I need help with a menu idea!?

Question

we are having 4 friends coming for dinner on saturday each bringing a course. One couple are bringing a salmon/parmesan filo pastry starter and the other couple are bringing a banoffee pie & fruit salad. I am making the main and stumped about the best thing to do. I want it to look great, taste delicious and not be too complicated. Plus I hate coriander and offal. So - any ideas anyone???????

Answer 1

what about stuffed chicken breasts with fresh herbs or with panchetta and mozzarella. they are fairly easy to make and you could even do it the day before and leave them in the fridge overnight. just thaw out the chicken and pound it lightly- you dont want to tear the chicken breast meat. next wrap your panchetta around the mozza and then wrap your chicken around it. you can do these on the bbq or in the oven. if you so desire you can also coat them in bread crumbs to make it crispy.

Answer 2

hmmm...I would suggest Chicken Marsala or something somewhat on the lighter side. Just for the fact that the starter, depending on how it is made, can be a little heavy. Also, the banoffee pie can be on the heavy side too. So you might want something that is light. I actually just suggested a dish to another person. If you grill some marinated chicken breasts and place that atop angel hair pasta that has been tossed with olive oil, garlic, basil and fresh diced tomatos. It is light, but has a ton of flavor. You can even use shrimp instead if you want since you are having salmon for a starter. :-)

Answer 3

If you can get some from an italian Deli - a carrot and walnut or similar stuffed pasta (its quite sweet ) easy for you - you just boil it (add a a little olive oil to the water) For sauce gently saute in a pan some onions (1/4) until soft then add teaspoon crushed garlic and some chopped ham (about a handful) - you choose i like pancetta cubes , but something small you can fry, add some tinned petit pois (about 1/3 to half a small tin drained). Then add about 1 part bechemal sauce to 3 parts cream, simmer for 5 mins, add salt and pepper to taste - it will lekely be quite salty from the ham so taste first and dont overdo the salt (if the sauce seems a bit thick add some water from the pasta. When ready pour it over the pasta . Dead easy and tastes great and you made the sauce yourself.

Answer 4

Great this time of year. Duck in rhubarb and apple source.
score the skin of the duck breast fillets. Use breast, one per serving. Rub in some black pepper to the skin and oven skin side up for bout 25 mins. (depends on size of each fillet) Whilst that's cooking put rhubarb and apples into saucepan with a little sugar add a little lemon zest to taste. (some people add a little red wine too). Keep it heated till the fruit goes soft.
Serve with leaf veg. i.e steamed cabbage done so it's still crunchy. and courgette also a little under done so it's crunchy. Asparagus also works but i don't like the stuff.
It's so simple yet so good and not alot of people use duck so makes you look well good.
Good luck with the meal.

Answer 5

Lamb Chops with Mint-Walnut Pesto

4 (6-ounce) loin lamb chops
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons Mint Walnut Pesto, recipe follows

Position a broiler pan 4 to 6 inches from the broiler and heat. Brush the chops lightly with some of the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Carefully lay the chops on the hot pan and broil, turning once about halfway through cooking; 7 minutes for rare, 8 for medium, and 9 for well-done. Remove from the oven and set aside for 5 minutes.
Divide the chops between 2 plates and spoon about 1 tablespoon of pesto over each chop; serve.


Mint Walnut Pesto:
2 tablespoons walnuts
1 cup loosely packed fresh mint leaves
1 cup loosely packed fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 ounce crumbled feta cheese, about 1/4 cup
1/2 clove garlic, smashed
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spread the nuts in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake for about 8 minutes, shaking occasionally to brown evenly. Let cool.
In a food processor, puree the nuts, mint, parsley, cheese, garlic, and salt. With the motor running, drizzle in the olive oil until incorporated. Transfer the pesto to a container, place a piece of plastic wrap on the surface, and refrigerate for up to 3 days.

Nutrient Value Per Tablespoon: 60 calories, 1 g carbohydrate, 0.5 g fiber, 6 g fat (1 g saturated)

Answer 6

Lemon and tarragon roast chicken served with garlic mash and 2 veg (your choice steamed)

Chop a handfull of fresh tarragon and mix with butter. Stick your finger between the skin and the meat of the chicken and stuff the butter in the pocket you've made. Roughly cut a lemon and put this in the cavity. Cook the chicken as per the instructions on the packet. (Make sure you leave it to rest before you serve as it's easier to carve)

Boil your potatoes with a clove of garlic (the garlic goes milder when boiled) and then mash the whole lot with butter and a little milk or cream.

De-Glaze your roasting dish with a little white wine and add a little cream to make a sauce.

MMM..... Nice

Answer 7

I think this will go nicely with the other courses

Pork Chops With Cranberry-Pomegranate Sauce

Ingredients:
8 boneless pork loin chops (about 5 oz each)
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp pepper
2 Tbsp olive oil
Cranberry pomegranate sauce
4 oz gorgonzola cheese, crumbled
1/2 cup chopped pecans, toasted
Garnish: fresh parsley sprig

Cranberry-Pomegranate Sauce:
(Makes 1 1/2 cups)

1 (16-oz) can whole berry cranberry sauce
1/3 cup pomegranate juice
1/3 cup low-sodium fat-free chicken broth1/2 tsp fresh lemon juice


Method
Sprinkle pork chops evenly with salt and pepper. Cook 4 pork chops in 1 Tbsp hot oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat 3 to 4 minutes on each side or until brown. Remove and keep warm; repeat with remaining 4 pork chops and 1 Tbsp oil.
Transfer pork chops to serving platter, and drizzle evenly with cranberry pomegranate sauce. Sprinkle with Gorgonzola cheese and pecans. Garnish, if desired. To prepare sauce: Stir together all ingredients in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to low and simmer 20 minutes or until reduced to 1 1/2 cups.

Notes: Prepare the cranberry sauce up to two days ahead and refrigerate. Warm up in the microwave or on the stove top while searing the pork chops.

Answer 8

Hey, I have a really simple one for ya, and they're always impressive: a roast pork loin........inexpensive, and all ya have to do is put in on a cookie sheet lined with foil and roast it at 350F for about an hour and 15 (depending on the size) and you can season it simply with apricot preserves.......Pork will go great with a fruit salad, as pork and fruit go together very well.........BTW, if you have a meat thermometer, it would be a big plus, as you won't be playing a "guessing game" with the doneness of the roast.......at any rate, enjoy and don't stress out about this one!!!

Christopher

Answer 9

Do you have a slow cooker? How about pulled pork sandwiches?

4 lb pork roast
2 onions, sliced, divided
1 onion, chopped
5 or 6 whole cloves
2 cups water
16 oz bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce
salt and pepper

Place one sliced onion at the bottom of Crock Pot.
Stud pork roast with cloves and season with salt and pepper.
Place roast in slow cooker on top of the sliced onion. Cover with the second sliced onion and add enough water to fill Crock Pot two thirds of the way.
Cover and cook on low 8 to 12 hours.
Remove roast.

Remove and discard cloves, bone and fat as well as any water, onions and grease remaining in pot.
When pork roast is cool enough to handle, use a fork or your fingers to pull it apart until the entire roast is shredded.
Return the pulled pork to the crockpot. Mix in the chopped onion and BBQ sauce and cover. Heat on high for 1-3 hours or until the onions are soft.

Serve on large, crusty buns with a mustard based Carolina-style BBQ sauce. Garnish with dill pickle spears, thinly sliced raw onion and pickled pepperoncini (Italian banana peppers). Serve with crisp, homemade slaw. Carolinians would put the cole slaw on the pulled pork sandwiches..that's up to you.

Answer 10

Chicken in Orange sauce,delicious!

6 chicken breast fillets.
1 pint orange juice
1 pint chicken stock
1 tablespoon french mustard
2 tablespoons brown sugar
Thickening to taste
Black pepper to taste.

Simply combine all the sauce ingrediants,pour over chicken fillets,then cover & cook in oven at 200c for 1 & a half hours or until meat cooked through.Thicken sauce as you like it.
Serve with lots of seasonal fresh veggies.Enjoy!

Answer 11

fish you cant go wrong /get any type of smoked fish /halibut or coley are nice ,pour plenty of olive oil mixed with a large nob of butter a few cloves of garlic a pinch of salt and lots of fresh ground black pepper mix all this in a dish until meltedor heat a little, then pour over your fish wrap in tin foil and also cover the fish with sliced tomatoes wow this dish is so nice and looks so posh the smell is mouth watering you could also add olives if you like them too hope this helps,,, all my friends love this dish x this will only take about 20 mins 2 cook and 5 to prep