ina garten provides great dinner party course meals in her book. The starter, main course, and dessert.

Anonymous wrote:Go on Hello Fresh and pick from their menu. They’ll ship it with everything you need. I’ve started using them and the meals are awesome. Tons of choices. Excellent quality. If I were having a dinner party I would just order and cook something off their menu.

I wouldn’t rely on Hello Fresh for a dinner party. We’ve had several weeks where the shipment arrived days late and had to be tossed. And their menus lately have been very “meh.”

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Bumping this topic- similar situation, 8 people total, we CAN serve dairy. One vegetarian, but she says don’t change the menu for her.

Other ideas for a big dinner party? What would you make in this scenario?

Pasta, with sausages or meatballs on side.

Screams "I'm cheap" ^^

And messy. Who wants to deal with drippy noodles and marinara.

Anonymous wrote:Bumping this topic- similar situation, 8 people total, we CAN serve dairy. One vegetarian, but she says don’t change the menu for her.

Other ideas for a big dinner party? What would you make in this scenario?

The Op write this in the beginning of Jan.

Can't you start a new thread? How formal? Apps, wine pairing too? Kids involved?

Anonymous wrote:Bumping this topic- similar situation, 8 people total, we CAN serve dairy. One vegetarian, but she says don’t change the menu for her.

Other ideas for a big dinner party? What would you make in this scenario?

Pasta, with sausages or meatballs on side.

Fajitas
Middle eastern
Pasta/sauce/salad/garlic bread/meatballs on the side/primavera sauce as an option

Bumping this topic- similar situation, 8 people total, we CAN serve dairy. One vegetarian, but she says don’t change the menu for her.

Other ideas for a big dinner party? What would you make in this scenario?

what did you end up going with, OP?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Oven baked salmon is super easy. Vegetarian sides like asparagus roasted potatoes or Brussels sprouts. Plus something like lentils or a hearty pasta that could be good for the vegetarian.

Smelly.

Weird, this has never been smelly when we made it and I'm one of those people who is sensitive to smells. Maybe its because the prep is already done. I can't touch a raw fish that looks like a fish so we've never made salmon without using the frozen Costco marinated ones in the packets.

Fish is good for brain development and low calorie which is what people want in the new year. The PP who thinks it’s smelly ought to try it sometime so he doesn’t react to fish like a kindergartner.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would do a Middle Eastern selection of homemade mezze (eggplant salad, hummus, tehina, spicy pepper salad), roast lamb, maklouba or mejudderah, roasted squash halves filled with bulgur, onions, and pine nuts for the vegetarians, maybe brussel sprouts with pomegranate molasses.

Or Italian antipasti of pickled vegetables, olive tapenade, pesto with parsley, garlic, almonds; beet gnocchi with balsamic/beet greens; roast chicken with olives and oranges; Farro with mushrooms; roast salmon with crispy capers and garlic.

Middle eastern is always a hit when I do it. I make shawarma and a vegetarian version with paneer (wouldn't work if the vegetarian also has the dairy issue), but you can buy most of the stuff that PP mentions ready-made. I would add falafel and some kind of pita or wrap.

Me again. I revise my last statement. I have actually made the NYT shawarma recipe with tofu, and it was a big hit. I always add more veggies (grape tomatoes, double the red onions from the recipe, eggplant, and colored bell peppers) to the sheet pan.

In case you don't have it, here's the recipe: https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1017161-oven-roasted-chicken-shawarma

Anonymous wrote:
Oven baked salmon is super easy. Vegetarian sides like asparagus roasted potatoes or Brussels sprouts. Plus something like lentils or a hearty pasta that could be good for the vegetarian.

Anonymous wrote:I would do a Middle Eastern selection of homemade mezze (eggplant salad, hummus, tehina, spicy pepper salad), roast lamb, maklouba or mejudderah, roasted squash halves filled with bulgur, onions, and pine nuts for the vegetarians, maybe brussel sprouts with pomegranate molasses.

Or Italian antipasti of pickled vegetables, olive tapenade, pesto with parsley, garlic, almonds; beet gnocchi with balsamic/beet greens; roast chicken with olives and oranges; Farro with mushrooms; roast salmon with crispy capers and garlic.

Middle eastern is always a hit when I do it. I make shawarma and a vegetarian version with paneer (wouldn't work if the vegetarian also has the dairy issue), but you can buy most of the stuff that PP mentions ready-made. I would add falafel and some kind of pita or wrap.

Anonymous wrote:Don’t invite me over and cater it. You need to cook a meal.

Interesting. I feel the complete opposite. If you can't even figure out a menu for a dinner party, please get some help. Don't invite me over for a sad home cooked meal of you can't cook.

Anonymous wrote:Oven baked salmon is super easy. Vegetarian sides like asparagus roasted potatoes or Brussels sprouts. Plus something like lentils or a hearty pasta that could be good for the vegetarian.

Smelly.

Anonymous wrote:Go on Hello Fresh and pick from their menu. They’ll ship it with everything you need. I’ve started using them and the meals are awesome. Tons of choices. Excellent quality. If I were having a dinner party I would just order and cook something off their menu.

This is actually not a bad idea. I found their meals were a lot more composed than what we need/want on a regular Tuesday night & as a result just a little on the expensive side, but they'd be perfect for company!