Dinner party ideas where I can prep ahead

[Anonymous]

We have dinner parties with friends often, and I am running out of ideas. I’d prefer something that I could prep 70% ahead of time, and have to do minimal work when our guests are actually over (think chicken piccata, cooking chicken ahead of party and leaving the sauce and the noodles when the guests arrive).

[Anonymous]

Cioppino? Make the soup base and prep the seafood in advance.

[Anonymous]

I love Ina Garten's "Make it Ahead" cookbook as I love to entertain but don't like to cook when entertaining. Google some of her make ahead recipes.

Generally pieces of meat that I can roast in a relatively short period of time (pork tenderloin), roasted vegetables, etc. I did a chicken marbella of hers that was really good.

[Anonymous]

Lasagna
Chana or tikka masala (can be prepped in advance), have rice in the rice cooker, roast asparagus right before dinner, serve with naan

Are these gatherings formal or informal?

[Anonymous]

Lasagna or an over baked chicken dish like feta and spinach stuffed chicken.

[Anonymous]

+1 for Ina Garten Make it Ahead

[Anonymous]

air fried brussel sprouts. Steam and slice them ahead of time and freeze them. Throw them in the air fryer for 10 minutes before serving

[Anonymous]

London broil and shrimp kebabs w Caesar salad. The meats take minutes to cook.

[Anonymous]

Beef bourguignon
Coq au vin
BBQ chicken or taco meat in slow cooker for more casual

[Anonymous]

Jambalaya or a gumbo which is always better on day 2. Andouille in during cook. For dinner party, cook fresh rice, and warm up the jambalaya or gumbo adding a bit of broth and the shrimp to barely cooked.

[Anonymous]

Huge antipasto tray - set out 30 minutes before eating.

Prepare garlic break and wrap in foil before popping in oven.

Cook fresh pasta (5 minutes) while guests wait, strain, and top with whatever sauce you warmed while it was cooking. Lately I'm into pink sauce (pureed roasted tomatoes/garlic/onion/redpepper/salt/pepper/olive oil/a little balsamic/basil/oregano/lemon zest/crushed red pepper/cream cheese and cream...top with parm and basil).

[Anonymous]

My go-to dinner party menu is spinach and mascarpone stuffed salmon with lemon orzo and steamed asparagus.

I stuff the salmon filets in advance and keep on the baking tray in the fridge. Prep a pot of water next to the measured orzo and lemon juice. Prep the asparagus in a covered pan with water.

The only "cooking" that has to be done is putting the salmon in the oven, boiling/draining the pasta and steaming the asparagus.

[Anonymous]

Greek food is great for make-ahead. Pastitsio or Moussaka, Spanakopita, Roast Chicken or lamb with lemon potatoes, Giouvetsi, Eggplant "papoutsakia", Fish "plaki". All of these can be assembled ahead of time and then popped in the oven before your guests arrive. Many of them also benefit from sitting out to cool a bit before serving, so you can plan to have them be finished baking when your guests arrive so that they can sit out and rest while you and your guests have a before dinner drink or appetizer.

[Anonymous]

It depends what kind of food you want to serve. NYT has a few great tomato/vodka sauces which are simple and mostly require passive simmering time. You could absolutely make the sauce in advance and cook pasta at the last minute.

I also like roasting vegetables in advance and then I simply reheat them. I like doing platters with roasted asparagus, peppers, onions, sweet potatoes. Or I prep a big salad with roasted peppers, sometimes roasted squash and zucchini (whatever I’m feeling like) goat cheese and sugared nuts (I make these in advance and keep them in hand)

I also like shakshuka for dinner—that’s great for prepping ahead and then
you can add the eggs at the last minute. Melissa Clark has a good recipe. I add beans and greens to mine to give it a little bit more. You can serve it with a green salad or with roasted vegetables, hummus and bread. I love mopping up the tomato sauce with good bread. There’s an Italian place near me that makes amazing homemade bread (they bring it to the table when you dine in). I go every week or so and get ten pieces of the bread and freeze it then I just heat it up to serve with dinner and you have amazing hot fresh homemade bread.