Hosting a Dinner Party in Less Than 400 Square Feet |

Hosting a Dinner Party in Less Than 400 Square Feet

December 3rd, 2010Blog, Foodie Recipes0 comments

So, I’m not sure why, but I decided to invite 8 people over for a holiday dinner party in my two room (not including the 2 closets, one also acting as a laundry room, and the small bathroom).

What could go wrong with…

most of the guests not knowing each other and being in such tight quarters
my TINY stove and oven
my never having before hosted a party (much less a dinner party)

Despite, or maybe because of, the challenges I was quite excited for the party and had fun planning the following menu…

Appetizer (to greet everyone with):

I sliced the top of a brie round and warmed it in the microwave for about 1 minute to melt it. This was served with thinly sliced apples and pears as well as li’l toasties. I also added in (last minute) a cinnamon basil jelly from a local farm; this was a huge hit.

1^st Course (probably about 30 minutes into the party):

I hand sliced two sweat potatoes into thin wedges and spread these onto a cookie sheet. Then sprinkled salt and pepper over them along with a healthy dose of olive oil. These went into an oven at 350 degrees (F) until tender.

The sweet potato wedges were served with a pear soup. This was made by coating halved and cored pears with melted brown sugar and butter (careful to keep this warm so it doesn’t harden before you’re done using it). Then, the pears and the rest of the brown sugar and butter mixture went into a blender until smooth.

Since the soup came out very thick, I added some chicken stock I had on hand to make sure I had enough for the guests (and to make sure they would still have room for the rest). I did have someone request the recipe to this the next day.

Main Course:

Here I had a selection of autumn vegetables (carrots, russet potatoes, garlic cloves, onion, fresh brussel sprouts, parsnips, wild mushrooms, and cauliflower). I sliced everything except the mushrooms and brussel sprouts to bite sized pieces. This was tossed with olive oil, salt, pepper, rosemary, thyme, oregano, and basil then spread on a cookie sheet. Then baked at 350F until tender.

This was served with quail (definitely easier to handle than a turkey!) that was marinated overnight in sweet black tea and a rub of Chinese 5 Spice and ground toasted peppercorns. Then, before roasting (save the marinade) I slipped a few garlic cloves into the cavities and slid a slice of lemon between the skin and breasts (this helps keep the meet moist while still letting the skin crisp and brown).

The quail than were roasted at 400F for about 20 minutes with occasional brushing with the left over marinade. This was also a huge hit. This can be easily adapted to any poultry, though I prefer the taste of the smaller Cornish Hen and Quail to Chicken and Turkey.

Desert:

I used the following recipe for pumpkin bread.

Ingredients

2 cups brown sugar
2 cups pumpkin puree (15/16oz canned)
2 eggs
1 cup oil
1 cup apple cider
4 1/2 cups whole wheat all-purpose flour
2 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
1 teaspoon each ground cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, salt
½ teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup raisins (or any dried fruit)
1 cup pine nuts (or whatever nut you prefer)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine brown sugar, pumpkin puree, eggs, oil, and cider. Add dry ingredients to pumpkin mixture and mix until moistened. Add raisins and walnuts and mix thoroughly. Divide the batter into 2 portions and pour into 2 greased loaf pans (I used glass). Place in oven and bake for 50 minutes. Cool in pans on a rack until room temperature. Remove from pans and serve.

Note: I discovered that with my oven the loaves didn’t need the full 50 minutes.

In case you couldn’t tell, I like to cook (yes this is all from scratch). Now, before you roll your eyes, I did decide to go with a small plate format to save on time and money (also, I don’t have the space for a full sit down dinner – don’t even have room for a dinner table)!

For beverages we had water, hard cider, beer, and a selection of local wines (2 red and 2 white). The preferred drinks were the cider and wine; though the only thing left at the end of the night was a single beer. The Carroll County, Maryland wineries I selected the wine for the party are Galloping Goose Vineyards and Cygnus Wine Cellars.