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Forum -> Yom Tov / Holidays -> Shabbos, Rosh Chodesh, Fast Days, and other Days of Note
Fancy shabbos food to impress guests - need ideas!
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amother
OP


 

Post Sun, Jan 24 2021, 10:49 am
We are having a couple of important guests over for the Friday night meal and I would like to try and make some shmancy food but...I am a terrible cook! My repertoire includes grilled cheese, mac and cheese, baked chicken, and that's about the extent of my cooking skills.

So I want to make a few dishes that look like I put more effort into them, but are easy to execute.

Any ideas? Looking for recipes and a menu.

Thanks clever imas!
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amother
Ivory


 

Post Sun, Jan 24 2021, 11:10 am
Maybe a nice charcuterie board? Use a large wooden meat board ( if you don’t have one I’ve bought a large one at Amazing Savings for about $10-$15 if it’s near you, you could also try Walmart). Arrange different kinds of cold cuts, beef jerky, deli roll, grilled chicken, maybe some slices of roast, hasselback salami, with small bowls of different kinds of mustards and little pickles.
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amother
White


 

Post Sun, Jan 24 2021, 11:12 am
Friday night is an easier meal to host since you can fall back on traditional dishes. I’d serve challah with a variety of (bought) dips, salmon (a really presentable recipe that I like serving guests is the pistachio salmon in BY Cookbook #2), chicken soup, chicken/meat and potato kugel. Then, you can add some sides and/or salads to the main course to amp up the impressiveness. An easy side I like is rolled up chicken and pastrami (dip a piece of schnitzel in mayo ketchup mixture, lay it down in breadcrumbs (only one side), place a piece of pastrami on top, roll up and bake). You can also make an apple crumble type side, individual or one large one.
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amother
Denim


 

Post Sun, Jan 24 2021, 11:19 am
amother [ OP ] wrote:
We are having a couple of important guests over for the Friday night meal and I would like to try and make some shmancy food but...I am a terrible cook! My repertoire includes grilled cheese, mac and cheese, baked chicken, and that's about the extent of my cooking skills.

So I want to make a few dishes that look like I put more effort into them, but are easy to execute.

Any ideas? Looking for recipes and a menu.

Thanks clever imas!


is there a possibility to buy food and arrange nicely?
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amother
Jade


 

Post Sun, Jan 24 2021, 11:20 am
Second cut Corned beef is really easy to make and tastes delicious. Bake in a pan of water in the oven for a few hrs. Cool, slice, reheat with sauce yum.
Gefilte fish is really say to make and bought challah and dips are delicious but you can also have a sushi platter or make a side of salmon. It looks impressive and is really easy to make.
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ra_mom




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jan 24 2021, 11:28 am
amother [ OP ] wrote:
We are having a couple of important guests over for the Friday night meal and I would like to try and make some shmancy food but...I am a terrible cook! My repertoire includes grilled cheese, mac and cheese, baked chicken, and that's about the extent of my cooking skills.

So I want to make a few dishes that look like I put more effort into them, but are easy to execute.

Any ideas? Looking for recipes and a menu.

Thanks clever imas!

Stick with what you know. Use pretty platters to serve.
Make a whole roaster chicken, since you know how to make that, and it is very pretty to serve. Season the chicken all over including under the skin so that it's tasty. Lay out mini baby red potatoes in a very large baking pan so they are not crowded, and season them with oil, salt and pepper. Lay the whole chicken in the middle of the pan. Bake uncovered for 1.5 hours.
Serve it on a nice big platter with the whole chicken in the middle and the potatoes all around.


Last edited by ra_mom on Sun, Jan 24 2021, 12:01 pm; edited 2 times in total
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amother
Burgundy


 

Post Sun, Jan 24 2021, 11:29 am
I would serve

Challah. If you want to be fancy, get some sourdough bread as well.
6-8 Dips (store bought If you don't know how to make)
Salmon over angel hair pasta
Gefilte fish (if u like)
A couple of lettuce salads
Chicken soup, veggies, matza balls
Stuffed chicken or capons (I like the zucchini stuffing from purple cookbook)
Rice pilaf
Standing rib roast
Roasted potatoes
Roasted sweet potatoes
Green veggy (broccoli or string beans)
Dessert
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amother
Crimson


 

Post Sun, Jan 24 2021, 11:39 am
My go to add one would be standard corn beef and teriyaki string beans.
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amother
Ruby


 

Post Sun, Jan 24 2021, 11:40 am
amother [ Jade ] wrote:
Second cut Corned beef is really easy to make and tastes delicious. Bake in a pan of water in the oven for a few hrs. Cool, slice, reheat with sauce yum.
Gefilte fish is really say to make and bought challah and dips are delicious but you can also have a sushi platter or make a side of salmon. It looks impressive and is really easy to make.

Do u have a sauce recipe?
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amother
Ivory


 

Post Sun, Jan 24 2021, 11:42 am
amother [ Ruby ] wrote:
Do u have a sauce recipe?


Not that poster but I mix honey and mustard together till it’s the right balance of sweet and tangy and it’s delicious as a sauce.
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amother
OP


 

Post Sun, Jan 24 2021, 11:48 am
amother [ Denim ] wrote:
is there a possibility to buy food and arrange nicely?


I may have overstated my cooking abilities at some point when speaking to these people LOL LOL

So now I feel I have to do it myself. They would probably be able to tell if I just bought stuff in and replated it.
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amother
OP


 

Post Sun, Jan 24 2021, 11:51 am
amother [ Crimson ] wrote:
My go to add one would be standard corn beef and teriyaki string beans.


Thanks could you give me the recipe for the teriyaki string beans.
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rising hero




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jan 24 2021, 11:54 am
I check out @for_love_of_food or @dliciousdishes on Instagram when I need help with recipes. They both post easy and tried and tested recipes. I like that theyre not food "bloggerish". They dont do fancy photoshoots and tablescapes and all the non realistic things that make you feel incompetent.
(@for_love_of_food actually cooks food for people as a business)
If either of you are on here, thank you!
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sky




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jan 24 2021, 11:56 am
First course
Lots of salads, dips, olives, pickles.

Easy salmon - season salmon well with McCormick seafood seasoning.
https://www.amazon.com/McCormi.....8c0dd
Bake 25 min at 400
Plate individually. Put alfalfa sprouts cherry tomato on plate with drizzle of a salad dressing like salad mates lemon garlic.
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amother
Crimson


 

Post Sun, Jan 24 2021, 12:05 pm
amother [ OP ] wrote:
Thanks could you give me the recipe for the teriyaki string beans.


Its from Dinner Done. Put string beans in the pan, add about 4 cloves garlic minced, about 4 T teriyaki sauce, and some black pepper. Bake on 400 for like 20 minutes.
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MiriFr




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jan 24 2021, 12:28 pm
Have a bunch of dips out in nice bowls
Challah through soup is pretty standard. Maybe make an easy salmon that’s also pretty.
I would serve:
An interesting salad
Chicken poppers
Pulled beef or corned beef
And then a bunch of other finger food sides like egg rolls or mini hassleback salamis or carrot muffins
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amother
Periwinkle


 

Post Sun, Jan 24 2021, 1:05 pm
amother [ OP ] wrote:
I may have overstated my cooking abilities at some point when speaking to these people LOL LOL

So now I feel I have to do it myself. They would probably be able to tell if I just bought stuff in and replated it.


It’s ok! Leave that in the past. Right now just focus on making yummy food that is not too overwhelming to prepare and serve it with confidence! Don’t excuse yourself. It is possible to serve impressive food without working too hard or risking botching up if you make sure to keep things simple and use some of the advice these amazing women posted here. And yes you may cut corners by buying things here and there.
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Frumme




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jan 24 2021, 1:24 pm
Garlic confit is amazingly delicious and easy. Buy prepeeled garlic. Add olive oil to cover. Add fresh or dried rosemary, thyme, ginger, oregano, basil, paprika, chili flakes, plus salt & pepper (or whatever spices you'd like). Bake at 350 for 50-60 min (check closely near the end. But otherwise it's set it and forget it).

Baked gefilte fish. Run frozen log under cool water for a minute to loosen it from the parchment. Place on pan, rub oil over it, and sprinkle Everything But the Bagel spice all over. Bake for 1-1/2 - 2 hrs at 350. Let cool, slice, serve.

Pasta salad with cubed salmon. Or cubed salmon in vinaigrette https://www.kosher.com/recipe/.....e-198

For main course, if you have a grill pan, we like to do chicken skewers like this: https://therecipecritic.com/gr.....51882

Use dark meat and it will sound fancy when you say you're serving "pargiot" for dinner. Lol.

Serve with mashed potatoes with sauteed onions wrapped in puff pastry, with mushroom gravy on the side.

Veggie can be roasted asparagus with olive oil + balsamic, or glazed shishito peppers with garlic, ginger, soy sauce, and honey.

For dessert, cut a puff pastry sheet into squares. Peel and thinly slice a pear or two. Toss the pear with some brown sugar, cinnamon, and a pinch of salt. Arrange pear slices nicely on each puff pastry square (like a cascade, or slightly layered, or in a pattern etc). Bake at 375 for 15-20 min. When done, brush maple syrup lightly over each square. Voila, pear tartlets!
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gold2




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Jan 24 2021, 2:39 pm
For dessert, buy puff pastry squares or a roll and cut it yourself. Fill each square with a piece of pareve chocolate and seal the edges. Bake until browned. Can serve warm. Delicious!! Tastes like an authentic French croissant.

I also have a delicious chocolate souffle recipe which is so easy and tastes great, you can serve it with ice cream. let me know if you want it.

Jamie Geller has a delicious recipe for roast chicken and baby vegetables on her blog.

I wouldn't stress myself out with it to make extra fancy food if you're not used to it. When having guests I like to make recipes that I know for sure come out good even though usually I like to experiment so that it shouldn't flop. If you know how to make simpler recipes but they come out good, just make those. It's not worth the stress.
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Frumme




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Jan 26 2021, 4:11 am
gold2 wrote:
For dessert, buy puff pastry squares or a roll and cut it yourself. Fill each square with a piece of pareve chocolate and seal the edges. Bake until browned. Can serve warm. Delicious!! Tastes like an authentic French croissant.


I've done the chocolate puff pastry in a pinwheel like this:



Looks gorgeous and is super easy
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