125 Best Entertaining Recipes

Julia Aitken is a food writer, editor and cookbook author with decades of cooking and writing experience.

Entertaining 101

Let's get two things straight right off the top: Number one, inviting friends over for dinner doesn't have to be scary or stressful; number two, there are no food police. A certain blond is not going to burst into your kitchen brandishing a glue gun if you screw something up or if you cheat.

Which is fortunate because cheating is a big part of entertaining. There isn't a chef in this world who single-handedly prepares, serves and clears up meals for his customers. There's always a highly trained team of helpers both in the kitchen and out front - scurrying around helping to make Chef look good. So, why is it, when we entertain at home, we think we must do everything ourselves?

Here's where the cheating comes in. If you absolutely love to cook and think there's no better way to spend a day than puttering in the kitchen preparing for a dinner party (and I have to confess, I'm one of those weird people who do), then go ahead and make the whole meal from scratch.

If, on the other hand, you have a life, prepare an appetizer and main course, but buy a beautiful fruit pie for dessert, or simply serve fresh fruit and a selection of cheeses for "afters." If you'd prefer to create a luscious dessert yourself, then opt for a simple pasta main course to serve with purchased bread and a salad of mesclun, those baby greens now available in most large supermarkets.

Which brings us to grocery shopping. Who has the time? So, all the recipes in this book use ingredients available in most large supermarkets with just one or two detours needed to your local bulk-food store for items such as dried fruits.

I've structured this book to reflect a typical menu and you'll find dishes here that can be mixed and matched. There are nibbles to snack on with drinks while dinner's cooking, appetizers and soups to eat at the dining table, followed by main courses, accompaniments, salads then desserts. Feel free to create a whole meal from the book, or simply select an appetizer or a dessert you like the sound of and team it with a favorite main course of your own.

Whatever you choose to do, remember to have fun cooking and don't try to tackle more than you can comfortably handle. Your guests would far rather enjoy a simple meal, in the company of a relaxed and happy host, than plow through a six-course banquet while you collapse frazzled and exhausted in the corner.

Entertaining 101
My top twenty tips for entertaining
The prudent host's pantry
Dinner party survival kit
A word about wine

Pre-dinner nibbles

• 9 recipes

Sit-down appetizers

• 11 recipes

Soups

• 9 recipes

Pastas and breads

• 12 recipes

Fish, seafood and vegetarian

• 15 recipes

Poultry

• 8 recipes

Meat

• 14 recipes

Side dishes

• 17 recipes

Salads

• 13 recipes

Desserts

• 26 recipes

Index