| Budget Party |
From "Ask DIY"
episode ADI-203 |
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Q: Help! I want to have a dinner party for some friends, but don't want to spend a lot of money. What advice can you give me?
A: (Jeanne Benedict, Ask DIY Entertaining Expert) You can throw a dinner party for eight people for under a hundred bucks. The secret is to use beautiful food as part of the decor, as well as the containers that it's in. Here are some tips: - Instead of making lasagna in a traditional pan, use cobalt blue or other decorative deep dish pie plate (figure A).
- Lasagna noodles are a great budget buy. A $2 box has enough noodles for four deep dish pie lasagnas. Make a traditional version following the recipe below, and also consider Asparagus & Prosciutto or Artichoke & Shrimp white lasagnas. And choose other vibrant colors for your fillings to accent your dC)cor, such as the colorful vegetables in a Four Cheese, Tomato and Red Pepper lasagna.
- To decorate the table, use fabric remnants and grab candles from around the house to use as a centerpiece, with a book as a riser and a glass plate beneath the candles..
- For an inexpensive place setting marker, tie a few dried flowers around a wine cork with a thin ribbon or string (figure B).
- Use mason jars filled with picturesque mushrooms, olives, beans or Italian vegetables to accent the table.
- Plates don't need to match, as long as they're all stoneware, or china.
- Serve, and display, bread and breadsticks in an open gallon-size olive oil can.
Budget Recipes:
Artichoke & Shrimp White Lasagna
Lasagna Layers
One 1-lb. box lasagna noodles
2 Tbs. olive oil
1 lb. bay shrimp
One 8-1/2 oz. can artichoke hearts, chopped
2 cups shredded Swiss Cheese
1/2 cup basil leaves, shredded
Lasagna Filling
2 Tbs. butter
2 Tbs. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 large leeks, washed and chopped
One 2-lb. container ricotta cheese
3 Tbs. fresh basil, finely chopped
2 eggs
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
White Sauce
1/2 cup butter
6 Tbs. all-purpose flour
1-3/4 cups chicken stock
2 cups half and half
1 cup fresh grated Parmesan
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. white pepper
Preparation: Add 1 teaspoon salt and 2 tablespoons olive oil to a large pot of water and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add lasagna noodles and cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Gently remove noodles with tongs and drape over the side of several pots or large bowls. Do not overlap noodles as they will stick to each other and tear. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add shrimp and cook for 2 minutes more until shrimp is pink. Remove from heat. Toss together scallops and artichoke in a large bowl. Cover bowl and set aside. Place cheese in another bowl and cover and set aside. Meanwhile, make lasagna filling. Heat butter, oil, and garlic in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add leeks and cook over medium-high heat until leeks are tender, about 8 minutes. Spoon Ricotta cheese into a large bowl. Add leeks, basil, eggs, salt and pepper and mix until blended. Cover bowl and set aside. To make White Sauce, melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in flour until smooth and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Add chicken stock a half cup at a time, stirring constantly, to incorporate liquid. Add cream and stir as sauce thickens. Stir in cheese until blended. Add a half cup of hot sauce to bowl with beaten eggs and stir to temper eggs. Add eggs to sauce and stir constantly for two minutes more, then remove from heat. Season with salt and pepper. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. To assemble lasagna, smear white sauce on the bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking pan. Or use 2 round ceramic pie plates trimming noodles to fit and divide layered ingredients between the 2 ceramic pie plates. For each layer in a 13 x 19-inch pan, lay 3 noodles, side by side, over bottom of pan. Cut broken noodles to fill in any gaps or extend the length of the pan. Dollop a half cup ricotta cheese mixture over noodles. Scatter one third of a cup of shrimp and artichoke over ricotta. Spoon one third of a cup of sauce over ingredients and top with a half cup of Swiss cheese. Repeat layers 3 more times or until at top of pie plate. Top final layer with noodles and spoon sauce over top. Scatter Swiss cheese over sauce. Bake for 45 minutes or until top is bubbling. Remove from oven and cool for 10 minutes. Precut lasagna into 3-inch squares or into wedges for pie plate and place on a trivet or hot plate on the buffet table. Garnish with shredded basil leaves. Store covered in the refrigerator or freezer and reheat before serving. Makes 12 servings Variation
Asparagus & Prosciutto White Lasagna Substitute 1-1/2 cups chopped, steamed Asparagus spears and 3/4 cup finely chopped Prosciutto for artichokes and shrimp in recipe. Four Cheese, Tomato, and, Red Pepper Lasagna Lasagna Layers One 1-lb. box lasagna noodles
2 Tbs. olive oil
2 red peppers, washed
4 Roma tomatoes, washed sliced crosswise
2/3 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese
2/3 cup shredded Provolone cheese
2/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Two 1-lb. jars prepared tomato pasta Sauce
1/2 cup basil leaves, shredded
Lasagna Filling 2 Tbs. butter
2 Tbs. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 large leeks, washed and chopped
One 2-lb. container ricotta cheese
3 Tbs. fresh basil, finely chopped
2 eggs
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
Add 1 teaspoon salt and 2 tablespoons olive oil to a large pot of water and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add lasagna noodles and cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Gently remove noodles with tongs and drape over the side of several pots or large bowls. Do not overlap noodles as they will stick to each other and tear. Cut off stems and remove seeds from peppers. Slice peppers into long slivers. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 15 minutes until peppers are tender. Transfer to bowl and set aside. Place tomatoes in another bowl and set aside. Mix together Mozzarella, Provolone, and, Parmesan in a bowl and set aside. Meanwhile, make lasagna filling. Heat butter, oil, and garlic in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add leeks and cook over medium-high heat until leeks are tender, about 8 minutes. Spoon Ricotta cheese into a large bowl. Add leeks, basil, eggs, salt and pepper and mix until blended. Cover bowl and set aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. To assemble lasagna, smear prepared red tomato sauce on the bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking pan. OR use two round ceramic pie plates trimming noodles to fit and divide layered ingredients between the two ceramic pie plates. For each layer in a 13 x 19-inch pan, lay 3 noodles, side by side, over bottom of pan. Cut broken noodles to fill in any gaps or extend the length of the pan. Dollop a half cup ricotta cheese mixture over noodles. Scatter a half cup of red peppers and a layer of sliced Roma tomatoes over ricotta. Spoon a third cup of sauce over ingredients and top with a half cup of cheese mixture. Repeat layers three more times or until at top of pie plate. Top final layer with noodles and spoon sauce over top. Scatter cheese mixture over sauce. Bake for 45 minutes or until top is bubbling. Remove from oven and cool for 10 minutes. Precut lasagna into 3-inch squares or into wedges for pie plate and place on a trivet or hot plate on the buffet table. Garnish with shredded basil leaves. Store covered in the refrigerator or freezer and reheat before serving. Makes 12 servings Variation Vegetarian Lasagna with Red Sauce
Substitute three cups of a chopped, cooked vegetable medley for Roma tomatoes and red peppers in recipe. A medley of zucchini, broccoli, yellow squash, and carrots is terrific! More Questions for Jeanne:
Q: I want to serve steak for several couples but not break the bank. Where would you suggest I cut back?
A: Don't cut back on the steaks. You do those, and let the guests bring the rest.
Q: I'm serving an Italian dinner and want to put out just one appetizer. What do you think it should be?
A: Slice up a baguette and make a bruschetta with a really good olive oil, tomatoes and fresh garlic and basil.
Q: I'm having a big party but I don't have a lot of table space. How can I manage that?
A: Use card tables under the table cloths. If they're not the same height as your dinner table put them up on books. Web site resources for Party on a Budget: Smashing Parties On A Budget from Stretcher.Com How to Plan a Dinner Party on a Budget from Ehow.Com Party On A Budget from Hungry Monster.Com Books: Sophisticated Entertaining: Spirited Food for Grown-Up Parties
by Jeanne Benedict
ISBN: 1557883459
Penguin-Putnam, Inc.
Hardcover, 320 pages (October, 2000)
Cheapskate Guide to Entertaining: How to Throw Fabulous Parties On A Modest Budget
by Cori Perkins
ISBN: 0806520388
Citadel Press (1998)
3300 Business Dr.
Sacramento, CA 95820
Phone: 916-456-6000
Fax: 916-732-2070 Dinner Party Cookbook: Menus, Recipes and Decorating Ideas for 21 Theme Parties
by Karen Brown
ISBN: 0671317274
Meadowbrook Press (1999)
5451 Smetana Dr.
Minnetonka, MN 55343
Phone: 612-930-1100
Fax: 612-930-1940
Web site: www.meadowbrookpress.com
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