Hey, all you cool cats and kittens!
So, you’ve agreed to host a dinner party and that’s why you’re here. After a typical Tuesday night drunken Bachelor stooper, you decide you miss your crew. You want to see your friends and it’s basically the only 2020 activity you can partake in. You’ve sent out the group text and this weekend is confirmed. NOW, WHAT?
Ask your friends if they have any dietary restrictions
Let’s face it, every betch you know is gluten-free, gluten-sensitive, gluten-intolerant, keto, vegan, pescatarian, dairy-free, or veg. We all have that one friend who is all of them! Anyway, you want to know so you can plan to have an option for them, can adjust your menu to accommodate them, or you can passive-aggressively serve them a cup of cotton balls and dipping sauce (@scream queens).
Plan your menu
Plan your menu in advance! Write it down. We recommend choosing no more than 4-5 dishes. When you have too many dishes it’s much harder for you to get everything done.
We recommend having one meat or poultry dish, a fish option, a carb option, a veg or salad option, and lastly a dessert. Keep to that script and mostly everyone will be happy (Karen will be satisfied by her cotton balls, JK!).
When planning your menu, keep in mind what ingredients are in season and what can be prepared in advance. To make it much easier on yourself we recommend selecting 2 dishes that can be completely prepared in advance and then just reheated or served at room temp. The biggest issue people have is serving all their dishes hot when guests arrive. To avoid this, pick some dishes that can be served at room temperature, cold, or straight from the oven and require no plating.
Our current favorite Winter menu is braised short ribs, mashed potatoes, and a winter salad with roasted squash, pomegranates seeds, and pecans.
Our recipe for Beef short ribs can be made in advance, reheated, and served right in the pot it was made in. For the mashed potatoes make them in advance, cover with plastic wrap, and microwave as your guests arrive. Lastly, for the salad, prep all ingredients and assemble about 10-20 minutes before everyone’s arrival. Be sure to make the dressing in advance and take it out before serving. A mason jar makes the salad dressing process way easier.
Pro-tip: Stay away from frying foods. You’ll spend the night over splattering oil trying to make food in batches that will go quicker than you can make!
With a well thought out menu and some prep, there’s no last-minute stress!
Shop
Pick up all the ingredients for the dinner. Come with a list so you don’t have to make 4 trips! Make sure to buy enough wine to get your friend’s crunk.
If you are a lazy betch like me, buy some form of disposable plates. I like these bamboo ones because plastic sucks for the environment. I find when I put out disposable plates I spend much less time cleaning and everyone can just toss them out. I use real silverware because disposable forks suck. No one wants to dig into their meat to find a piece of their fork fell off.
Pick up extra ice from the store if you’re whipping up cocktails. We have a fire recipe here which is sure to impress- I mean it has egg whites in it.
Prep
Prepare as much of the food as possible! Whatever you can do in advance, make sure to do it. Even if its chopping garnishes or vegetables which can be stored in small Ziploc bags for an easy throw away clean up. Your future self will thank you if you prepare most things in advance and aren’t scrambling last minute.
Set your table
Set your table in advance! Your table setting doesn’t rot- just get it done. Lay out which dishes will be placed in which serving dishes so you aren’t running around last minute. Pull out those large bowls and serving platters in advance. They are usually behind everything in random parts of your kitchen. You don’t need to be on display while you completely turn your kitchen upside down to find them.
Hope you enjoyed this run through! Now you are ready to rock and crush your dinner party. Most importantly get drunk, and have fun. The dirty dishes can always wait till tomorrow.
