Early Fridays.... | Imamother

dlj

Sun, Oct 03 2010, 3:40 am

Hi Everyone,

Hope you had a wonderful Yom Tov, and given that food and various menus are probably still on the brain, I thought it would be a good time to start a topic like this for us working women who get home with little time to spare on a Friday before Shabbas but want to entertain!

I'm looking for menu ideas for entertaining 12 adults on a Friday night, where the food can all be cooked in advance and reheated in oven before shabbas or on hotplate, and that is easy to cook recipes, without very expensive ingredients!

So far my ideas were:
Starter: stir-fry and rice
Soup: chicken soup
Main course: chicken, potato kugel, courgette kugel, green beans
Dessert: hot chocolate cake and ice cream

It doesn't seem very exciting to me! Post your ideas!!

Thanks

Marion

Sun, Oct 03 2010, 3:47 am

See to me a stir-fry can be part of the main...

Honestly, if I was being hosted by someone who I know works outside her home, I wouldn't expect so many courses. Do you need a starter AND a soup? Maximum I'd serve salads as a starter (although stir-fry IS easy!).

KAlex

Sun, Oct 03 2010, 3:54 am

Stir-fry, especially with rice, sounds like a main course to me as well (but this is presumably cultural). It'd be a good alternative to the chicken if you have vegetarian guests, though.

Otherwise it all only sounds like a boring menu if you're going to do exactly the same thing every single week. Perhaps you could at least alternate the kugels with some others.

Aidelmom

Sun, Oct 03 2010, 3:58 am

I wouldn't serve so many dishes. I would serve the stir fry instead of the green beans. If you can afford it or it's inexpensive in your area you can serve salmon for a starter . I've also made filleted fish (nile perch/nilus) in a pot with tomato sauce etc. (obviously that's not the whole recipe) and served it warm which is also delicious. It's also a minhag to serve fish. If you want a more exciting soup - but this is more work you can add lots of vegetables - sweet potato carrots potatoes , an onion, fresh garlic and blend it when its soft.

SingALong

Sun, Oct 03 2010, 3:24 pm

you can make some dips to go with challah as starters, and some of those can be made 2-3 days in advance, and no need to warm up. babaganush, madbucha, tomato dip, etc.

also, you can do marinated salads like cole slaw, cabbage salad, and prepare in advance to just put into serving bowls that night. that may alleviate you doing the work for the stir fry with rice.

pretty much any main/side dishes can be baked the night before and warmed up friday night, jsut make sure there's enough juice/water that it wont dry out.

chocolate moose

Sun, Oct 03 2010, 3:56 pm

We have a running thread here, with many menus and recipes here. I suggest you have a look at it, and see what appeals to you.

imabima

Sun, Oct 03 2010, 8:30 pm

SingALong wrote:

How do you make these? I love serving a bunch of dips and these sound yum. Thanks. Smile

Tova

Sun, Oct 03 2010, 9:43 pm

Like other posters said, I limit the number of dishes I make, instead focusing my energy on ensuring that each dish is plentiful, Shabbosdik, and tastes good.

Example -

Friday night:
- salmon or gefilta fish muffin plated on a piece of lettuce
- ONE salad that would appeal to all tastes
- soup
- roasted chicken (ie - duck sauce and onion powder)
- roasted potatos (made with chicken)
- cooked vegetable
- sweet side dish like apple kugel or cranberry cobbler
- max one more side dish if potatos are being served on the same platter as the chicken
- chocolate mousse and square of blondie for dessert

Shabbos day:
- same fish and salad
- cholent
- switch roasted chicken for shnitzel and roasted potatos for potato kugel
- same cooked veggie
- same sweet side dish
- same dessert

Mrs Bissli

Tue, Oct 05 2010, 9:48 am

Stir-fry tastes much better if prepared right before being served (not to mention comments by others it looks more like a main). I rely on salads and dips (can be store bought) as the first course if I'm not doing fish, for both Fri dinner and shabbat lunch. Rice, you can cook in advance and reheat as well, just make sure to fluff it up.

For mains you can cook in advance and tastes grate being reheated, I'd add brisket, braised lamb, pot roast and meatballs, apricot chicken. The trick is serving some kind of meat with gravy so it doesn't dry out. For beef and lamb, I prefer to cook a day before, refrigerate and skim off congealed fat.

Lani22

Tue, Oct 05 2010, 10:31 am

im not a big fan of meats cooked in liquid like brisket so I buy small london broils. I marinate then overnight and then 20 min before shabbas I put them under the broiler for 10 min on each side. I serve it room temp.