Any suggestions for what I can cook for a last minute 9 person dinner party!!?!


Question: My boyfriends entire family is coming for dinner tomorrow night and I am stumped about what to make. I am a good cook, but do not want to be in the kitchen all night. Does anyone have any thoughts of something yummy but not overwhelming when the guests arrive???


Answers: My boyfriends entire family is coming for dinner tomorrow night and I am stumped about what to make. I am a good cook, but do not want to be in the kitchen all night. Does anyone have any thoughts of something yummy but not overwhelming when the guests arrive???

The great thing with all of these is that you can just adjust the amounts of meat upwards a bit, and everything else as well to match, and make enormous mounds of mashed or roasted potatoes to go with - looks beautiful and feeds everyone. If you make enough, no one will want anything more than coffee and chocolates to follow.

Lamb Shanks With Olives & Preserved Lemon
*you could make this with regular lemon, not the same flavour but still good
Serves 8
Prep 30 mins
Cook 2 hrs

Ingredients
100ml olive oil
25g butter
8 small lamb shanks
2 large onions , coarsely chopped
4 garlic cloves , finely chopped
2 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp ground cumin
good pinch saffron
800ml lamb stock, chicken stock or water
2 small or 1 large preserved lemon
200g green olives , drained and rinsed
2 tbsp (approx) flat-leaf parsley and coriander

Method
Heat the oven to 160C/fan 140C/gas 3. Heat the olive oil and butter in a large casserole or frying pan and brown the lamb on all sides. Remove and set aside. Add the onions to the pan and cook for a minute, then add the garlic, spices and season (go easy on the salt as the preserved lemons might make it salty later on) and cook for another minute.
Transfer the onions, garlic, spices and browned lamb shanks to a large roasting tin. Pour over the stock or water. Cover with foil and cook in the oven for 1 3/4 hours, stirring from time to time and turning the shanks over.
Cut the lemons in half, scoop out the flesh with a spoon and discard, cut the rind into shreds. Add the olives and the lemon to the dish. Remove the foil and cook for another 15 minutes. The lamb should be meltingly tender and coming away from the bone. If there is a lot of juice, remove the shanks from the roasting tin and put the tin over a high heat and simmer for 5 minutes or until the juices have reduced by half. Season. Add the herbs and serve.

Note:
Preserved lemons
Look for Belazu preserved lemons (in Waitrose, Sainsbury's and some delis), which are quite small. If you're using your own homemade preserved lemons or larger bought ones, you'll only need one.
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Slow-cooked pork ribs with a Maillard crust
Serves 6 - 8
Prep 30 mins
Cook 3 hrs 15 mins
30 minutes + marinating + 3? hours in the oven

Ingredients
8 bay leaves
2 thumb-sized pieces of root ginger
15 garlic cloves , or as much as you can handle
150ml olive oil
3kg pork belly (complete with skin and bones), ask your butcher to score it for you

Method
Combine all the ingredients (apart from the pork) in either a food processor or a pestle and mortar, then rub them well into the skin of the pork belly . Leave it somewhere cool to marinate for as long as you can bear (between 1 hour and 2 days).
Preheat your oven to 110C/fan 90C/gas 1/4 or as low as it will go. Roast the pork for 3 hours. Check to make sure it's not pink. If it is, give it a bit longer.
Lastly, for your Maillard reaction, whack the oven up to 240C/fan 220C/gas 9 or as high as it will go and roast for 10-15 minutes or until crisp.
Let the belly rest but not for more than 10 minutes, then serve with roasted potatoes

Notes
Know-how
This has the unctuousness that comes from slow cooking a quite fatty hunk of pork but also the heady deliciousness, courtesy of the Maillard reaction. As it's a relatively cheap cut of meat it's a legit opportunity to buy the biggest piece you can fit in your oven, from the most expensive rare breed you can find. Add star anise and cardamom if you have some knocking around.
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Pot-roasted brisket in beer with parsnips & mushrooms
Serves 6 - 8
Prep 25 35 mins
Cook 2 hrs 15 mins 3 hrs

Ingredients
1-1.25kg/2.25-2.75lb boned and rolled brisket
5 tbsp vegetable oil
large knob of butter
2 large onions , halved and sliced
2-3 celery sticks, finely chopped
2 carrots , sliced
200-250g/8-9oz large flat mushrooms , stalks chopped and heads thinly sliced
500-550ml bottle brown ale or stout
a few fresh thyme sprigs
2 bay leaves
1-2 tsp light muscovado sugar
500g parsnips , cut into wedges
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
chopped fresh parsley or thyme , to serve

Method
Preheat the oven to 190C/Gas 5/fan oven 170C. Wash and dry brisket and season. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a deep casserole and brown beef all over. Remove from pan. Turn down heat, add butter and fry the onions, celery, carrots and mushroom stalks for 6-8 minutes.
Return beef to pan and add beer, thyme, bay leaves and sugar. Add water if necessary so the liquid comes about two-thirds up the beef. Season, bring to a simmer, cover tightly, and cook in the oven for 20 minutes. Reduce heat to 160C/Gas 3/fan oven 140C and cook for 2 hours, turning twice, until tender.
An hour before the beef is done, toss the parsnips in oil, season and roast on a baking tray above the beef for 50 minutes-1 hour until tender, turning once.
Turn oven up to 190C/Gas 5/fan oven 170C. Lift out the beef, tent with foil and keep warm. Stir the parsnips and mushroom caps into the beef juices. Check seasoning; add water if needed. Cover and cook in the oven for 20-25 minutes until mushrooms are tender.
To serve, use a slotted spoon to remove vegetables and arrange round the beef. Spoon off the excess fat from the juices, then whisk in the mustard and pour into a jug. Moisten the beef with a little juice and scatter with parsley or thyme.

Go to KFC and buy the large family size of chicken and sides. Put it in oyur own platters and bowls. Looks like you spent alot of time on it.

fajitas!

Well, I don't know what you or your guests like to eat so I'm not sure what to recommend. However, there are lots of good entertaining suggestions at this website:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/entertai...

You can find entire menus, most recipes are reviewed, rated for difficulty, etc. Good luck.

A big pot of spagetti with a salad (made ahead) and garlic toast. Or a crock pot of chili. Put assorted toppins out and everyone fixes their own.

heck with it go KFC

Lasanga?

I would do a buffet style dinner. you can do alot with crock pots, meatballs, sweet and sour kilbasa are really easy to do and you don't have to stand over them. I married into a very large family and have dinner partys alot, I make finger sandwiches and do meatballs and kilbasa ,cold cut platter, veggie platter, salad, and sometimes a lasagna. When its time for people to arrive your food is ready and you can enjoy visiting them instead of cooking. If you get the crock pot bags clean up is a cinch, pull out the bag and throw it away. No sticky mess. good luck with your party!!

Go to the deli section of your grocery store. They have roasted chicken and side dishes. Their bakery will have cakes and pies and other goodies.

Most meat markets will pre-cook foods too such as a nice big ham or prime rib roast.

But if you want to cook from scratch, here are crock pot recipes:

Beef Recipes in Crock Pot (see other types of meats at the very bottom of this link):
http://www.razzledazzlerecipes.com/beef-...
.
Chicken Recipes in Crock Pot:
http://www.razzledazzlerecipes.com/chick...
.
Scroll way down this link for more chicken recipes:
http://www.worldfamousrecipes.com/crock-...
.
http://southernfood.about.com/library/cr...
.
http://www.anniesrecipes.com/Kitchen/cro...

This serves 6-8
Chicken Scaloppini
Recipe courtesy Paula Deen




Oil, for sauteing chicken
2 tablespoons butter, for sauteing chicken
3 to 5 chicken breasts, (3 ounces each) pounded thin
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, seasoned with salt and pepper, for dredging
1/4 cup diced pancetta, cooked
12 ounces mushrooms, sliced
12 ounces artichoke hearts, sliced
1 tablespoon capers
Lemon Butter Sauce, recipe follows
1 pound linguini pasta, cooked


Heat a small amount of oil and 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet. Dredge chicken in seasoned flour and saute in pan, turning once, until brown and cooked through. Remove chicken from pan. Add remaining ingredients, up to and including the capers, to the pan. Heat until mushrooms soften and are cooked. Add chicken back to pan to reheat and make Lemon Butter sauce.


Lemon Butter Sauce:
3 tablespoons lemon juice
4 ounces white wine
4 ounces heavy cream
1 pound (4 sticks) butter
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Chopped parsley leaves, for garnish



Heat the lemon juice and white wine in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil and reduce by one-third. Add cream and simmer until mixture thickens, about 3 to 4 minutes.
Slowly add butter, about 2 tablespoons at a time, until completely incorporated, whisking constantly. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat and keep warm.

To serve: Place cooked pasta on each plate. Add half of butter sauce to chicken mixture and toss. Place chicken mixture over pasta. Add more sauce on top of each piece. Garnish with parsley.

All of the options can be made in advance.

Option 1: Make an italian dinner - Baked Ziti, Salad with olives, cheese artichoke hearts, roasted pepper and parmesan cheese, crusty garlic bread.

Option 2: Make enchiladas, Corn Bread, Red beans w/ rice - Fried icecream for dessert - (balls of icecream rolled in cornflake crumbs and brown sugar)

Option 3: Marinate a large london broil and make double stuffed potatoes, salad or vegetable side. Bake a cake for dessert.

Good luck... Nice of you to cook for your boyfriends family!

roast a chicken, boil a ham. or slow roast a shoulder of lamb i had it last sunday yummy. ok baking dis rosmary and garlic cloves unwrapped just smash the garlic put them bottom dish. rub awee bit of olive oil and s&p over lamb. put more garlic and rosmary over lamb loads you really wont taste garlic. put two pices of foil covered tightly. set lower part of over. oh first put oven the highest it will go for 10mins without the lamb thats just to preheat oven. then put lamb in and 4 hours at 170c fan oven later take out and sit for 20mins. it just falls apart can take of with two forks. soooooooo tender lovely with roast potatoes and mash potatoes and veg and take a tablespoon of the juice of the lamb, add 1pint of chicken stock, s&p and fresh mint cut up and 1 tablespoon of flour. its warm mint sauce and dont worry it is running like water just to go over the meat. you could also heat a few yorkshore pubs take 4-6mins at 200c fan oven. swear so easy and just take about 3-4 mins to prepare lamb leave for 4 hours dont touch then its yummy. Good luck if all fails order out or simple bake potatoes with tuna steak and sauce. make up with a yummy shop baought desert.

make a soup called pozole it has various toppings and it is very cheap and easy to make. try to google pozole for the recipe
http://www.traveljournals.net/stories/15...

You could make a big pot of soup and have a sandwich bar with sandwich fixings where people could make their own... if you have a panini grill, everyone could make their own paninis to go with the soup.

You could also do pizzas... get the dough that is available in the store... set out the toppings and everyone could make their own individual pizzas. Serve with salad.

Spaghetti (or baked spaghetti) is also easy to make for a crowd and serve with salad, garlic bread.

If you want to make a good impression don't buy something premade.
Easy things to make
Spaghetti with a salad and garlic bread
Lasagna
Baked chicken with potatoes and veggies or rice and veggies
Steak
Chicken alfrado with veggies
Fried chicken mashed potatoes
Chili with italian bread and butter
Chicken noodle soup grilled cheese
veggie soup
Hamburgers with potatoe salad cole slaw egg salad potatoe chips corn on the cob
Hot dogs
Pot Roast
Pork Chops

Ice cream
*Cake
cookies (theese can be bought from bakery though try for the more elegant ones)*
Brownies

go to www.cooks.com

type in : April's Louisiana Chicken Spaghetti

that makes a bunch and it's fairly "cheap"/ "inexpensive"

I make it for my sister's family of 5 and myself 3 when we cook supper together and it's my turn.

Make one fairly large package of spaghetti and it will be enough for sure!!

chili

Bread, cheese, olives.
Premake a nice salad.
Seafood and Pasta are always very fast, and impress.Maybe with a tomato cream sauce(Vodka sauce, aurora sauce) and some capers or asparagus, red bells, or peas whatever you enjoy.Then fresh fruit and whipped cream(i like blackberries and peaches; if you can whip the cream by hand people think its amazing, but its easy.





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