Shabbos Menus that WOW

sky

Mon, Jul 06 2015, 6:11 pm

Sometimes it is really extra plating and garneshing and presentation that makes a meal extra special.
Like if I'm serving salmon as an appetizer I'll make a pasta (like angel hair pasta salad) and\or avegetable(like julienne vegetables stripes or vegetable skewer or roasted vegetable tower) to decorate the plate.

Mrs Bissli

Mon, Jul 06 2015, 7:04 pm

- a large number of salatim as appetisers (of different colours and vegetables), plus 2 hot appetisers (fish, bourekas, kibbe, jachnon)
- more expensive cut of red meat (lamb cutlets, veal carre, or rib roast) AND chicken
- 3 or more side dishes, 1-2 starch and 1 vegetable
- 2 desserts (cake and mousse, for example) and fruits

Basically more expensive ingredients, more variety, more labour intensive items, good wine, served on nice platters and table setting.

NEWLYWED3

Mon, Jul 06 2015, 9:16 pm

Here's my standard shabbs menu that I do whenever we have guests. Fri night. Olive dip fried onion dip and dill dip and chummus then I either serve gefilte fish or salmon on skewers or both. Next is chicken soup w matzo balls. For the main I do schnitzel w hot sauce( big hit w guys) couscous w veggies apple cobbler sautéed green beans mushrooms red pepper and onions and overnight pot kugel dessert hot chocolate molten cake w a scoop of vanilla icecream- best recipe. 16 oz whipped whip. 1/2 c sugar 2 tsp vanilla then crush and roast unsalted cabsew s for 10 min in oven and mix in and freeze! Delic!!

oliveoil

Mon, Jul 06 2015, 9:53 pm

It really depends on the crowd, I think.

Ie. some ppl will be impressed by a variety sugary salads with all kinds of chip-like add-ins, 4 sides dishes all in muffin shapes and assorted proteins smothered in ketchup, apricot jam, mayo, soy sauce and duck sauce. They will oooh and ahhh and you will have impressed.

Others would look at that same spread and think "there's nothing here I can eat."

ruby slippers

Mon, Jul 06 2015, 10:06 pm

NEWLYWED3 wrote:

fried onion dip sounds yum- please share

pause

Mon, Jul 06 2015, 10:18 pm

Homemade foods: challah, tomato dip, eggplant babaganoush, techina, basil avocado salad
Traditionally cooked gefilte fish and salmon
Chicken soup with knaidlach and lukshen
Slow-baked flanken, ferfel, potato kugel, blueberry pie
Applesauce compote
Cake (marble, brownie, coffee bundt), Store-bought: chocolates, beer

TeachersNotebook

Mon, Jul 06 2015, 10:19 pm

I tend to go with mini/individual portion servings when I'm trying to impress. One Shavuos meal that I was trying to impress, I made mini pizza pies for everyone and then laid out a bar of every topping imaginable. For Shabbos, I will do sushi, or cole slaw balls with jalapeno dip, or butternut squash ravioli (see Starters and Sides Made Easy by Leah Schapira and Viktoria Dwek), or mango sriracha potstickers (http://www.blogher.com/mango-sriracha-potstickers) or sweet potato black bean pinwheels etc etc. Desserts are the easiest to apportion- mini trifles or mini mousse cups or stuff like that.

tichellady

Tue, Jul 07 2015, 12:03 am

oliveoil wrote:

Well said! My idea of a special meal would Be ethnic food that's unique, or lots of salads and vegetables ( roasted, pickled, sautéed) and red meat and a cobbler or pie for dessert. I love fruits and vegetables especially when someone else prepares them for me

champion

Tue, Jul 07 2015, 6:45 am

NEWLYWED3 wrote:

Fried onion dip. 2 red onions sauté in oil till we'll done. Next add salt and pepper And blend w as much mayo as u like

HEY thats my recipe!

cbg

Tue, Jul 07 2015, 9:39 pm

I seem to always prepare the same things.
I make salmon either with homemade pesto
or salmon with pepper slaw with mandarin oranges, or Moroccan telapia
I make 5+ salads on the more natural side,such as roasted eggplant, spicy carrot, roasted beet, big green salad with lots of different veggies dressings on the side, Israeli salad, kohl rabi salad, brocolli slaw, heart of Palm salad, fennel salad,
2-3 dips like avocado, olive, chumus
For the main
Stuffed vegetable with meat and rice (mechshie, onion, zucchini, or eggplant), herbed or lemon chicken, sometimes I'll make a roast instead.
rice sometimes with thin noodles or nuts sometimes plain
2 side veggies, okra, stringbeans, sautéed zucchini, crustless spinach pie, sauteed mushrooms,
Dessert is a fruit platter and the cake that the guests usually bring, I don't bake.
I like very natural foods with natural spices, no msg, very little mayo if any, I try not to use bottled sauces,etc.
I like a variety of vegetables.

cbg

Tue, Jul 07 2015, 9:42 pm

TeachersNotebook wrote:

What is sweet potato black bean pinwheels, cole slaw balls? Recipes please