Party
396 recipes found
Lamb Stew With Rosemary and Olives
This warming lamb stew is good any time of year, but especially great in winter. Best of all, it can be prepared well in advance, even a day before serving, and reheats beautifully. You can ask a butcher to cut the lamb shoulder into cubes; there will be less waste, but avoid precut lamb stew meat, which is made from leg and often too lean.
Orange Ricotta Crepes
Knowing how to make crepes is a great back-pocket trick, letting you whip together a lovely dessert (or breakfast, or even afternoon snack) in not very long at all. This orange-ricotta version is best prepared in advance, even the day before. (If you do, stack crepes, wrap and refrigerate.) Count on one or two crepes per person. Spread each with filling and fold into quarters well in advance of serving.
Kristen Kish’s Squash and Coconut Milk Custard
In my take on a Thai dish called sankaya faktong, roasted squash halves are filled with coconut milk that’s cooked into a savory crème brûlée of sorts — delightfully jiggly — then topped with brown butter and walnuts. I like to serve it as a starter or as a side with roasted chicken; the coconut flavor gives the squash that sweet-savory mix. This recipe, adapted from “Kristen Kish Cooking” (Clarkson Potter, 2017), is a great autumn dish that would make a nice veggie option at Thanksgiving.
Shrimp Cocktail With Cranberry Cocktail Sauce
Imagine cocktail sauce, but with a fresh, fruity tang. That’s what you get when cranberries take the place of tomatoes in a dipping sauce with the welcome bite of horseradish mellowed by the woodsy sweetness of maple syrup. As special as it tastes, it requires only blending in a food processor. Be sure to use frozen cranberries straight from the freezer, which will purée into a smooth, tasty dip. (Fresh cranberries won’t break down as much as you try to blitz them and their sour bite is too sharp.) This fun spin on shrimp cocktail is a welcome-mat appetizer to a Thanksgiving feast, but also fun for any party.
Perfect Manhattan
All these years later, the formula for the manhattan, a late-19th-century classic, remains the same: two-parts whiskey, one-part vermouth, plus bitters, stirred over ice and served up. Making it “perfect” simply means splitting the traditional sweet vermouth into equal parts sweet and dry. While this recipe calls for rye whiskey, lending spiced notes to the final drink, bourbon is a fine substitute. As for the garnish, a cherry will sweeten the drink slightly (as well as provide a boozy snack), while a lemon twist brightens.
Coffee Jelly With Salted Caramel Whipped Cream
Topped with dollops of freshly whipped salted caramel cream, this soft Japanese coffee jelly makes the perfect post-dinner pick-me-up — and is essentially a sweetened espresso in jiggly form. For some contrast to the jellied and creamy textures, the dessert is topped with a sprinkle of crunchy flaky salt as well as cacao nibs. It’s a great dessert to prepare in advance and assemble in front of your guests. For some extra zhuzh, you can douse the cubed coffee jelly in flavored liqueurs, like coffee, orange or chocolate – and you’ll get bonus points for using dainty little coupe glasses!
Easy Baked Mac and Cheese
You don’t have to boil the pasta ahead to make this easy baked macaroni and cheese. The noodles will absorb enough moisture from the milk to cook through while the pan is in the oven. Enriched with cream cheese (or cottage cheese, ricotta or sour cream, depending on what you have), and topped with plenty of Cheddar and a crunchy, Parmesan-spiked bread-crumb topping, it’s a simple, adaptable and crowd-pleasing recipe that you can probably even make from what’s already in your pantry.
Potato Pavé With Parmesan Crust
In the long line of elaborate potato recipes like pommes dauphine, hasselback gratin and Jannsson’s temptation, the pavé feels uniquely party-worthy. While typically found on restaurant menus, it’s perfectly doable at home, with a little patience and effort (in the way of peeling and slicing five pounds of potatoes, but a mandoline makes it easy work). Prepare and chill the terrine in advance so you can simply sear the pieces when ready to serve. This pavé strays from tradition with the addition of cheese: Dip each piece in shredded Parmesan to coat on two sides, then sear until the cheese fuses into a salty frico crust. You could sear all sides, if desired, but two requires less energy — and also highlights the lovely contrast between the crunchy frico crust and the creamy center, which holds pure potato flavor.
Saag Paneer Lasagna
While writing her cookbook “Amrikan” (W. W. Norton & Company, 2024), Khushbu Shah became convinced that a spinach lasagna could be greatly improved by swapping in the flavors of saag paneer for the filling. It’s a dish she jokingly refers to as “lasaagna.” Ms. Shah uses a saag base made with warm spices, spinach, cilantro and dried fenugreek leaves (which are optional but highly encouraged, and add a beautiful earthy note to the sauce), and then adds fistfuls of grated paneer for an extra punch of cheese. Many of the lasagna’s components may be made ahead (see Tips), making assembly a breeze, especially when making this dish for a dinner party or as a vegetarian meal during the holidays.
Maple-Roasted Squash With Charred Lemon
This colorful roasted squash dish is both bracing and sweet. Charred bits of lemon balance the maple syrup, which almost candies the squash as it roasts, while cardamom and coriander add a perfumed, sophisticated touch. Using a mix of winter squashes will give you the most interesting flavors and textures since they’re all a little different. Any combination of delicata, butternut, honey nut and kabocha works very well. The only variety to avoid is acorn, which has a starchier texture that doesn’t absorb the syrup as well as the others.
Cranberry Pudding
Think of this dessert as a more colorful, autumnal version of banana pudding. This pudding uses cranberries in place of bananas as its main flavor component. With layers of tart, silky cranberry curd, dollops of sweetened whipped cream and soft vanilla wafers tucked between, it’s a dessert to remember. At first glance, the number of steps might seem intimidating, but all you’re really making from scratch is the cranberry curd, which simply involves blending the simmered cranberries, mixing them with eggs and butter, then cooking until thickened. Serve the pudding cold, scooped into dainty little serving bowls.
Bhel Puri for a Party
Bhel puri — a type of chaat made with puffed rice, chutneys and various toppings — is the ultimate entertaining dish, whether you are hosting or bringing a dish to a potluck. Most of it can be prepared in advance, leaving mostly the assembly which allows you to really put on a show for your guests. You can make a good chaat with store-bought chutneys and bhel mix. But it’s the homemade chutneys and fried tortilla strips that make this exceptional, providing the sweet-salty-fresh-crunchy combination that is the hallmark of chaat. The ingredient list is long, but after you make the chutneys, you are 80 percent of the way there. When you have the components prepared, set them out in bowls, invite all your guests to gather around, and make your chaat live, tasting and tossing for everyone to see.
Fire Crackers
This spicy, savory snack, also known as Alabama fire crackers or comeback crackers, is of unclear origin but beloved in the South. Though fire crackers are traditionally prepared using saltines, oyster crackers are also common — and the choice here because they’re fun to devour by the handful. Classic fire crackers are marinated with store-bought ranch seasoning and red pepper flakes then baked until crisp and golden. This version calls for a quick, homemade ranch-inspired blend. These crackers will stay fresh for up to one week, making them ideal for impromptu holiday gatherings and gifting alike.
Herby Cottage Cheese Dip
Cottage cheese provides a rich and creamy base for this herb-packed dip that makes a perfect appetizer, snack or light lunch along with crudités and bread or crackers. A handful of browned onions give the dip a depth of flavor more impressive than the work it took to achieve it. Salt levels vary quite a bit from brand to brand of cottage cheese, so make sure to taste as you go and adjust the salt and pepper to your liking.
Gingerbread Layer Cake With Mascarpone Cream
This moist gently spiced cake would be delicious on its own but slathered with an extra-creamy mascarpone frosting it becomes divine, each cutting the richness of the other in just the right way. A classic cream cheese frosting would also be good, adding a slight tang to the overall cake. Be sure to use regular, unsulphured molasses. Blackstrap molasses is too strong for most baking and its use will result in a dense, unpleasant cake. For easy cleanup, measure the vegetable oil before the molasses and honey — the residual oil should help the sticky ingredients slide out with ease.
Green Beans With Lime and Red Onions
Snappy and bright, these green beans are ready in minutes and full of tangy lime, garlic and coriander. The streamlined technique makes these very easy to do in one pan. Just add the beans and a little water to the skillet to steam them. Then, after the water cooks off, add the oil and aromatics and sauté until the garlic turns golden at the edges and the beans absorb all of the flavors. These beans are great both warm and at room temperature, so feel free to make them a few hours ahead, and garnish with herbs and onions just before serving.
Red Cabbage With Walnuts and Feta
Roasting wedges of red cabbage intensifies their sweetness and caramelizes their edges. Here, they’re topped with bits of creamy feta, toasted walnuts for crunch and lemon zest and pomegranate seeds for a juicy tang. Serve these warm or at room temperature for a substantial side dish or light main course. This recipe will also work for a small head of green cabbage, though it may cook a bit faster.
Giant Roasted Vegetable Platter
A giant platter of colorful roasted vegetables is a perfect party side that you can make in advance. The vegetables can be cut up the day before and stored in the fridge. You can roast them a few hours before serving, and reheat them for 7 to 15 minutes at 350 to 400 degrees (they are very forgiving) or serve them at room temperature. Then garnish to your heart’s content – a mix of jewel-like pomegranate seeds, cumin or sesame seeds, herbs, swirls of garlicky yogurt and dashes of hot honey will make everything pop. To make a vegan version of this dish, you can substitute tahini sauce for the yogurt sauce and skip the hot honey.
Ras el Hanout Roasted Vegetables
This flavorful dish makes a versatile side that can complement a variety of main courses. Infused with ras el hanout (see Tip), a warm and aromatic spice blend from North Africa, it’s ideal for sharing or preparing ahead of a busy week. Roasting the vegetables enhances their natural sweetness, creating a crispy exterior and a tender, melt-in-your-mouth interior. Cutting root vegetables into evenly sized pieces ensures they will cook at the same rate while maximizing surface area, allowing for enhanced flavor absorption and more caramelization. For carrots and parsnips, cut the thinner ends into chunks, then halve the thicker ends lengthwise before cutting into chunks.
Crunchy Brussels Sprouts and Apple Slaw
Finely shaved brussels sprouts provide a robust structure for this crave-worthy salad, their mildly bitter leaves emboldened by a sweet and tart maple-and-mustard dressing. Every element of this salad works hard to make this slaw memorable: Apple provides sweet, fruity bursts; the shallot injects aromatic appeal; the almonds bring much-needed crunch; the mint lends bright herbaceousness; and salty pecorino imparts essential sharpness. Serve with bread, or enjoy as a leafy side accompanying a main. An excellent choice for entertaining, this salad can hang around for a while.
Spicy Green Tahini Dip
This dairy-free dip gets its creamy texture from cooking the leaves and stems of Swiss chard until they are very tender before blending them with a spoonful of tahini. The mint leaves and zest and juice of the lemon give a fresh vibrancy. Feel free to try other hearty greens such as kale or mature spinach—just don’t use the stems as they can be quite tough and fibrous even after cooking. The tahini can also be swapped out for other seed or nut butters like sunflower or cashew.
Baked Turkey Wings
If you love chicken wings (or even turkey), then you may very well adore turkey wings. A new way to enjoy a classic, they’re also an easy Thanksgiving option, since you don’t have to cook the entire bird. Covered in a simple smoky, garlicky rub and baked low and slow, they become tender and juicy, with pull-apart meat. A final roast uncovered gives them some much welcome color and flavor, ready to be served at the holiday table – or even as a wintry weekend dinner.
Milk Buns with Salted Maple Butter
Light, fluffy, feathery milk buns with a salted maple butter glaze and flakey sea salt. The perfect addition to any dinner party or holiday feast!
Chocolate Amaretti Cookies
A platter of cookies is always a welcome sight, and these chocolate amaretti, made with almond flour, cocoa, egg whites and a dash of almond extract, are so simple to prepare. These almost beg for an espresso as accompaniment, or a small glass of dessert wine. With their crisp exterior and chewy interior, what’s not to love?