Ideas for food that can be prepared in advance

It was very good, CurlyWhirly, with Jersey potatoes.

We have something similar with sausages but also with garlic and mushrooms in the mix too, but never had it with salmon before.

Callistemon21 we had it last night! Great minds think alike eh? We also had it with new potatoes - but I halved them and put them in with the veg to roast (one less pan to wash 🙄).

Doodledog, that sounds nice! I wouldn't have bothered with a cooked starter, in fact I probably wouldn't have done a starter! You could easily put out a few dishes of nuts or olives with chilled wine/beer.

Have fun, and let us know how it went.

Curlywhirly

Roasted Mediterranean veg with salmon. Slice the veg (3 different coloured peppers, cougettes, quartered onions, cherry tomatoes) place in a plastic bag night before. When ready to cook, drizzle olive oil in the bag when all veg is coated in the oil place on a baking sheet. Roast in oven 180° for 40 minutes- 10 minutes before the end of cooking time place salmon fillets in oven. Serve with crusty bread or new potatoes. If you put the veg in the oven as soon as you get home, by the time your guests have arrived and had a quick pre-dinner drink, the meal will be ready.

I'm making that tonight with new potatoes 🙂

We'll bring wine
And chocs
😁

I'll lay a few extra places

It sound good!

What time shall we all come round?

Thanks again for all the ideas - they are making me hungry. I knew I could rely on you lot .

I keep changing my mind, but think I will go for garlic mushrooms on sourdough toast, then chicken pie or sausage casserole with roast or dauphinoise potatoes, and I have a chocolate ganache in the freezer which I will defrost and top with poached cherries and cream. I can make most of that in advance, and if I do the pie crust separately can reheat the filling in a saucepan, pour it into the dish then top with the pastry. The mushrooms will reheat easily and if I prepare the cherries the day before it's just a case of topping the ganache and adding the cream.

I shall return to this thread when my turn comes round again.

I would set the table and do the vacuuming the day before then it can be all about the meal on the day.
I'd have a Mediterranean inspired meal. A sherry aperitif (served in a large glass over ice and a slice of orange)
Then Italy - Antipasti to start (cold meats, olives, artichokes, sundried tomatoes), and "fresh" warm bread rolls (buy the semi cooked ones and cook for 10 minutes whilst arranging antipasti prettily - and nothing beats the smell of freshly cooked bread!).
Then Greece - Moussaka (always better for being prepped the day before and reheated) and a nice Greek salad.
And for dessert, Paris Brest - choux pastry ring, filled with fresh cream, stem ginger in syrup and sliced mangoes. (Make the choux ring the day before and slice up the mangoes (or use tinned peaches), then on the day just fill and serve.
An Irish Baileys as a digestif and some Swiss chocolates to round it off. Job done!

So many of these recipe timings depend (of course) on the oven already being hot! Not much use if you have to turn the oven on when you get in and wait for it to heat up!

Riverwalk

Or you could assemble a chicken tray bake night/morning before... chicken thighs, red onions, whole garlic cloves, peppers, courgettes, seasonings etc., and as soon as you arrive home put in the oven. Takes about an hour, once the oven is hot. Something like this:

www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/harissa-chicken-traybake

I would also suggest something like this, perhaps with additional sweet pepper chunks?
You could also make a chicken tray bake with tagine paste and preserved lemons and prunes? I found one on the BBC site www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/chicken_tagine_traybake_82093 (have not made it but it looks interesting).
Both would be fine with a very simple boiled rice, couscous or bulgar wheat.

I make Pan Roasted Chicken and Vegetables the day before whenever I am having guests. Everyone loves it and it looks sooo pretty. Recipe can be found on pamperedchef.com

Ham. Brilliant idea, Lyndie!

Azalea just what I did for guests I had on Saturday but I cooked a ham in advance as well. Just fresh summer fruits for dessert.

Some sort of quiche, new potatoes cooked on the day, and salad.
Could start with gazpacho or other chilled soup -( my favourite is chilled cucumber soup) & definitely buy a dessert!

I'd go for a chilli, vegetarian if you wish, or a pot of both

Mary Berry’s sausage supper can be prepared the day before, then the shallow dish of ingredients placed in the oven. She adds the wine/stock about 20 minutes before cooking time finishes. The cooking dish is also the serving dish so saves on washing up. Serve with some crunchy French bread to mop up the juices. If you don’t want to use sausage, chicken thighs could be substituted, I would think.
The recipe is available on line.

A visit to M&S food hall?

Shepherd’s Pie, on a slow, covered reheat in the oven. Mashed potatoes take a long time to get the chill out of them (longer than the meat portion.)

Chicken Tetrazzini? (mushrooms sautéed in butter, chix soup, sour cream with chopped cooked chicken, poured over cooked spaghetti, topped with Lots of Parmesan.) Refrigerate and bake on day of, covered, then last 10 mins uncovered. Fabulous with cranberry sauce!

Chicken Divan (broccoli and mushrooms) refrigerated and baked day of - OR - baked and slow reheat and served with rice (you can cook on day of.

Any of the above served with a fruit salad.
Don’t forget the🍷!
Cheers!
USA Gundy
PS - how about buying a Lemon Meringue pie?)

I made coronation chicken the day before with salad and new potatoes followed by summer pudding all made the day before. It was such an easy delicious meal for guests

Campbells soup website - cheesy chicken and rice casserole- one pot dish. It’s really lovely.

In my experience the only things you cannot prepare in advance and heat up before serving are soft-boiled, fried or poached eggs and fried fish.

I would make a shepherd's pie or a pot of soup the day before, when I had time and do the hoovering then too, and set the table the evening before as well.

When you come home on the day the visitors are coming, turn on the oven and pop the shepherd's pie in it - it will need about 45 minutes at 180 degrees centigrade in a hot air oven, and the same time at 200 degrees in an ordinary one.

The soup can be heated much more quickly, as long as you have not thickened it with egg yolks, which will curdle if the soup boils, Ordinary soups should be allowed to boil through so you are sure there are no surviving germs in what you serve. Put the soup on a low heat, if you want to take a quick shower before the guests arrive, then turn it up, once you are, as my father would have said, "clothed and in your right mind" again - in other words what the French call "visible".

My grandmother always set her breakfast table the evening before, turning the tea cups upside down on their saucers, an aunt of the same generation set her tea table before visitors arrived and covered it, as was common amongst her generation of Scotswomen with a net table cloth to keep of flies, wasps, dust etc.

Just realised you mentioned this yesterday Doodledog apologies.

(I was skipping along too quickly as there seemed to have been several pasta suggestions. You probably have your own parmigiana method!)

This is how to make the aubergine dish (which came from "Salvos" Italian restaurant in Leeds):

parmigiana di melanzane

this recipe features cooked aubergines layered with mozzarella, tomato sugo, parmesan then baked as you would a lasagne. it is simple to make with a 1001 variations. you can pan fry, grill, bake or batter and fry the aubergines to start. you could use a meat ragu as the sugo, any cheese you fancy, ham etc. yesterdays left over arrabiata made a great layer too!
🧂🍆🍅🧀🥚

"Make a nice tomato sugo by cooking down fresh ripe tomatoes (ideally) in olive oil with some garlic and finely chopped onion and lastly basil.

Separately, whisk together eggs, pepper and salt with some grated pecorino. You will also need some grated parmesan (or pecorino Romano if you prefer) and chopped cows milk mozzarella.

Slice the aubergines 1\2 cm thick.

Flour the aubergine and dip into the egg mix - it may be a bit too thick so loosen it with a tablespoon of water or milk.

Gently shallow fry on both sides in plenty of oil and rest on kitchen paper turning them to absorb any surplus oil. they will have a nice tasty omelettey surround. .

now, in a deep dish layer the ingredients. sauce on bottom - aubergines, sauce - cheeses and turn of pepper grinder. repeat to 3 layers and leave out mozzarella on top layer..

bake at 180 for 40 minutes. keep your eye on it and turn down to 160 if necessary. put some mozzarella on for the last 10 minutes.

leave to rest for 20 minutes before eating.

I have not put any weights and measures on this recipe.

2 or 3 aubergines would depend on the size of by baking dish, I know half a decent sized aubergine with a tea cup of sugo and a small handful of cheese is plenty for 1 person and can work it out from there, give it a go and be pleasantly surprised."

I like mine with a salad.
Thank you Salvos

I would make an Aubergine Parmigiana. Very easy, delicious hot cold or (as it should be) warm.

Great made one day and cooked the next!
Yum yum!