Oh wow sounds so exciting CQ! I'm hanging out to do something like that one day!
From what I can tell, a dinner party is a bit like a stirfry, you have to have as much prepared beforehand as you can. Can you do that with your menu?
As for after dessert, what about something that might go with coffee? Like if you're likely to sit around and talk, then you might serve coffee, so perhaps some little chocolates or something would be enough?
Yep, have chosen dishes that I can do quite a bit of prep before they get here, the chicken is individual breasts and they're cooked in the oven for 45 mins so that can be going on from when I start the entree.
I wasn't sure how the preggy lady will go with crab so yep, i'll give her a call and check first. I think i'll skip the cheeses, I don't know if they are particularly huge eaters but I don't want them to be totally stuffed! I like the idea of little choccies! or maybe even some fruit - I think thats what they do in France??
Also, how long do you leave it between courses normally??
Oooh exciting exciting! I wonder if I should have a colour theme?! Placemats, candles etc
On the custard in your dessert, you might want to check with the pregnant lady because I think custard is a no-no in pregnancy if it's the fresh egg custard. I *think* the processed stuff from the fridge at the supermarket is ok though.
Def go the colour theme! I love a beautifully set table with matching colours
CC - Ohhhh I love a dinner party, and love hosting them ...
What is the weather like next week up in Bris ?
Your menu individually sounds delicious, and to be honest, I would love your main recipe'
Though to be totally honest, after a creamy crab chicken, I would probably go for a lighter desert to moisten the palate (so to speak) I wonder if the choc custard after the creamy crab chicken, may be a little too much, especially if you are having wine in between courses
Definatly have some candle's - ambience is the key to any dinner party don't have the lights on, just candle's and a dim lamp
Music : Pick your CD's and have them organised in order ready to play, calm dinner music whilst eating, then moving to something more upbeat, just after desert, then the fun music, for when the champa's are flowing
I am not a big fan of pre dinner nibblie's before entree', I always have a welcome drink ready for my guests
CQ congratulations on stepping into the world of dinner parties - they are so much fun!
Elaborate dinner parties used to be a hobby of mine pre-children (when I say elaborate I once did a 7-course vegetarian dinner party for 8 so I used to really go OTT!) So while I have had quite a bit of experience in these things I always do the following:
1. Once you think you settled on your menu, make sure you have READ the recipes carefully. There is nothing worse than realising an hour before the guests arrive that yes, it only takes 20 minutes to prep the entree but you need to have completed step 1 of the recipe the day before!
2. Check that you have the implements you need - I'm talking baking pans, serving dishes, special tools like fine graters, etc.
3. Now for the fun bit - plan! Work out when, in great detail, you will prepare and/or cook everything. I'm talking (for example) "5.00pm - wash salad and set aside to dry, take steaks out of fridge to bring to room temperature, make salad dressing"; "5.20pm - crumb the fish fillets and put in fridge to set"; and so on. This might sound really anal but it means you have everything planned out so you can stay calm and just methodically work on what you need to do and you don't forget anything. It stops you preparing things way too early (if you are making a souffle, you don't want to whisk the eggs and have them sitting for too long, otherwise it won't rise). In your case, you might want to write down the time you plan to start heating the oven for the chicken, when to start heating the sauce, make a note to wash the berries in the early afternoon so they are completely dried by dessert time, and so on. I usually do this plan a few days ahead.
4. A lot of people recommend doing a test-cook before the big day. I never did, and I have had failures at dinner parties. You get over it (but a test cook is a good idea if you are worried or have the time/money.
Most importantly, remember that the best meals are served with love and calmness, so its better to have things a little off kilter and people happy than everything perfect and you in tears from stress!
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