If you follow me on social media you will know that we love a good dinner party in the Walid household. We recently hosted our first autumn dinner party for four with a delicious seasonal menu using ingredients sourced from Amazon Fresh. I wanted to share my top tips on how you can host an affordable three-course dinner party which only costs £6.50 per person!.
Pick A Seasonal Menu
I always find that in the colder months, we tend to favor foods like soups, root vegetables, dark leafy greens, and citrus fruits like Lemons. I knew I wanted to make a fresh seasonal soup, a hearty sharing shepherds pie with a zesty dessert to finish. With our busy lifestyles, it’s not always easy finding time to head into super markets so we always order our fresh ingredients from Amazon Fresh and because we’re prime members we get same day delivery for order over £40.
Keep Starters Simple
There’s nothing like a warming seasonal soup in the autumn. What I love most about making soup is that I can cook a big batch that serves our dinner party with plenty leftover to enjoy for the rest of the week. I decided to opt for a spicy red lentil swede and caramalised onion soup. It was absolutely delicious and went down a treat!
Opt For A Sharing Pie
My hearty carrot and lamb Shepard’s pie is a favorite in our household, it’s one of those dishes that always goes down a treat especially in autumn. Shepard’s pie ticks so many boxes for me, it’s a nutritious dish with plenty of vegetables like carrots, onions and peas, it has great flavor and is cost effective to make. I also love the fact that there’s always seconds to go around and serves well as a sharing dish at dinner parties. Plus it’s super filling! I like to make mine a little bit special by making my signature home made mash to finish it off. Amazon Fresh offers a selection of halal meat options, for my dish I used the halal lamb mince.
Offer A Signature Drink
When it comes to dinner parties I do like to offer a signature drink for my guests, it just gives the dinner party that extra special touch. To compliment the main dish I opted for a zero alcohol red wine. Made with subtle spice and vanilla notes complimented by plum and forest berry aromas, it was a great addition to our menu.
No Fuss Dessert
Baking is not a strong cooking skill for me so I decided to get a ready made dessert in to finish off our autumn dinner party. I selected a lemon cheesecake on a digestive crumb base. I gave it a special touch by presenting it on my dessert serving stand and dusted it with some icing powder for a little gourmet touch. From frozen desserts to hot puddings, Amazon Fresh offers a wide selection of delicious desserts! Ours went down a treat and served as a great palate cleanser at the end of the evening.
Setting The Scene
There’s so many inexpensive ways to set the scene for your autumn dinner party. I added a few candles and used my existing dining table centre piece as a focal point. I got creative by placing the dessert on a serving stand that worked really well with the finishing touches on my dining table.
