I once threw a dinner party
Way back in the day, I became ambitious. And I decided to throw a dinner party. Okay, it wasn't that long ago. It was at the beginning of March. It feels like ages ago though.
I decided to throw a dinner party because I had a recipe I really, really wanted to try but knew I wouldn't be able to consume the entire dish. And I thought about my cookbook challenge. It seemed like a good idea. I could make the one recipe I really wanted to try, I could make things from cookbooks I had yet to use and I could be proactive and actually invite friends to hang out for a fun evening. And so, I had a dinner party.
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The recipe I had really wanted to make was the rosemary chicken lasagna. Three of the items, I had made before -- the warm blue cheese dip, Mom's garlic bread and the tiramisu.
I invited quite a few friends and ultimately it ended up being a small gathering of three of us. It worked considering my dining table only seats four. The fact that anyone showed up, well, that is a win for me. Out of fear of rejection and feeling like I'm imposing or being a burden, I never actually initiate plans to hang out with friends. It is a major flaw and I'm trying to challenge myself to conquer it. I'll sometimes mention to people there is an event going on or wouldn't it be fun to eat here or see a specific movie but I never say "Hey, let's go see movie X this weekend." Nope. I do not do that. It terrifies me. I can't explain why. It just does. So this dinner party -- huge deal.
The food turned out delicious!
A lot was pretty simple to make. The lasagna was time intensive but not that bad. Two of the recipes are diabetic friendly (tiramisu and the green beans). Wasn't a huge fan of the mixed nuts but they weren't horrible. My friends (non-diabetics) even said the tiramisu was restaurant worthy. To manage the menu, I prepared some items (applesauce and tiramisu) the day before. I prepped the dip in the morning and then made the lasagna around lunch. The dip finished baking when everyone showed up and then the lasagna reheated while the green beans roasted. While all of that cooled a little bit, I grilled the garlic bread under the broiler for a minute and then -- ta da -- we ate!
Since I'm known for always making cookies and treats I sent home treat boxes with my friends.
Those were all really delicious treats. And at the last minute the night before my dinner party, I made chocolate chip cookies, so they were all sent home with those cookies too. My favorite of the treats were the iced oatmeal cookies but the peanut butter marshmallow bars were a dream come true. The other item I made were rolo pretzel brownies -- all from scratch.
So, that was my first dinner party. Most importantly, I had a blast. Not just in making everything but more importantly spending quality time with friends. Considering the theme I had given my dinner party (Goodbye winter, hello spring!), I'm toying with the idea of throwing a dinner party four times a year -- each time the seasons change. We shall see. Overall, it challenged me out of my comfort zone and that is a good thing. A bonus? All of the food turned out to be delicious!
I decided to throw a dinner party because I had a recipe I really, really wanted to try but knew I wouldn't be able to consume the entire dish. And I thought about my cookbook challenge. It seemed like a good idea. I could make the one recipe I really wanted to try, I could make things from cookbooks I had yet to use and I could be proactive and actually invite friends to hang out for a fun evening. And so, I had a dinner party.
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| My menu! |
The recipe I had really wanted to make was the rosemary chicken lasagna. Three of the items, I had made before -- the warm blue cheese dip, Mom's garlic bread and the tiramisu.
I invited quite a few friends and ultimately it ended up being a small gathering of three of us. It worked considering my dining table only seats four. The fact that anyone showed up, well, that is a win for me. Out of fear of rejection and feeling like I'm imposing or being a burden, I never actually initiate plans to hang out with friends. It is a major flaw and I'm trying to challenge myself to conquer it. I'll sometimes mention to people there is an event going on or wouldn't it be fun to eat here or see a specific movie but I never say "Hey, let's go see movie X this weekend." Nope. I do not do that. It terrifies me. I can't explain why. It just does. So this dinner party -- huge deal.
The food turned out delicious!
 |
| Most of the dinner food -- I forgot to take pictures of the mixed nuts and garlic bread. Oops! |
A lot was pretty simple to make. The lasagna was time intensive but not that bad. Two of the recipes are diabetic friendly (tiramisu and the green beans). Wasn't a huge fan of the mixed nuts but they weren't horrible. My friends (non-diabetics) even said the tiramisu was restaurant worthy. To manage the menu, I prepared some items (applesauce and tiramisu) the day before. I prepped the dip in the morning and then made the lasagna around lunch. The dip finished baking when everyone showed up and then the lasagna reheated while the green beans roasted. While all of that cooled a little bit, I grilled the garlic bread under the broiler for a minute and then -- ta da -- we ate!
Since I'm known for always making cookies and treats I sent home treat boxes with my friends.
 |
| Treat boxes! |
Those were all really delicious treats. And at the last minute the night before my dinner party, I made chocolate chip cookies, so they were all sent home with those cookies too. My favorite of the treats were the iced oatmeal cookies but the peanut butter marshmallow bars were a dream come true. The other item I made were rolo pretzel brownies -- all from scratch.
So, that was my first dinner party. Most importantly, I had a blast. Not just in making everything but more importantly spending quality time with friends. Considering the theme I had given my dinner party (Goodbye winter, hello spring!), I'm toying with the idea of throwing a dinner party four times a year -- each time the seasons change. We shall see. Overall, it challenged me out of my comfort zone and that is a good thing. A bonus? All of the food turned out to be delicious!
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