Does this sound like a nice menu?

[drumandthebass]

Friends coming for dinner on Friday and am really struggling for ideas, so what do you think to this?

Starter: Warm salad consisting of roasted butternut squash with fried pancetta and garlic topped with crumbled blue cheese and pumpkin seeds

Main: Can't decide but possibly Moroccan chicken dish with couscous or chicken and pomegranate stew

Dessert: Pear and chocolate tart

Opinions please and suggestions for the main course would be most welcome

Sounds good to me - can I come?

I would prefer pear tart or chocolate tart because I don't like chocolate and fruit combinations. Of course I would eat it out of politeness as a guest.

The other things sound nice.

I'd be really happy to eat that! Lovely menu.

Admittedly the starter sounds lovely except the blue cheese. It's quite a love / hate ingredient I think so potentially risky. I personally don't like it as I find it incredibly overpowering. A favourite salad of mine is burrata or mozzarella, figs, crispy prosciutto (I either do it in the air fryer or under the grill but wow wow wow it's incredible), mixed leaves, some basil (or any fresh herbs work) olive oil and balsamic glaze (not oil, make sure it's glaze)

Also couscous would never be my choice on a menu. There's an AMAZING baked tomato and garlic rice by Ottolenghi (you can google it and find it quite easily or if you can't see it I'll send it over) which is always my go to for dinner parties, I normally do it with salmon or seabass but you can really do any protein with it.

Dessert sounds great.

Sounds lovely!

this is a nice Moroccan one

NYT Cooking: Chicken Tagine With Olives and Preserved Lemons

cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/6555-chicken-tagine-with-olives-and-preserved-lemons?utm_source=sharetools&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=website

Sounds great, what time do you want us?

That all sounds delicious, I'd be thrilled to go to a friend for dinner and be served that menu!

Thanks all. I might change the cheese to parmesan or pecorino instead, or maybe feta.

I might also swap the couscous for spiced rice instead.

Thank you for the recipes suggestions also

I think it sounds lovely although I would leave what ever cheese you pick on the side and let people sprinkle it to their liking.

@drumandthebass I would swap the blue cheese for sage and keep the couscous.
It sounds a lovely menu

Noooo, keep the blue cheese! It works perfectly with butternut squash.