| maja |
| (member) |
| 27/08/2008 13:11 |
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PANIC ATTACK....
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....and my mind has gone totaly blank!
Just got an email from a dear friend who wants to visit this weekend, and it would be lovely to have her, only...my house is a total wreck, I donīt have ANYTHING worth calling food in the house, the guestbed is probably furry with cathair, AND I wont be home until 20.00 tonight, tomorrow and if things donīt cooperate on friday as well....
Need to shop urgently saturday morning
Please please, does anyone have suggestions for real easy, preferably quick as well (donīt have a lot of energy) meals to serve, that are still special and nice...????
Dinner saturday night, and sunday lunch....donīt even suggest take-away, because thereīs only pizza where I live ....
have to get back to work now, will check in now and then, hoping for clever suggestions from you
| Lisianthus |
| (member) |
| 27/08/2008 13:28 |
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Re: PANIC ATTACK....
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Hi Maja,
Both Waitrose and Marks and Spencer do some very easy to cook - just pop in the oven - healthy meals and lovely desserts.
Change the sheets in your spare room, then cover the bed with one or two pretty throws ( M&S have some in their 'basic' range for about Ģ10 each), put some fresh flowers( freesias?) and magazines in the room and fresh flowers in your sitting room. Give the house a quick dust, spray bleach in your sinks and clean and squirt great smelling loo cleaner into the loos and pop any clutter in a box/black bag and hide in a shed/wardrobe etc until your friend has gone.
However, remember she is coming to see YOU - not to inspect your home or test your cookery skills!
Have fun.
Janine XX
| kate1 |
| (member) |
| 27/08/2008 13:59 |
Re: PANIC ATTACK....
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Maja, look on the what are you eating this week post!
I was asked for a lemon chicken recipe and have written it out on there.
It's really easy...you can put it all together beforehand...takes about five mins, and then cook in oven later.
Also, quick pasta recipe:
Chop up a couple of courgettes(each slice into 4) and and cook with chopped up bacon in a little oil.Stir in cooked pasta, with tub of creme fraiche, and 40gms of cheese.
How difficult can that be? I think I got that from a Jamie Oliver tv advert.
If you don't fancy those, let me know and will try to help!
The advice above is all you need to do re cleaning...or just spray furniture polish in the air and polish the coffee table! Rose oil wiped on light bulbs will also make room smell nice.
| Snowy1066 |
| (member) |
| 27/08/2008 14:18 |
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Re: PANIC ATTACK....
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Maja, poor you. Janine had some great ideas about getting the house sorted, so won't go there.
Stuffed peppers are easy to do and look good. Buy the nice red/orange/yellow ones. Slice the tops off, and de seed, then partially cook the peppers in boiling water for approx 10 mins, and the tops. Don't let them fall apart..Then in a pan cook chopped onions some garlic, minced beef, mushrooms, add some tomato puree, a beef stock cube, a little hot water, and if you fancy it either some paprika, or some chilli powder if you fancy a kick, if not just leave plain. Stuff the peppers with mix, then bake in the oven for approx 30 mins -45mins until peppers cooked right thru. Serve with some baby carrots and green beans and rice, or a baked potato.
For the other day what about Chicken breasts done in foil.
Tear off 2 big squares of foil, make a well, drizzle olive oil in, add sliced onions, 4/5 cherry tomatoes, some sliced peppers, mushrooms sliced, then sit the chicken breast on the top (without skin) drizzle a little more olive oil and a knob of butter on top, close up and bake in the oven in oven dish (v.little washing up) till cooked. Approx 45 mins at 180. Nice with mash or bake pots, and some extra veg.
You can prepare bits to both these dishes in advance so you are all set.
Its nothing fancy, and hopefully nothing to hate for picky people.I didn't get these from a proper cook book, so the timings are very approx, so check your chicken.
Good luck and enjoy the weekend with your friend.
| OzzieKez |
| (member) |
| 27/08/2008 23:33 |
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Re: PANIC ATTACK....
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Good luck maja!
Nothing constructive to add. I would be terrified too. I wish I was Nigella.....but I'm not!
| maja |
| (member) |
| 29/08/2008 09:10 |
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Re: PANIC ATTACK....
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thanks ladies! Feel less panicky now! Looking forward to the visit.
Iīm going to browse through recipes on this forum during lunchbreak and write a shoppinglist, and I will DEFINITELY follow Janines advice on throwing my clutter in a box and HIDE it!!! Tonight!
Already decided on a dessert though: Eton mess!!!
| issi |
| (member) |
| 29/08/2008 22:14 |
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Re: PANIC ATTACK....
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The very easiest meal is to put some chicken pieces into a warmed, oiled roasting tray and cover with sliced mushrooms and onions (if you like them) add salt and pepper and some soy sauce. Put in the oven for an hour with some jacket potatoes. This is a meal which requires no looking after. Add some vegetables if you wish, either in the roasting pan or cooked on the stove. Present with panache and everyone enjoys it!
| wispa |
| (member) |
| 30/08/2008 19:31 |
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Re: PANIC ATTACK....
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I had one of the nicest meals I've ever had in Malmo.
We started off with a crayfish soup, but while we were waiting they brought us some traditional Swedish cheese and home made bread- a sort of cream cheese with herbs - I think it was dill and juniper. It was heaven. I've tried to copy it, and nearly got it but not quite.
And for pudding it was a red soup - rodgrod?? - made with red berries. I don't usually do puddings, but that was an exception, and I'm so glad I did. I've never forgotten it. Or the bill!
And we had the wine menu, which meant that the chef chose the wine for each course, and it mtched perfectly.
..wispa
| maja |
| (member) |
| 01/09/2008 13:18 |
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Re: PANIC ATTACK....
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Hi ladies
thank you so much for your suggestions
On saturday when my friend (Ingrid)arrived, I took her for coffee at an ancient (1800īstyle) café, where they have simply gorgeous banana eclairs .
My house was qquite presentable, and the guestbed cathairfree (almost)
Dinner was easy, Ingrid likes to help, so for starters I did my hot prawns served with nice bread (ciabatta), main corse was Kates lemon chicken (lovely!) and dessert Eton mess.
Lunch before she left was stuffed peppers,(thanks Snowy) it wasnīt that quick, but we chatted away in the kitchen,drinking lots of wine, and I used for stuffing moose mince (not from our dear moosie, I swear heīs still alive somewhere) and chanterelles and fresh thyme, and baked sweet potatoes!
Dessert was a storbought reaspberry pie and HägenDazc Vanilla icecream, and coffee ( we ate almost the whole pie!)
Thanks again! we had a great time.
| maja |
| (member) |
| 01/09/2008 13:21 |
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Re: PANIC ATTACK....
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oooops, sorry,
I meant that we drank lots of wine on Saturday! Thank God, since my friend had a long drive ahead of her on Sunday.
| OzzieKez |
| (member) |
| 01/09/2008 13:26 |
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Re: PANIC ATTACK....
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Good to hear it went so well!
| Chickadee |
| (member) |
| 01/09/2008 14:03 |
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Re: PANIC ATTACK....
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Maja, you've jsut reminded me of years ago when I went to dinner with American friends who announced that pudding was "Storbot cake". I thought this was some wonderful Norwegian concoction until it arrived in a sainsbury's cardboard box...what she had actually said was "Store-bought cake" as opposed to home-made. I felt really foolish!
Glad you had fun with your friend and it all went well. I ahve visitors this weekend so will follow the house tidying instructions, and lemon chicken my well feature too - though we are having roast organic pork from OH's farm for one meal. (We could not eat Moose!!!)