Meal for 8 - Aurora,IL

Depending on how easy you want it to be....here are a few ideas. I used to work in pharmaceutical sales and had to do meals for large groups often.

If ease is the biggest issue, and you have a Cracker Barrel nearby, order one of their whole meatloaf meals. A few extra quarts of sides and some salads will feed all for around $100. You can do the same from Olive Garden, Chilis, Ruby Tuesday (anywhere with party platters).

We bought some Barilla No Cook lasagna noodles and followed the recipe on the back the other day - it was phenomenal and has fed us since Sunday - definitely enough for 8 hungry people.

Add a salad, a few favorite sides, some warm bread, and I think you have a good meal in my opinion.

I always try to overdo it and need to learn the art of simplicity.

JB,

The very best dish for big gatherings is lasagna with garlic bread and a yummy salad. All can be prepared early & heated for the gathering plus it's healthy & tasty.

That said I have a recipe for a roast that is out of this world. You could prep it ahead of time. The trick to making this one easy is to ask the butcher to butterfly cut the roast for you - at Meijer they know how to do this properly, at Jewel they just lobbed it in half - hello I could've done that! Butterfly cutting is to cut it so that the whole roast lays flat like a huge pancake! At Meijer they don't charge extra for it either, which is nice. I'd serve this dish to the queen if she came for dinner, it's rich and fabulous.

Sage & Rosemary Pork
preheat oven to 350 degrees

Filling
¼ t each salt, ground black pepper
2T chopped fresh parsley roast, butterfly cut
1½ T chopped fresh sage or thyme
1 T chopped fresh rosemary
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 t Dijon mustard

Pork Loin
¾ t salt
½ t ground black pepper
1 - 2 lb boneless center loin pork
1 T extra virgin olive oil
fresh sage & rosemary for garnish

Sprinkle top side of butterflied loin with salt & pepper, spread the filling evenly across the loin, leaving ½” border along the edge where you made the first cut. Beginning at the opposite edge, roll the loin up to wrap the filling. Using kitchen twine, tie the loin every ½” to hold its shape. Rub the loin with oil & sprinkle with salt & pepper, roast 1 hr. or till center temperature reaches 155 degrees F & the juices run clear. Let stand 10 minutes before carving. To prevent slices from unrolling, skewer the roast every ½” with wooden picks. Remove twine before serving, ganrnish if desired.

Have fun!
D.

Baked Mosticcoli is our standbye fav.

2 lb ground beef or italian sausage browned and drained
2 boxes of mosticolli cooked to package directions
1 big jar of prego traditional sauce
1 package of shredded mozzarella cheese (4 cup size)

put some sauce (about a cup) in the bottom of a baking dish then put the noodles and ground beef in. mix up a little bit pour the sauce over the top. bake in 350 oven till warmed thru usually about a half hour or so. then pull it out and put the cheese evenly across the top. back into the oven to melt and brown the cheese a little bit. serve with salad and french bread and your good to go. and the left overs are just as good the next day. good luck

my mother in law makes this chicken dish that she calls "never fail chicken", and it so easy & so good!
you take 8 chicken breasts (boneless) and pound them thin.
set them aside. you can easily double this recipe too.
then mix up 1 small can condensed cream of mushroom soup mix, i cup of sour cream, and 1 cup of red wine. this "goop" as she calls it will be thick but spread some on the bottom of a greased baking pan and lay the chicken on top, then top with the remaining goop.
bake it @ 350 for an hour...and you can even leave it in the oven after the hour is up on warm...its so good, and you can make it ahead of time too, which is helpful when you're hosting a party.
serve it with rice & a veggie.
so good.
good luck!

BBQ Ribs.
put the ribs in the slow cooker with an onion and bbq sauce. cook for about 5 hours. We love them!