I need an easy to make dinner for a party of 10.?!
I need an easy to make dinner for a party of 10.?
My husband invited some people over for dinner and then his parents called to say that they'd like to come to town to visit. I realize there is some inconsiderate behavior of those involved, but it's not time to gripe!
Besides getting my house clean, getting the spare bedroom made up, and planning and preparing for Easter, I now need to make dinner for a group of 10 (8 adults, 2 children). Any ideas?
3 months ago
I live in the middle of nowhere Nevada, so we don't have any of those pre-made dinner places unless you count deli at the supermarket.
Answers:
3 months ago
I live in the middle of nowhere Nevada, so we don't have any of those pre-made dinner places unless you count deli at the supermarket.
First focus on cleaning up the house as when the guests walk in the door, a clean house will make a great impression. Dont worry about dolling the bedroom up too much, at this time simplicity and bare neccesities will do!
Now, for the meal... When you cook, try to make it look like you've done alot when you actually havent. Instead of cooking the items (chicken etc) in a pot, rather bake them in the oven. This brings out the flavour of the food and doesnt require you to do much. Mixed vegetables are God-sent... use them! Buy the packet from your local supermarket and steam them, it will look like you made such a big effort! Mashed Potatoes are also easy and delicious. For dessert, instead of a cake, throw together a simple strawberry and cream, or a jelly and custard.
If all else fails, but take aways from a restaurant, make it look like your own and burn the cartons!! Good Luck, hope u impress them all!
hamburger helper........................... that dosent work then take out
Can you order pre-sliced pre-cooked ham and turkey breast, or perhaps a lasagna? It can cost a bit more, but you might be able to find a local place that makes home cooked fmaily dinners. If it were me, I'd make one of my paellas and a salad and be done with it. (Dessert from the bakery.)
For a large group make up spaghetti and meatballs with a lettuce salad and french bread. The longer the spaghetti sauce cooks the better it tastes. Get some pre-made meatballs and throw into the sauce the last hour and a half before dinner. The only real last minute thing to do is cook up the spaghetti noodles. Don't forget Parmesan cheese for garnishing at table. You can even make the sauce and meatballs up a few days ahead and keep frozen until you need it.
You are very lucky to have family and friends to join you.
Are you Australian?
If I have a group of people coming over, Its Barbie time. Make a potato bake, fried rice, toss salad, fresh bread rolls & corn wrapped in foil. You can also buy all of this in the deli department. Marinate meat & sausages, if it is on good friday, have seafood, eg; prawns, fish wrapped with lemon,butter and seasoning.
And pick up a nice desert or just serve fruit.
well beef and cheese manicotti is pretty good. though i like mozzerella cheese better than american cheese, you can always substitute
BEEF AND CHEESE MANICOTTI
>
> 4 teaspoons olive oil
> 1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
> 1 pound ground beef
> Salt and freshly ground black pepper
> 14 (8-ounce package) manicotti
> 1 (15-ounce) container whole-milk ricotta
> 3 cups shredded mozzarella
> 1 cup grated Parmesan
> 2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
> 2 garlic cloves, minced
> 3 cups marinara sauce
> 2 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces
>
> Heat a heavy medium skillet over medium heat. Add 1 teaspoon of the olive
> oil, onion and ground beef. Season with salt and pepper. Saute until the
> meat browns and the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Remove from the
> heat, and cool.
>
> Brush 1 teaspoon of oil over a large baking sheet. Cook the manicotti in a
> large pot of boiling salted water until slightly softened, but still very
> firm to the bite, about 4 to 6 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the
> manicotti from the pot to the oiled baking sheet and cool.
> Meanwhile, combine the ricotta, 1 1/2 to 2 cups mozzarella cheese, 1/2 cup
> Parmesan, and parsley. Add the garlic, salt, and pepper to taste, and mix.
> Stir the cooled meat mixture into the cheese mixture.
>
> Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
>
> Brush the remaining 2 teaspoons of oil over a 13 by 9 by 2-inch glass baking
> dish. Spoon 1 1/2 cups of the marinara sauce over the bottom of the prepared
> dish. Fill the manicotti with the cheese-meat mixture. Arrange the stuffed
> pasta in a single layer in the prepared dish and spoon the remaining sauce
> over.
>
> Sprinkle the remaining 1 1/2 cups of mozzarella cheese, then the remaining
> 1/2 cup of Parmesan over the stuffed pasta. Dot entire dish with the butter
> pieces. Bake the manicotti uncovered until heated through and the sauce
> bubbles on the sides of the dish, about 30 to 35 minutes. Let the manicotti
> stand 5 minutes and serve.
In this situation I would look to an outside source for dinner - heavenly ham or boston markets each does a good job of putting together a full dinner that simply needs to be reheated and have enough on hand to handle a last minute meal called in.
I have an easy and delicious idea. Chicken marsala.
Buy chicken broth premade and heat it in a big sauce pot on high. (For 10 people, you'll need to fill it most of the way)
Get chicken breast and flour it. NO EGG FIRST. Just FLOUR.
Melt some butter in a frying pan. Brown the chicken on both sides BUT don't cook it. Make sure it's still pink in the middle.
then set them aside.
Add a little more butter to the pan and saute some straw mushrooms. (I get them canned and drain the water, for 10 ppl i'd use about 3 cans but it depends on how much you like)
Once the broth is boiling you can add the chicken and the mushrooms and the broth should lower its boiling rate.
After the broth starts boiling again you add the marsala to taste.(you can get it at you local package store or at the supermarket)
Then you just let it boil until the chicken falls apart ( an hour or two)
You can serve it over spaghetti with parmesean cheese and bread/ rolls
Lasagna is always a good crowd pleaser---kids and adults love it. Throw in a big interesting salad, some garlic bread, let the wine flow, and voila! (or the Italian equivalent of voila!)
Unless you're talking about Easter...this would not be a good Easter dinner. That's a whole 'nother thing. Surely he didn't invite all these people for Easter....
I'd have to simply tell my husband that it's so sad that caterers are as expensive as they are...sniff...
(Plus I saw on another question...you are potty-training a 2-year-old.....Girl, you need to sit your man down and have a heart-to-heart!)
I always find pasta and meat sauce with a big salad and garlic bread quick, cheap, and easy. I have dinner parties all the time, I average about 10 guests and including dessert and soda, I can feed them all for like $25!!
no problem.... rather than worry embrace it!! cooking is fun... try something like
spiral ham-cooks quick, serves 10
scalloped potatoes- buy the box ones, they only take like 40min
green bean casserole- canned french beans, crm of mush soup, milk, and fried onions (recipe on box)
frozen veggies
get frozen pie... through them in the oven and cook them off
and relax.... everyone will love it
spaghetti..easy to make, garlic bread, salad, veggies, and some pastries for after wards
spaghetti garlic bread or bread sticks and a salad, quick in expensive and alto goes along way. dessert , fresh fruit in a tall glass, alternate whip cream and fresh fruit in glass and top with whip cream and a sliver of fruit
Make it a Fiesta! I made seasoned ground beef, chicken and beef fajita meat (the fajita meat can be found in the frozen food section at your grocery store). I have all the fixins. Lettuce, tomato, tortillas, sour cream, salsa etc. Serve with nacho chips, rice, beans.
Gonna have to be broiled steaks or pork chops. Give your guests a choice. Baked potatoes white and yams. Vegetable and tossed salad.
It will ***taste*** as tho you have worked all day..
2nd idea would be
Tossed salad
Spaghetti (buy the frozen meatballs)
French bread buttered then toasted under the broiler.. sprinkle some with parmesean cheese and slice it up.
Sew = Good Luck and don't work too hard on this
i hear you with the all of a sudden inlaws ... mine do the same thing... like this is a 24 hour diner... we only see them on the holidays... show up empty handed and... well, i did the griping for you and now I need to stop!!!
my advice to you because it works for me is, keep it simple... VERY SIMPLE!!!
cook 1 meat, 1 vegetable and 1 starch(potatoes or rice...)
i have always put on a big spread... now i just do one simple, but tasteful meal.... i live in south georgia... alot of people do hamburgers and hot dogs and grilled chicken... the weather is beautiful... i do that all year because the weather is always HOT!!!
holidays, i try to do a dinner
heres my plan for easter... 6 adults,2kids...
turkey breast
mashed potatoes and gravy
asparagus
cake for dessert...
thats it...
and if they dont like it, maybe they will eat somewhere else next holiday!!! although that never happens...
wishful thinking!!!
happy easter and happy thoughts!!! good luck
by the way... the inlaws i have are very church(a pasotor) i buy extra wine and alot of paper cups... so i can drink for them!!!
If I were in your situation this is what I would try and do.First off explain to your husband your hands are already full but you could make a few appetizers and have him go outside and fire up the barbecue and let him cook the main course and you make a few sides.Then the guys could socialize and if these women see your situation with your hands being full then they should lend you a hand while you all socialize.Hope this may help you.Who does not enjoy something great off the barbecue.lol
Get some skinless chicken breasts (approx 5). Cut them into two or three pieces. Season with a little seasoning salt, black pepper, and garlic power (you only need just a little).
Add a large can and a small can of cream of mushroom soup.
You can cook it in a pot over the stove or in a crock pot. I suggest a crock pot because you can put it on in the morning and it can cook while you are cleaning. It is done when the meat is tender (can stick it with a fork easily).
This can be served over rice or noodles. I suggest Minute Rice which comes in a pouch and you just boil it.
You can serve with frozen or canned vegetables or a salad and some dinner rolls.
First, living in the middle of nowhere Nevada is no excuse not to get food already made : ) It can get pretty expensive, but you can get a whole clam/lobster bake delivered in 1 day. There are also a lot of other companies that will delivered fully cooked meals off the internet.
But.....................if you insist of cooking make a them meal that can be braised. That way you are not stuck in the kitchen all day and during you meal. You can make a French style meal that is pretty easy. Here are a few easy ideas all of which you can find recipes on the internet.
Starters (Don't make them all these are just some suggestions)
Mushrooms stuffed with blue cheese. It's that simple. You can prepare them a few hours in advance. Season the inside of button mushrooms with salt and pepper. Stuff them with about a 1/2 tsp. of blue cheese. Bake them in the oven for about at 350 until they get lightly brown on top. It takes about 8 - 10 minutes.
Slice and English cucumber spread the top with alouette or any herbed soft cheese and top with a small piece of smoked salmon. If you want to get really fancy you can place a small amount of scallion on top.
Brie in croute with bread. Basically you just wrap a small wheel of brie in puff pastry and bake it according to the package instructions. Again you can dress this up by adding some fresh rasberries inside the puff pastry. This you may be able to buy in your supermarket in the frozen food section, but if not it only take minutes to put together and bake off.
Make a simple green salad with french vinegarette. Nix the tomatoes, oinion and cucumber and substitute it with goat cheese and sliced strawberries.
Potato leek soup. There are a ton of recipes on the internet for this. This can be made ahead of time. A traditional recipe would not call for cream, but it does make a nice touch. If you do make this ahead of time, do not add the cream until you are reheating it.
Dinner
Try making a coc au vin or beef with burgandy. Both take a little bit of prep time, but can be made ahead. Basically they are just fancy stew, so they taste better the next day. Pair this with egg noodles and crusty bread. If your supermarket does not have the best bakery in the world, check the freezer secion. Pepperidge farms is making breads that are pretty good that reheat in minutes.
Dessert
I would highly suggest buying one! They take too much time and good sweets are available and reasonable.
The best part about this dinner is that pairing them with wine is perfectable acceptable with each course. Perhaps you will forget that your inlaws shouldn't be there!
You need a nice and easy menu which can be prepared well in advance. Check out this menu - you can always miss out a course or 2 if you think it's too much:
http://www.gourmet-food-revolution.com/e...
You did mention that your supermarket had a deli, right? Where there is a deli there are usually rotisseried chickens! Plan on feeding 4 people per chicken. Whip up some Rice-A-Roni, Chicken Flavored or Pilaf. Put some frozen peas on and add some dinner rolls and you're off and running. For dessert? Purchase a premade frozen apple pie or two and a quart of vanilla ice cream, some caramel sauce and don't forget the wine! And, please do feel free to talk to your husband about the proper etiquette for inviting guests to dinner right before Easter! :)