestions.

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CaptainWarbeck · 16/08/2017 10:16

Sounds yummy!

You could do dips and olives and crackers for a picky starter.

And plenty of wine WineGrin

sashh · 16/08/2017 11:53

I'd do a make in advance starter, tomato salad is surprisingly nice and chicken liver pate is easy.

1 tub chicken livers, 1/2 block of butter, salt pepper and dried hebs you have and a dash of brandy.

Stick it all (except brandy) in a frying pan until livers are cooked, add brandy, cook 1 min more. Put the whole thing in a blender until smooth, pour out into individual ramekins or one larger holder. Don't worry that at this point it looks like the inside of a baby's nappy.

Chill for 2 hours serve with crusty bread.

RebornSlippy · 16/08/2017 11:56

Sides of choice, for me, with that chicken would be dauphinoise potatoes (also good as they can be cooking away or in advance) and a veg selection. Maybe some baby carrots/mange tout/corn, out of a packet, into the water for a few minutes. Done (as GR would say).

mumblechum0 · 16/08/2017 11:56

Agree with a cold starter which you can do in the morning, bung in the fridge and forget about. I often do a Thai noodle salad starter with prawns, grapefruit, chili etc.

Main course sounds ace. Again, to keep it easy, I'd buy some of those trays of ready cut veg from Waitrose which you just bung in the oven, as they give a little juice off at the end (more if you put a spoonful of olive oil in) and serve with couscous.

RebornSlippy · 16/08/2017 11:57

Also, you might need to think about some kind of sauce as it might be a bit dry. So, your options are a gravy type thing or a creamy sauce.

viques · 16/08/2017 12:02

With the chicken breast all you need are some green veg, beans and broccoli maybe , and baby potatoes roasted whole since you have the oven on anyway.

pudding, either go for your brownies which sound delicious or an English cheese board with some crackers and grapes. Three cheeses minimum, only one blue!

I would not do a starter , just drinks with olives , pistachios etc. Two courses is plenty.

sashh · 16/08/2017 12:23

For sides, I have done a carrot baton, a green bean and a sprig of sprouting broccoli tied up with a piece of spring onion - one per person - looks good on the plate. Tie them first then steam them.

Generallyok · 16/08/2017 13:27

Thank you all some fab ideas. Will run them past DH to see which idea he fancies. Feel more confident now.

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yorkshireyummymummy · 16/08/2017 18:22

I would do dauphinoise pots ( as previously suggested) as you should get a bit of ' wetness ' from them. Or, you could do some new potatoes and a cauliflower cheese- plenty of sauce then to help with the chicken. If this is your first dinner party I would just do some ' nibbles ' instead of a first course- olives, mini pretzels , and if you want to you could fry off some bits of chorizo- goes really well with a bubbly drink, or some halloumi. You could prepare a tray with everything set up and then just fry off chorizo in twomins. OR , since it's summer, it's nice to have some different breads. ( you can buy some of the freshly baked crusty buns and just slice them like a mini loaf) pour some nice extra virgin olive oil in a bowl and then add some nice balsamic , or if you have a decent deli nearby you should be able to get some lovely,thick fruit vinegar like raspberry, blackberry or cranberry. The vinegar is dark and sinks to the bottom. You push your bread into the oil so you sort of squash it into the vinegar and ittastes divine- peppery from the oil and sweet from the vinegar. Lovely if you are sat in the garden maybe witha bottle of fizz. I could list you twenty cold starters if you want, but since this is your first party you just want to get it right! The main thing to remember is that people come to see you and even if your food is a disaster ( which I'm sure it won't be) just give them loads to drink and it will be fine! I would put some herbs into the chicken breast. Mozzarella has very little flavour , and very little fat compared to other cheese so it won't be basting from the inside. Great that you have chose pancetta to wrap it in- best choice you can make. You will enjoy it when you start cooking!! Let us know how it went!!

AtleastitsnotMonday · 16/08/2017 19:53

I agree with pp's about risk of it all being a bit dry. I'd just make sure your sides are saucy, A really garlicky ratatouille would be good.

cdtaylornats · 16/08/2017 23:12

I trust you have checked that they have no allergies, are not vegan/vegetarian/raw food, tee totallers?

IfYouGoDownToTheWoodsToday · 16/08/2017 23:19

Do people seriously go to a dinner party and ask to be accommodated with "raw food"? Shock would an Apple do?

Op your meal sounds lovely. Do not do a starter, it's not necessary.

Yika · 16/08/2017 23:27

Dauphinoise would be too complicated for me. I would do plain oven roast potatoes or wedges (unpeeled, maybe whole), maybe with a bit of rosemary or thyme.

A nice green salad prepared ahead of time.

Wouldn't do a starter either - maybe a dip. Personally I would buy a nice pate rather than make it.

Pud sounds nice.

Enjoy.

AdaColeman · 16/08/2017 23:56

I wouldn't do a starter, keep it casual with some nibbles, olives which you could dress up with a little olive oil, crushed garlic and some herbs - do that during the afternoon so it can marinate. Cubes of cheese with celery salt. Thin slices of salami. Perhaps cubes of frittata. Put out some cocktail sticks too!

With your main course I'd do Greek style cubed roast herby potatoes, they will cook in the oven with the chicken and timing isn't critical for them, so less for you to worry about.
I'd keep it summery and serve with a simple salad, you can prepare it before hand and add the dressing immediately before serving, again one less thing to worry about, no over cooked veg for you.

Have a lovely night and enjoy your dinner party! Wine Wine

foodiefil · 17/08/2017 00:10

Aldi do a lovely dauphinois that no one would guess was from a packet if you emptied it into your own dish and grated a bit more Parmesan on ... whistles ... inbetween cheeses and the garlic bread bit

Green beans. Microwave for 3 mins then in a pan with butter, garlic, sea salt and black pepper. Mmm

Generallyok · 17/08/2017 08:10

Thanks so much everyone. I am now feeling a bit nervous as it does sound a bit dry. I'm not sure I'm up dauphinois pots so was going to do roast baby pots. If I did I complete u turn can anyone recommend a one pot slow cook that doesn't have mushrooms as one guest doesn't like.

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Roussette · 17/08/2017 08:15

Your menu sounds lovely, don't change it!

The chicken will give out some juice and you could just have buttered new pots.

AdaColeman · 17/08/2017 11:25

Stay with your original menu, if you feel it's a little dry perhaps make some herb or garlic butter and pop a slice on each piece of chicken when serving. Or put out little dishes of bought Caesar salad dressing and mayonnaise.

Pomegranatemolasses · 17/08/2017 12:52

Why not roast some cherry tomatoes on the vine, along side the chicken. this would provide the 'sauce ' element. Also looks really elegant if you serve a truss of tomatoes for each person.

Serve with a simple rocket salad and baby roast potatoes. Simple and delicious.

Pomegranatemolasses · 17/08/2017 14:46

You could also buy some good quality pesto to drizzle over the chicken.

Oogle · 17/08/2017 15:04

I'd do a starter personally.

This is really yummy www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/711660/marinated-beetroot-with-grilled-goats-cheese and I'd drizzle with balsamic.

One of my friends hosts 5 or 6 dinner parties a month and her "go to" starter when there are 10 or more is smoked salmon & prawns with tartare. Looks great, tastes great, is light and easy to make ahead.

Main sounds great. I would serve with roasted new potatoes and salad. Rocket leaves, roasted vine tomatoes, strips of cucumber. Make a dressing (decant from bought bottle in to little bowl) and allow guests to help themselves.

Brownies sound amazing!

yorkshireyummymummy · 17/08/2017 15:11

Generally ok - I think your original menu sounded great and I can and will happily give you a few ideas for a one pot dish, I think it's not as 'summery' as your original idea.
So, here's how to do a really easy potato dish.
Peel some ' old' potatoes, like white, red skin, Maris piper, Desiree.
Cut them into slices. The easiest way to do this is to cur a slice from the long side of a potato then use that flat side as the bottom so the potato does nit move while you slice it. Slice it into thinishh slices, about 2-4 mm thick. Put these slices in a bowl of cold water and leave them for an hour. So, after an hour or so drain the pots and rinse them. Get a good sized non metallic dish and rub some butter round it and a bit of garlic. I buy garlic paste from tesco ( Gia garlic paste, from Italy) and I rub a couple of cm round the dish. If you use fresh garlic just cut a Clove in half and rub it round the dish. Now start layering your potties. Remember, the only ones anyone will see are the ones in the top so you don't need to be prescise. I just throw a third of the pots in, and season them well. Use more salt and pepper ( white pepper if you have it, but black is fine) than you would think. Dab a teaspoon ful of butter over the pots. Do the next layers he same and the next and keep a nice potato,or two for the top. This is where you put them in lines if you want it to look cheffy. I often just throw those on two- I like rustic! Now, this is where you decide if you want potatoes that taste divine but have about fifty hundred calories per mouthful. If you do, mix a pot ( I'm being ambiguous with quantities and I'm unsure how many you are cooking for. It's it's 4 I would use a 300ml pit, if it's 6 plus I would use a 600ml pot) of double cream with a small amount of milk to ' slacken it' now pour the cream all over the potatoes, gently shaking the dish to make sure cream goes in all the gaps. Now, if you want to make this dish lighter and less calorie packed you can do this - instead of using double cream you can use stock - chicken or veg. I just use the knorr stock pots and I would use two. I then mix the stock with about 100ml of milk which makes its a but creamy. Dauphinoise potatoes are cooked in cream and you don't add cheese. Boulanger potatoes use all stock. I find dauphinoise delicious and rich but just too calorific to eat regularly so I use the stock with a bit of milk much more regularly.( Goes deliciously with lamb!). Now, make sure that your cream/ stock mixture comes up to nearly the top of the potatoes. Cover with foil, put in oven ( 160c) for about 60- 90 mins ( depends on size of dish, how many servings ). take out of oven, poke a knif in the middle and it should slide in like butter. If it doesn't then pop them back in. When they are cooked, take the foil off, turn oven To 180 and put back in to give the top some colour. You could cook the chicken at the same time. Take the potatoes out when the top is golden and - this is important - leave them to sit For ten mins with the foil/ clean tea towel over the top. You can cook them in advance- even the day before- and just cover and reheat. It doesn't really affect them. I would serve the potatoes with the stuffed chicken wrapped in pancetta with a green veg/ salad and I really like pomegranates idea of the cherry toms on the vine. You can finish the pots/ reheat at the same time as cooking the chicken and the just spray the tomatoes with olive oil and pop them in the oven for the last ten mins. My mouth is watering!!! Seriously , this is a great dish to serve and it would work very well together at this time of year. Don't forget to season your chicken under the skin of you leave it on or inside where your stuffing is going, trust me, seasoning makes or breaks a meal. You will be fine. You can cook the pots during the day at your lesisure, stuff the chicken and wrap it in the morning ( take it out of the fridge 40 mins before cooking, this ensures that it's at room temp when you put it in the oven. If you put meat at fridge temp in the oven it's easy to have the outside dry before the inside is up to temp). Prep the veg/ salad and out in plastic bags in the fridge until you are ready to cook/ serve it. Stay calm and if it helps, write down a time plan or list of steps to getting everything on the table and tick off. Then you won't worry you have forgotten anything. Good luck, let us know how it goes!!

Generallyok · 20/08/2017 00:14

Hi thanks so much for all your advice. I so wish I could have done your potatoes Yorkshire but I was so worried they would turn out wrong and didn't have enough time to practice. I did new roast pots with some roasted med veg but it was a little dry Blush I feel quite gutted that I didn't produce a wow meal- I had clean plates all round but worry that it was out of politeness. I am worn out now - I think it will be a while until I do a dinner party again!

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Roussette · 20/08/2017 07:31

I bet it was delicious and you're imagining that it wasn't wow - clean plates all round counts!

Oncewaswho · 20/08/2017 08:10

I bet it was lovely, I don't like dauphinoise potatoes at all, new potatoes roasted would have been delicious.