Thanks, @doschicos
I’m doing your noodle salad, the rice/black bean salad, and a salmon salad that I found! I thought it might be a bit more unexpected than chicken salad. Which, is a delicious staple for sure, but pretty predictable. I’ll report back as to whether or not it is any good. Here is the recipe:
https://www.fifteenspatulas.com/summertime-salmon-salad-with-black-pepper-water-crackers/
That sounds like a good recipe! I love salmon and the dressing sounds similar to a remoulade which I also like.
Everything sounds wonderful!
I just did a hot summer night dinner which involved picking up two Costco rotisserie chickens , some NaN bead, taziki , hummus, sugar snap peas, carrots, rice crackers, avocado spread, cheese slices, precooked lentils from TJ and then a bag of some sort of leaf salad with sides of tomato and carrot and choice of dressing including a medley from TJs. And a wonderful champagne vinaigrette
I always provide ice water, iced tea, lemonade And hot coffee and tea. Any wines or beers are provided by the guests.
Dessert: macarons and a fruit tart would be my favorites or a pavlova, but those aren’t easy to make.
But it’s really not the food. You’ll be fine whatever you have there. Have an enjoyable luncheon!
Cold salad is fine. Not more than one pasta salad. I’ve been drinking a lot of rose lately - it’s nice and refreshing in the summer. We had a nice salad today from Plenty More - saute fennel, add cooked quinoa, fava beans, some currants, fresh mint and dill, and a little cumin, vinegar and olive oil. A dash of sugar and salt. Here it is: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2010/sep/25/quinoa-fennel-salad-recipe-ottolenghi
Now in Tampa- I get the weather et al. I like buffet style for similar sized gatherings. With H and I alone or plus the same numbers you are having it works well to set the variety of foods on a counter and let everyone put together their bowl/plate. and then go sit at the table. I would go with cold foods and variety. Some could be purchased from the grocery store deli- look at current sales. Those cut fruit bowls are a treat. A key is a variety of salads that people won’t usually go to the trouble of making for themselves. Either because they then end up with far too much or the trouble of chopping and prepping isn’t worth the effort. Consider having to go containers people can use to take home leftovers that would otherwise overwhelm you.
Chef’s salad means having prepped spinach, various nuts, fruits,veggies (tomatoes, cucumbers, radishes, bell peppers, carrots et al) dressings, cheeses and proteins such as ham, chicken and fish (the crab substitute is great). This way everyone gets to load up on favorites and ignore the one ingredient they dislike (walnuts for me) plus you won’t have a dressing prepped salad that may spoil before you get around to finishing the leftovers.
It was a hit! I am so happy I was encouraged to embrace a wide variety of flavors in my salads! I did three apps (prosciutto-wrapped asparagus with a balsamic glaze, frilly toothpicks with a Manchego cube, an arugula leaf, & a guava paste cube, and Belgian endive stuffed with Boursin cheese & toasted slivered almonds) and three salads (a black/bean rice Tex-Mex one, a dilly salmon salad, and the sesame noodle salad), and a key lime cheese cake in my Instant Pot for dessert! I had two types of crackers for the salmon salad if anyone wanted them. Aperol Spritzes, Prosecco, and white or red wine were my adult beverage offerings My only off thing was my noodles were a tad too al dente’.
It was so nice that everything had been made ahead so I could really enjoy my time with my friends. While our sunset at the beach between dinner and dessert was cloudy, the thunderstorms held off for us. Long-time (NOT old - ha ha!) friends are the BEST!
Thanks to all for the help!
Sounds wonderful, @Hoggirl! What a nice spread. I’m sure your guests felt spoiled and indulged.
I’m going to steal your manchego, arugula, guava app.
@doschicos - so easy and it looks cute on a plate. Don’t make the cubes too big ‘cause you really have to eat it all together in one bite. I don’t use a whole leaf of arugula. Just enough so there is a green sticking out some from between the stacked cubes. I love the sweet, salty, bitter combo of flavors and mix of textures. They are always a hit. You can also use quince paste. That was the original “recipe,” but I find guava paste more readily than quince, at least where I live.
@Hoggirl Glad your party was a hit! I see you tagged me with a question so now my question is, where on this new site should that have shown up??
I love the sound of that Manchego appetizer too. We’ve invited a couple over for dinner and garden viewing, but it’s going to be 100 degrees! And we’re going to see her garden first so it needs to be precooked. I’m thinking poached salmon and cucumber sauce and I like the idea of a couple of more interesting salads.
I admit I haven’t read the thread, but I’d recommend Basque Salad from The Silver Palate. People love it.
http://www.recipesource.com/fgv/salads/03/rec0339.html
For dessert, I’d buy a few really good fruit sorbets and serve three small round scoops in a glass or small bowl, accompanied by an excellent small cookie or two, which you can also buy. For an hors d’oeuvres, smoked trout mousse (I like the recipe in Martha Stewart’s Entertaining but there are many out there) or spuma di tona with sliced european cucumbers. Add endive leaves or barely blanched and shocked snow peas if you want, but an all-green presentation is elegant and delicious. Your cheese/quince thing would go well with this.
https://www.cookingchanneltv.com/recipes/michael-chiarello/tuna-mousse-spuma-di-tonno-1915250
@MaryBarbara58 - I work on an iPad, so I can still see a little number about new notifications on the bell symbol in my upper right hand corner. I get notifications if I’m tagged, receive a message, or if there are new posts in a thread I have bookmarked. I looked briefly at CC on my phone yesterday (something I rarely do), and I really understood why there were so many complaints about the new format.
@Hoggirl I used to have the bell, too (usually on MacBook Air)! There are now three lines in the upper left hand corner - when I clicked on them, my notifications were hidden there. It seems silly to have to click on something all the time just in case there’s a notification. Thanks for your help.
Heat wave here and Im enjoying these ideas! I also steal ideas from Starbucks meals they put together and all the cheese boards and plates out there on Instagram.
I like the salads idea. I recently got together with 4 friends for dinner (potluck) and we had chicken salad on croissants (cut into smaller pieces), a Greek salad, an arugula/raspberry salad, and a vegetable salad with goat cheese with yummy dressing, all served with sparking white wine. Delicious, healthy and filling.