Easy dinners when you have guests

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can’t say I would be too excited about eating baked ziti as a guest. And I enjoy pretty much anything.

+1

My heart would sink.

Depends- invite me to a dinner party and I would be disappointed. Invite me to hang out and you will serve dinner or just offer to feed me because I’m there at dinner time, then perfectly ok.

Same here. Depends on the context. Not a fan of baked pasta anything, but that’s just me.

If your goal is to dine on the meal of your choice, go to a restaurant.

Geez, people.

If someone is having me over for dinner, I’m there to visit with my friends, I really do not care what they are serving. I’ll happily have a scoop of baked ziti, it’s one less meal that I had to cook myself.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can’t say I would be too excited about eating baked ziti as a guest. And I enjoy pretty much anything.

+1

My heart would sink.

Really? You’re there for the company!

[Anonymous]

Chicken marbella

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Nyt has a sheet pan dinner w chicken, harissa, potatoes and arugula. Very easy, pretty and tasty. Good for entertaining bc you don’t have to supervise it.

Anonymous wrote:Nyt has a sheet pan dinner w chicken, harissa, potatoes and arugula. Very easy, pretty and tasty. Good for entertaining bc you don’t have to supervise it.

Yes! This recipe is from Melissa Clark and is also in her Dinner cookbook. This is actually my go-to dinner party meal. It is visually stunning served on a bed of arugula on a platter, and tastes very sophisticated for very little effort.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Nyt has a sheet pan dinner w chicken, harissa, potatoes and arugula. Very easy, pretty and tasty. Good for entertaining bc you don’t have to supervise it.

Yes! This recipe is from Melissa Clark and is also in her Dinner cookbook. This is actually my go-to dinner party meal. It is visually stunning served on a bed of arugula on a platter, and tastes very sophisticated for very little effort.

Here is the recipe. She has you sprinkle arugula on top, but I find it far more impressive to serve on a bed of arugula, as I mentioned.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nyt has a sheet pan dinner w chicken, harissa, potatoes and arugula. Very easy, pretty and tasty. Good for entertaining bc you don’t have to supervise it.

Yes! This recipe is from Melissa Clark and is also in her Dinner cookbook. This is actually my go-to dinner party meal. It is visually stunning served on a bed of arugula on a platter, and tastes very sophisticated for very little effort.

Here is the recipe. She has you sprinkle arugula on top, but I find it far more impressive to serve on a bed of arugula, as I mentioned.

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1017359-sheet-pan-chicken-with-potatoes-arugula-and-garlic-yogurt

(I promise I am much better at cooking than technology.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can’t say I would be too excited about eating baked ziti as a guest. And I enjoy pretty much anything.

+1

My heart would sink.

Depends- invite me to a dinner party and I would be disappointed. Invite me to hang out and you will serve dinner or just offer to feed me because I’m there at dinner time, then perfectly ok.

Same here. Depends on the context. Not a fan of baked pasta anything, but that’s just me.

If your goal is to dine on the meal of your choice, go to a restaurant.

Geez, people.

If someone is having me over for dinner, I’m there to visit with my friends, I really do not care what they are serving. I’ll happily have a scoop of baked ziti, it’s one less meal that I had to cook myself.

Exactly! I'm there to hang out and enjoy my friends' company. If I want a gourmet meal, I'll go to a restaurant.

[Anonymous]

I honestly do not care. I am whenever someone cooks for me. You could make me a pb&j and I would be pleased.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nyt has a sheet pan dinner w chicken, harissa, potatoes and arugula. Very easy, pretty and tasty. Good for entertaining bc you don’t have to supervise it.

Yes! This recipe is from Melissa Clark and is also in her Dinner cookbook. This is actually my go-to dinner party meal. It is visually stunning served on a bed of arugula on a platter, and tastes very sophisticated for very little effort.

Here is the recipe. She has you sprinkle arugula on top, but I find it far more impressive to serve on a bed of arugula, as I mentioned.

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1017359-sheet-pan-chicken-with-potatoes-arugula-and-garlic-yogurt

(I promise I am much better at cooking than technology.)

Thanks but it is behind a pay wall.

[Anonymous]

For warm weather entertaining:

- set out a nice cheese/cracker/grapes platter for pre-dinner
-make a batch of sangria and chill some beer and wine

-Buy a big salad kit from Costco- toss just before serving
-Grill a couple of cut up chickens and have a couple of different sauces for them- bbq, tzaziki
-make a tortellini salad ahead of time

All above easy and can be done ahead of time (except the chicken but that's easy to grill and hang with guests)

serve ice cream sandwiches after (store bought or homemade)

[Anonymous]

I would never serve pasta to a large group unless it was teenagers before their game, never adults. Most adults I know, men and women, would not eat much of it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:NYT chicken shawarma. I serve with a tomato, basil, red onion salad and flat bread to make a wrap. I also add a little green chutney to yogurt for an easy sauce, but it's not necessary.

Dessert can be pretty much whatever you like. Including store-bought baklava or some berries, lemon juice, and sugar baked into a pre-made pie crust.

+1 on NYT chicken shawarma. I make it on a sheet pan and serve it with a salad of romaine, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers and feta with lemon juice and olive oil and then pita bread that I heat up in a dry skillet and cut into triangle pieces. Yum, easy, can do a lot of it ahead.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would never serve pasta to a large group unless it was teenagers before their game, never adults. Most adults I know, men and women, would not eat much of it.

What? I want to know more about you and the adults you hang out with. Are you all super thin? Rich? How old? What do you mostly eat for dinner? Do you eat cake and oookies? I’m fascinated.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would never serve pasta to a large group unless it was teenagers before their game, never adults. Most adults I know, men and women, would not eat much of it.

They can eat salad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would never serve pasta to a large group unless it was teenagers before their game, never adults. Most adults I know, men and women, would not eat much of it.

What? I want to know more about you and the adults you hang out with. Are you all super thin? Rich? How old? What do you mostly eat for dinner? Do you eat cake and oookies? I’m fascinated.

+1. When did pasta become so unfashionable?