Food for a holiday party?? I'm a vegetarian and my guests are not...help!?

Question

I'm planning on throwing a holiday party for friends. I'm a vegetarian, so I don't tend to cook meat or poultry. Can anyone offer me some suggestions for sure thing recipes. I get nervous cooking things that I can't taste. I'm thinking something along the lines of chicken or beef. I'd appreciate the help!

Answer 1

This is a great recipe that I make all the time.

Chicken Ritz Casserole

Ingredients:
5-6 chicken breasts, cooked
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cheddar broccoli soup
about 1/4 soup can of milk
1-1/2 c. sour cream
2 c. cooked minute rice (1 c. prior to cooking)
dash salt and pepper
30 to 40 Ritz crackers, crumbled
Butter
Cooking Instructions:
Cook chicken and remove chicken from bone and cut up. Place chicken in casserole dish. Mix together remaining ingredients. Pour mixed ingredients over chicken. Top with crushed Ritz crackers; dot with butter. Bake at 350F. for 45 mins.

This chicken salad is also really good

San Antonio Chicken Salad

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:
2 large whole chicken breasts, split, boned and skinned
1/2 cup salsa
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 ripe avocado
1 cup sliced celery
Bibb or leaf lettuce leaves
4 crisply cooked bacon slices, crumbled
Preparation:
Cut chicken into 1/2 inch cubes. Combine salsa, cumin and salt in 10-inch skillet. Cook chicken in salsa mixture, stirring frequently, until cooked through, about 4 minutes. Transfer contents of skillet to mixing bowl; cover and chill thoroughly.

To serve, combine chicken mixture, sour cream and mayonnaise. Mix well. Peel, seed and coarsely chop avocado. Add avocado and celery to chicken mixture. Mix lightly. Spoon onto lettuce-lined salad plates; sprinkle with bacon. Serve with additional salsa on the side.



Here is a good beef recipe

Mexicale Pie
Servings: Serves 8
1 lb. lean ground beef
1/2 cup onion, coarsely chopped
1/3 cup red bell pepper, coarsely chopped
1/3 cup green bell pepper, coarsely chopped
1 large clove garlic, finely chopped
1 tsp. fresh cilantro, chopped (optional)
1 can (14 oz.) tomatoes, undrained
1 Tbsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper
-- black pepper, to taste
1 package cornbread mix
2 Tbsp. Parmesan cheese

Brown ground beef and onion in nonstick skillet. Cook 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally until beef is no longer pink; drain. Add bell peppers, garlic and cilantro. Stir in tomatoes (including liquid) breaking up tomatoes with a fork. Add chili powder, oregano, cumin, chili pepper flakes and black pepper.
Reduce heat and simmer until thick. Transfer to a 9-inch pie plate.
Using package directions, mix cornbread and add Parmesan cheese. Spread evenly and quickly over meat mixture.
Bake in preheated 375ºF oven for 20-25 minutes, or until topping is golden brown.


Here are some other recipes that are good for the holidays

7 Layer Dip

1 (1 ounce) package taco seasoning mix
1 (16 ounce) can refried beans
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (16 ounce) container sour cream
1 (16 ounce) jar salsa
1 large tomato, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 bunch chopped green onions
1 small head iceberg lettuce, shredded
1 (6 ounce) can sliced black olives, drained
2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
DIRECTIONS
In a medium bowl, blend the taco seasoning mix and refried beans. Spread the mixture onto a large serving platter.
Mix the sour cream and cream cheese in a medium bowl. Spread over the refried beans.
Top the layers with salsa. Place a layer of tomato, green bell pepper, green onions and lettuce over the salsa, and top with Cheddar cheese. Garnish with black olives.



Tex-Mex Salad with Chili Vinaigrette

Makes 8 to 10 servings

Ingredients:
Salad:
1 cup long grain rice
1 15 ounce can pinto beans, rinsed and drained
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen whole kernel corn
3 green onions, sliced
1/4 cup red sweet pepper, chopped
Vinaigrette:
1/4 cup corn oil
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 pickled jalapeño peppers, stemmed, halved and seeded
1 teaspoon chili powder (or more to taste)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
Preparation:
Salad:
Cook rice in salted water as directed on the package. (The rice can be cooked ahead and chilled.)

Combine cooked rice, beans, corn, green onion, and sweet pepper in a large bowl. Toss lightly to mix.
Vinaigrette:
Combine corn oil, lime juice, vinegar, brown sugar, jalapeño pepper, chili powder, cumin and salt in a blender container or food processor bowl. Cover and blend or process until smooth.

Pour dressing over rice mixture; toss to coat. Cover and chill until serving time or up to 2 days. Serve at room temperature.


Moroccan Cheddar Couscous
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 medium red bell pepper, diced
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 can (14-1/2 oz.) chicken broth
1 cup couscous, uncooked
1-1/2 cups (6 oz.) Sharp Cheddar Shredded Cheese, divided
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro

Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat until hot. Add bell pepper, onion and garlic. Cook 6 minutes or until vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally. Add broth; heat to a boil. Stir in couscous; cover and remove from heat. Let stand 5 minutes or until broth is absorbed. Fluff couscous mixture with a fork. Stir in 1 cup cheese. Sprinkle with remaining cheese and cilantro.



Good Luck with your party, hope I have been some help : )

Answer 2

Eggplant Parmesan
Eggplant Rollatini
Lasagna
Veggie White Pizza
Linguine & clams
Shrimp Scampi & Fettucinne
Shrimp cocktail
Beef or Veal Braciole
Stuffed shells
GNOCCI
SQUASH FILLED RAVIOLI W BUTTER SAGE SAUCE
grilled salmon
Manicotti
Canneloni
Pasta Primavera
Baked Ziti
Chicken Marsala
Paella
Stuffed Cornish Game Hens
Tacos/Enchiladas/Burritos
flan for dessert
Chicken Wellington

There have been several chicken and beef recipes posted recently. Try a search under Discover.

Have a great party :-)

Answer 3

Ingredients 1 small slim French loaf (sometimes called baguettine) approximately 2 oz (50 g) mild, creamy goats' cheese (the spreadable kind that comes in tubs is fine) 3-4 fresh basil leaves 2 firm, medium-sized tomatoes 1½ tablespoons good-quality olive oil 1 clove garlic, crushed 1 level tablespoon Italian pesto sea salt and freshly milled black pepper Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 4, 350°F (180°C). You will also need a baking sheet. First combine about 1 tablespoon olive oil with the crushed garlic and spread over the baking sheet, then slice the bread into thinnish rounds; you won't need all the loaf. Now arrange the slices on the baking sheet, press them into the oil then turn them the other way up so that each surface has a slight coating of garlicky oil. Bake them in the centre of the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until they have turned a golden brown and become very crisp. Do watch the timing on this – I have thrown away more burnt croutons of bread than I care to remember! Cool them on a wire rack and store in an airtight tin until you need them (they will be okay for up to 2 weeks, which is very helpful). When you're ready to serve, skin the tomatoes by pouring boiling water over them, leave for 1 minute, then halve them, scoop out the pips, slip off the skins and chop the flesh into tiny dice. Now simply spread each crisp bread slice first with a thin layer of pesto, then with a generous layer of goats' cheese, and sprinkle on the diced tomato together with a little crushed sea salt and coarsely ground black pepper. Finally, using a small teaspoon, add a few droplets of olive oil – though be careful not to overdo this. Scatter a few fresh basil leaves over the bruschettas to serve. This recipe is taken from Delia Smith’s Christmas.

Answer 4

Almost eveveryone goes for pasta...lasagna or stuffed shells. My stuffed shells are loved by all and my recipe is totally meatless. Make a good tomato sauce, any good tomata sauce will do. Cook the shells, and stuff with a combination of cottage cheese, shredded mozzarella, parsley flakes and a little ground pepper. Stuff the shells with the cheese concoction and bake in the tomato sauce. Serve with a really good salad. I also love gorgonzola stuffed olives with the above. If you dont want pasta, try making a squash or pumpkin soup followed with broiled chicken breasts or since it is the holiday, chicken kiev. The soup is fancy but will fill you up. You can skip on the chicken kiev cause the squash soup is so rich. Fix alot of side vegatables and you can fill up on these too. Sweet potatoes go really good with the chicken kiev.

Answer 5

I have a couple suggestions that might work for you. Make some of your favorite dishes. Ask your friends to bring a dish to share. Let them decide what they want to make. Let them know you'll take care of ____ and let them decide what else would go with it. OR order a turkey, ham, or deli trays from the local grocery store. They run all kinds of specials around the holidays. Usually you just have to warm it up when you want to serve it. The few that I've had were delicious. And they aren't expensive.

Answer 6

You could always fix your vegetarian specialties and ask each of them to bring a small favorite appetizer. I am sure they all know you're vegetarian too so they're probably wondering the same things you are!! Take this opportunity to show them some really tasty vegetarian fare.

Answer 7

I don't see anything wrong with you offering only vegetarian fare at your party. Surely your friends will realize that you're a vegetarian and that you'd like to cook something that you can all enjoy.

Answer 8

BaBaGanoush !
It is North African, cut up eggplant, rub with oilve oil roast it in the oven or on a BBQ grill, scrape out the flesh and add to food processor, add a little garlic, lemon juice, S & P. taste and enjoy with crackers!
Cheers!
Chef Hans favorite website:
http:// www.chefdepot.com

Answer 9

Gonna have to say go to Costco or Sam's Club and get some frozen appetizers. Maybe your local grocery store can put together a deli platter for you, or that's something you could do yourself. A couple of pounds of ham, roast beef, turkey, cheese slices with different cheeses, croissants, crackers, breads and they can make appetizer stuff. (Thank you for wanting to feed your friends things they will eat, too!)

Answer 10

Try a few vegetarian pizzas, served cold, they are delicious.
Make sure you have alot of cheese, broccoli,carrots(shredded) lettuce(shredded) , and maybe a few regular pizzas for the ones who dont like vegetarian style. You can also ask everybody to bring a covered dish.

Answer 11

When I had a gane party once, I used those soy meat balls and cooked them in a marinara sauce and served in a big bowl with toothpicks on the side.
Also, stuffed mushrooms are good for veggies and meat eaters.