Throwing my mom a surprise party and need some recipes

Question

I was thinking of making different kind of pastas and salads, and maybe a couple of pizzas, with some veggies and chips with dip.

Does anybody have any ideas? Or if you had a nice and easy lasagna recipe for 20 plus people that would be great! I just need some ideas thanx

Answer 1

Maybe you could have 1 pan of lasagna and 1 pan of chicken enchiladas. Which you can make ahead then just bake that day to save time.

Also seven layer salad, stuffed mushrooms(will be a hit, no to hard, just make ahead and bake just before). Chicken ranch pizza(superb!)

Lasagna serves 10 so double it,  but if you are having to kinds then don't double!

This is Chicken lasagna opposed to beef, (you could put some frozen spinach (squeeze the water out in a towel!) in the layers for color n taste)

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   *   9 lasagna noodles

    * 1/2 cup butter

    * 1 onion, chopped

    * 1 garlic clove, minced

    * 1/2 cup all-purpose flour

    * 1 teaspoon salt

    * 2 cups chicken broth

    * 1 1/2 cups milk

    * 4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided

    * 1 cup grated parmesan cheese, divided

    * 1 teaspoon dried basil

    * 1 teaspoon dried oregano

    * 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

    * 2 cups ricotta cheese

    * 2 cups cooked chicken b*****s

    * 2 (10 ounce) packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained

    * 1 tablespoon fresh parsley

    * 1/4 cup grated  parmesan cheese, for topping

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook lasagna noodles in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes. Drain, and rinse with cold water.

Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Cook the onion and garlic in the butter until tender, stirring frequently. Stir in the flour and salt, and simmer until bubbly. Mix in the broth and milk, and boil, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Stir in 2 cups mozzarella cheese and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese. Season with the basil, oregano, and ground black pepper. Remove from heat, and set aside.

Spread 1/3 of the sauce mixture in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Layer with 1/3 of the noodles, the ricotta, and the chicken. Arrange 1/3 of the noodles over the chicken, and layer with 1/3 of the sauce mixture, spinach, and the remaining 2 cups mozzarella cheese and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese. Arrange remaining noodles over cheese, and spread remaining sauce evenly over noodles. Sprinkle with parsley and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese.

Bake 35 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven.

Best Lasagna serves 10 also so adjust it.

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    *   13 ounces sweet Italian sausage

    * 10 ounces lean ground beef

    * 1/3 cup and 1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon minced onion

    * 1-2/3 cloves garlic, crushed

    * 7/8 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes

    * 1-2/3 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste

    * 1-2/3 (6.5 ounce) cans canned tomato sauce

    * 1/3 cup and 1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon water

    * 1 tablespoon and 2 teaspoons white sugar

    * 1-1/4 teaspoons dried basil leaves

    * 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds

    * 3/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning

    * 2-1/2 teaspoons salt

    * 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

    * 3 tablespoons and 1 teaspoon chopped fresh parsley

    * 10 lasagna noodles

    * 13 ounces ricotta cheese

    * 7/8 egg

    * 1/2 teaspoon salt

    * 10 ounces mozzarella cheese, sliced

    * 1/2 cup and 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

   1.   In a Dutch oven, cook sausage, ground beef, onion, and garlic over medium heat until well browned. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce, and water. Season with sugar, basil, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, 1 tablespoon salt, pepper, and 2 tablespoons parsley. Simmer, covered, for about 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.

   2. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook lasagna noodles in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes. Drain noodles, and rinse with cold water. In a mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese with egg, remaining parsley, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.

   3. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).

   4. To assemble, spread 1 1/2 cups of meat sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Arrange 6 noodles lengthwise over meat sauce. Spread with one half of the ricotta cheese mixture. Top with a third of mozzarella cheese slices. Spoon 1 1/2 cups meat sauce over mozzarella, and sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers, and top with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Cover with foil: to prevent sticking, either spray foil with cooking spray, or make sure the foil does not touch the cheese.

   5. Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove foil, and bake an additional 25 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes before serving.

Chicken Enchiladas serves 12

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    *   1 bunch cilantro

    * 1 cup sour cream

    * 2 (7 ounce) cans jalapeno salsa

    * 2 (7 ounce) cans prepared green chile salsa

    * 2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cooked and shredded

    * 1 onion

    * 12 (6 inch) flour tortillas

    * 2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

1. To Make Sour Cream Mixture: In a blender or food processor, puree cilantro, sour cream, jalapeno salsa and 1/2 can of the green chile salsa. Set aside.

   2. To Make Chicken Mixture: In a large bowl, combine shredded chicken, onion and the remaining 1 1/2 cans of green chile salsa. Mix well.

   3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

   4. Heat tortillas in conventional or microwave oven until soft. Pour enough of the sour cream mixture into a 9x13 inch baking dish to coat the bottom. Place 2 heaping tablespoonfuls of the chicken mixture in each tortilla, roll up and place seam side down in the baking dish. Pour remaining sour cream mixture over all and top with shredded cheese.

   5. Cover dish tightly with aluminum foil and bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for about 30 minutes, or until dish is heated through and bubbling.

Seven layer salad

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Seven-Layer...

Stuffed mushrooms: 30 mushrooms

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    *   30 large fresh mushrooms, stems removed

    * 2-1/2 (6 ounce) packages chicken flavored dry stuffing mix

    * 2-1/2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

    * 1-1/4 pounds imitation crabmeat, flaked

    * 5 cups butter

    * 5 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

    * salt and pepper to taste

    * garlic powder to taste

    * crushed red pepper to taste

This recipe's Ingredients were scaled to yield a new amount. The directions below still refer to the original recipe yield of 12 mushrooms.

   1. Arrange mushroom caps on a medium baking sheet, bottoms up. Chop and reserve mushroom stems.

   2. Prepare chicken flavored dry stuffing mix according to package directions.

   3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

   4. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Mix in garlic and cook until tender, about 5 minutes.

   5. In a medium bowl, mix together reserved mushroom stems, prepared dry stuffing mix, cream cheese and imitation crabmeat. Liberally stuff mushrooms with the mixture. Drizzle with the butter and garlic. Season with salt, pepper, garlic powder and crushed red pepper.

   6. Bake uncovered in the preheated oven 10 to 12 minutes, or until stuffing is lightly browned.

Chicken ranch pizza makes 2 pizzas

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Answer 2

Lasagna is a great idea.  It's filling, it's a lot of food, and you can make it ahead.  Plus the first one will stay hot a long time while the second one cooks.  I've included a link for a no-boil lasagna that is very yummy.  You can make one with beef or sausage (or a combo) and one vegetarian for variety.  

Serve with a big salad and crusty french bread...yum!

make Bruchetta for appetizers if you want to keep the italian theme, or maybe an antipasto platter.

Another appetizer idea is to serve Asiago Cheese bread cut up into chunks next to a shallow dish with olive oil, fresh basil, kosher salt, and fresh ground pepper.