I have heard it said that you should never try making a new dish for the first time when having people over for dinner. Meh. Whatever. I get the point. I mean, you don't want to be stumbling through a long, unfamiliar recipe when you have hungry people at your table. But I like making new things. In my mind, what better excuse is there to try out a new dish than having people over for dinner? Live a little.
So, with a family member visiting from California, I decided to invite her and my parents over for a sit down dinner. To go easy on myself, I chose a very simple dish to make from Ricardo - Chicken with Olives and Grilled Lemon. The flavours had me thinking of Mediterranean and Moroccan cuisines. So I whipped up a spiced whole wheat couscous salad to go with the chicken. Served with a green salad and a fruity white wine, it was a really lovely dinner.
The only thing I changed in the chicken recipe was the olives. The recipe called for green olives packed in oil, but the grocery store I shopped at didn't have any. What?! I know. I had to get back to the preschool to pick up my youngest and didn't have time to get to another store, so I grabbed some brined olives from a jar instead, and of course the dish was still very tasty.
I don't actually use recipes very often, which is maybe odd for a recipe writer. But I do love Ricardo magazine, and get a lot of inspiration from each issue. Whether it's a new idea for a quick weeknight dinner or an adorably-presented entertaining dessert, the content is fresh and family-focused. I also love that that it just oozes Canadian charm.
Needing some inspiration? Check out the entire collection of Ricardo chicken recipes and try something new! Maybe even when people are coming over.
Do you try new dishes when you're having people over? Or do you stick with the tried and true?