If you were going to have two people you wanted to impress over for dinner

what would you cook?

(I don't eat meat or tomatoes, so this limits the menu a bit :P )

:P



:hi:

That they won't notice there's no main course. :P

with some really fresh ingredients.

everybody likes pizza. and if you make your own dough it looks like you went to some trouble.

You can make a lot of pretty pizzas without tomato sauce. I made one once where I first made a thin layer of ricotta cheese, then over that I laid down a lot of fresh spinach leaves til it was all green. Then I put a lot of stuff on that, like mushrooms, onions, some black olives, whatever. Then I topped it with just enough mozzarella to keep things from rolling around. And it was perfect.
I use the Mama Maria's crusts from the store, they're thin and they make crusts that are whole grain.

green beans roasted with garlic, shallots and olive oil.

do you eat fish or chicken?

I eat seafood but not chicken, beef, pork, etc.

game hens from my note above!

that's impressive and your guests will probably eat it. Some sort of pasta with shrimp might be nice. It would be easier and less expensive, but not everyone eats shellfish. Do your guests have dietary restrictions?

They impress, most folks enjoy and think it's "good for them". Plus, you don't have the whole "whaddya mean there's no dead animal in this" conversation.

would probably be happy with lettuce and raw turnips.

They are "crunchier than thou." :P

I can't think of anything vegan that's *impressive* though... :( :hide:

Go peruse the Recipes sticky in the vegetarian forum here.

didnt the guys below the Fraggles eat raw turnips? or were those radishes?

:shrug:

http://vegweb.com/index.php?board=147.0

and if you've got the time, here

http://www.amazon.com/Millennium-Cookbook-Extraordinary-Vegetarian-Cuisine/dp/0898158990

I wouldn't have them over to dinner. :P

but that breaks the meat requirement. You could sear them in a pan...

Sort of pan-Asian:

Spring Rolls
Vietnamese papaya salad
Sweet potato & Kabocha squash stew (with curry, beancurd sheets & coconut milk)
Baby bok choy sauteed w/ garlic oil


Indian-ish:

Vegetable samosas w/ tamarind chutney
Aloo ghobi
Malai Kofta
Chole or some kind of dal
Naan


Italian-like:

Bruschetta with tapenade and/or roasted garlic
White bean salad w/ peppers & celery
Eggplant rollatini


Or are you looking for more hard-core granola-type stuff?

:P

Come Dine With Me. I don't know if this show is in America but 5 people get together and each night they throw what they think is the perfect dinner party to win £1,000 on Friday night. I swear to god that they pick at least one person each week that has different dietetic requirements in order to challenge the other four to think about what to cook for him/her.

Yesterday I watched a series in which a Coeliac disease sufferer participated. The one person he had been consistently been getting along with prior to her dinner night completely disregarded his requirements and cooked what SHE wanted, as a result he couldn't really enjoy the dinner.

I'd try my best but you wouldn't like it... as I don't cook! :-( My partner cooks though! He's a wonderful cook! :-)

Was that the same episode where one of the hosts kept a dinner guest waiting out in the cold because she arrived half an hour early?. If so, that was a classic one -a great way to lose points from your dinner guests

She also scored the woman a 2 at the end of the evening. It's the same woman who refused to acknowledge the coeliac sufferer's requirements. The dinner guests helped him try to pick out the stuff he wasn't supposed to eat in the pie.

Did you see the one where the woman deliberately gave everyone low scores so she would win (1 being poor, 2 being ok, and 3 being fantastic), the producers made her rescore and someone else won! :-) I haven't seen anyone as bitchy as she was although Pippa came very close. She actually whined about not winning at the end of the week, "I thought MY dinner party was THE best!"

I just noticed that there is indeed a version in the US, just haven't seen it yet. It is a very entertaining programme for sure.

With the woman who gave her fellow contestants ridiculously low scores so she would win the competition until forced to re-mark or be disqualified by the show's producers. Her name was Isabel, I think. I think that was the same one where it had that Australian guy whom, wanting to con the other contestants into believing that he lived a fancy lifestyle, hosted his dinner at his friend's apartment and successfully passed it off as his own apartment

There was another episode where a woman ordered her whole dinner menu from a hotel down the road from her place and passed it off as her own. She watched the chefs make the meals so that, in the event that guests asked her how a dish was made, she could explain it to them as though she had made it herself. She fooled the guests, got the highest score and won the money!

I love that show

I might have to try to catch it!

I don't think the Australian guy got off with it lightly. They said something like, "He says he lives with his girlfriend... but I don't see any girl's things here!"

The episode with the series that Pippa was in, this guy named Stuart made a English Breakfast curry... ugh. Guinness cake... ugh.

I think that would just about give me the runs.

a nice restaurant

otherwise--tuna casserole all the way, baby! and rolls!

um...maybe someplace a bit fancier.

Green beans with almonds
Stuffed portobello mushrooms
Rice pilaf
Tossed baby greens salad with raspberry vinaigrette
Warm apple crisp with whipped cream

Having read your own limitations, and I'm not sure about the salad and radishes person, I would go with one of the following assuming everyone invited is at least ova-lacto vegetarian or will eat seafood. The first is a recipe from a friend and the second is one we've been making for quite a while now.

Salmon Teriyaki

Place salmon fillets in a marinade of SoyVey Veri Veri Teriyaki, some additional minced garlic, some grated fresh ginger, and a wee bit of minced cilantro. Allow to marinate for several hours. Place skin-side down in a skillet (or in a heat resistant one on the grill tented with foil) and pour marinade over the top of the fillets. Allow to simmer until flaky. I usually turn it over just once, very briefly, and finish it skin-side down.

If you can't find Veri Veri Teriyaki, combine soy sauce, brown sugar, sesame seeds and lots of minced garlic and grated ginger.


Spinach Mushroom Quiche with Feta

Chop 4-5 mushroom caps and about 1/2 c. onions, diced. Saute in a little olive oil, along with about 1/2 c. of frozen chopped spinach(used to use fresh but for this, frozen just works a little better), and light sprinkling of salt and garlic powder or granulated garlic. Beat 5 eggs lightly with a little 1/2 & 1/2 or milk...maybe a 1/4 to 1/3 cup. Pour into a single prepared pie shell stir in the veggies. Stir in crumbled plain feta cheese-at least 1/2 of the package. Top with a layer of finely shredded cheddar. Bake at 350 for about 35 mins. or until the eggs are completely set up.

With either of these dishes, I would serve a baked sweet potato or baked butternut squash. Gorgonzola cheese crumbles on the finished sweet potato or squash is very good, too. Or with the salmon, a nice whole grain and brown rice and steamed asparagus or a nice green salad with a light vinaigrette.

Hope whatever you decide to serve turns out yummy and acceptable for your guests restrictions. :hi:

Or a stir fry.

lots of spice if they like spicy food. Some chinese plum wine, best thing with chinese food.

maybe some vegetable dumplings for appetizer

nice chinese restaurant style tea

and a truly fabulous dessert.

:hi:

garlic, homemade crusty sourdough bread, real butter, fresh herb salad, sans tomato, dressed with my very own homemade tarragon vinegar and evoo, and a good bottle of Cabernet. For dessert? A new and different twist on jello shots. Larger versions made in parfait glasses, raspberry of course, topped with fresh raspberries and whipping cream. Non-alcoholic jello also available upon request :P

:-)